Skip to content
The Reserves Network
  • Find a JobExpand
    • Find a Job
      People-centered and purpose-driven, TRN offers access to top jobs as well as a true career partnership.
      Search Jobs
      Search Jobs
      • Why Work with TRN
      • Refer a Friend
      • Careers at TRN
      • Job Seeker Articles & Insights
  • Find TalentExpand
    • Find Talent
      Get all the workforce solutions you need in one place, no matter your size and sector. TRN has you covered.
      Request Talent
      Request Talent

      Workforce Solutions

      • Overview – How We Help
      • Staffing Solutions
      • Managed Staffing
      • Executive Search
      • Workforce Articles & Insights

      Specialties

      • Overview
      • Industrial & Manufacturing
      • Accounting & Finance
      • Information Technology
      • Engineering
      • Office & Professional
      • Executive & Management
      • Real Estate
      • Healthcare

      Specialties

      • Overview
      • Accounting & Finance
      • Engineering
      • Executive & Management
      • Healthcare
      • Industrial & Manufacturing
      • Information Technology
      • Office & Professional
      • Real Estate
  • LoginExpand
    • Employee Login
    • Client Login
    • Employee Resources
  • Locations
  • Contact
The Reserves Network
Candidate Resources

5 Pointers for Using Keywords in Your Resume

Post by:The Reserves Network March 15, 2018April 9, 2024

The Reserves Network

 

Optimizing your resume with keywords relevant to your skills and experience makes it easier for hiring managers to find, analyze and categorize your profile and how you may fit in with a role. More importantly, resume keywords are essential for applicant tracking systems (ATS)—software systems that scan through hundreds of resumes, automatically detecting keywords and sorting resumes according to relevance to a role, qualification and/or credential.

And that’s exactly what keywords are.

“Keywords are essentially the skills, expertise, credentials, and qualifications that every hiring manager looks for in a potential candidate,” said John Bengal, Vice President of Strategic Business Expansion at The Reserves Network.

By integrating keywords in your resume and even your cover letter, both the hiring manager and the ATS can quickly see whether or not you match the requirements of an open position.

So, how exactly do you know which keywords to use? 

 

  1. Be Specific

Choose keywords that are closely related to the position you’re applying for. For example, if the position is for a digital marketing manager, include relevant keywords like search engine optimization, pay per click marketing, copywriting, press release writing, public relations and social media marketing. These keywords and phrases are the core competencies of any digital marketing professional.

 

  1. Do NOT Use a Keyword That’s Not Actually Your Skill

Don’t embed keywords in your resume just for the sake of doing so. Even if an ATS were to see your resume as a suitable match, the ease of background and reference checking today means that the smallest embellishment can be verified. If you do this, don’t be surprised if your name gets blacklisted right away.

 

  1. Include Soft Skills Too

Aside from your core competencies, don’t be afraid to mix things up by adding keywords related to your soft skills. These include communication, interpersonal, management, organizational and research skills. Although you might think that hiring managers only care about technical skills, these auxiliary keywords help you stand out as a well-rounded candidate.

 

  1. Put Keywords Everywhere

For maximum exposure, embed your keywords wherever relevant – this includes your objective section as well as your relevant work experience, skills, training, certifications and referrals sections.

 

  1. Don’t Over-Optimize Your Resume

Embedding more keywords in your resume isn’t the trick to optimizing it for ATS software. Remember, your resume will also be read by real people, so you should only use keywords when appropriate. Make sure your keywords don’t affect the document’s readability.

Here’s the bottom line: keywords that are relevant to your skills, job experience and credentials help make your resume more relevant to the people and software that accept them. Exercise caution and use keywords only when it makes sense. For more resume writing tips and tricks, talk to the staffing services experts of The Reserves Network. Call our offices to learn more about our recruitment solutions.

 

Job Search

 

Post navigation

Previous Previous
In Defense of the Cover Letter – Why it’s Just as Important as Your Resume
NextContinue
Job Fair at Archway Marketing!
866 TRN 2020 Login

TRN is a leading national provider of flexible staffing services, including temporary, temp-to-hire, and direct hire placements. It’s not just what we do, but how we do it, that matters.

  • TikTok
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • X

Find a Job

  • Search Jobs
  • Why Work with TRN
  • Refer a Friend
  • Careers at TRN
  • Job Seeker Articles & Insights

Find Talent

  • How We Help
  • Staffing Solutions
  • Managed Staffing
  • Executive Search
  • Our Specialties
  • Workforce Articles & Insights

About

  • About The Reserves Network
  • News
  • Contact
  • Locations
  • Employee Resources
  • All Articles & Insights

22021 Brookpark Road, Fairview Park, OH 44126 | moreinfo@TRNstaffing.com  | HTML Sitemap

© 2025 The Reserves Network. Privacy Policy

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in .

Scroll to top
  • Find a Job
    • Find a Job
      People-centered and purpose-driven, TRN offers access to top jobs as well as a true career partnership.
      Search Jobs
      Search Jobs
      • Why Work with TRN
      • Refer a Friend
      • Careers at TRN
      • Job Seeker Articles & Insights
  • Find Talent
    • Find Talent
      Get all the workforce solutions you need in one place, no matter your size and sector. TRN has you covered.
      Request Talent
      Request Talent

      Workforce Solutions

      • Overview – How We Help
      • Staffing Solutions
      • Managed Staffing
      • Executive Search
      • Workforce Articles & Insights

      Specialties

      • Overview
      • Industrial & Manufacturing
      • Accounting & Finance
      • Information Technology
      • Engineering
      • Office & Professional
      • Executive & Management
      • Real Estate
      • Healthcare

      Specialties

      • Overview
      • Accounting & Finance
      • Engineering
      • Executive & Management
      • Healthcare
      • Industrial & Manufacturing
      • Information Technology
      • Office & Professional
      • Real Estate
  • Login
    • Employee Login
    • Client Login
    • Employee Resources
The Reserves Network
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.

3rd Party Cookies

This website uses Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Meta, LinkedIn, Zoominfo, and Hubspot to collect anonymous information such as the number of visitors to the site, and the most popular pages.

Keeping this cookie enabled helps us to improve our website.

Please enable Strictly Necessary Cookies first so that we can save your preferences!