THESE ARE THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ) RÉSUMÉ CLIENTS HAVE.
OUR RÉSUMÉS WORK. PERIOD. CLICK HERE!
If you do not find the answer to your question(s) here or anywhere on the website, please feel free to contact us. We are more than happy to answer whatever question(s) you may have!
FAQ 1: I am not planning to change my job or career any time soon, or I am in school. Why obtain a résumé or portfolio now?
Long past are the days when the majority of individuals spent their entire lives in the same neighborhood, let alone their entire careers at a single place of employment. Today, nobody’s life situation, career, or job is completely secure. Illness, injury, family situations, transportation issues, housing difficulties, downsizing, mergers, corporate takeovers, trends, new laws, and shifts in the economy, are all common occurrences and often unexpected. These issues affect people in every industry and from every socio-economic and educational background. Being ready for a situation that may force or necessitate change is pragmatic and responsible. When going through changes there are many things with which you must contend and your to do list suddenly doubles or more in length. Having your résumé and/or portfolio and other materials ready will be that much less that you will have to do and about which you will have to worry.
In addition, research has shown that the early bird actually does get the worm when it comes to the job hunt, and having your job hunt materials ready will keep you ahead of the pack. Keep in mind that you never know when an unexpected opportunity is going to present itself. From an unexpected vacancy in your current place of employment, to word from a friend of an opening at a different company, to a business offer from out of the blue, you want to be ready to answer when opportunity knocks and not tell it to hold on a second while you get your materials ready.
Finally, maintaining a current résumé or portfolio that is written and formatted by a neutral professional greatly assists you with taking stock of where you are and how you actually come across to others. This can serve as a baseline from which you set goals related to where you want to be and how you want to be perceived. These are invaluable for things like performance, salary, and bonus reviews, and when being considered for a promotion.
FAQ 2: Many positions require a job application to be filled in, why bother with a résumé?
Although many positions require a preformatted job application, a great many of those same positions also require or request a résumé. Also, think of the advantage that you will have over your competition when you submit a résumé with your application even when it is not required.
FAQ 3: Isn’t a résumé just a listing of my credentials, and a portfolio just a sampling of my work? Why should I get help with that?
Crafting a résumé or portfolio is not as easy as most people think.
1. The fact is that people consciously and sub-consciously look for certain things when reviewing these items. It does not matter for what you think they should be looking. What matters is that you provide them with what they want and do so in a way that appeals to them. This takes specialized knowledge and skills.
2. Due to a plethora of local, state, and federal laws, along with an enormous amount of civil and criminal litigation, there are certain things that will cause many employers to immediately reject your résumé or portfolio. It takes specialized knowledge and skill sets to know what to avoid and how to properly say what you want to present.
3. Social and cultural trends are ever evolving and directly and indirectly influence employers. You need a certain anthropological expertise to understand how these trends influence employers, along with the specialized knowledge about how they should impact your résumé or portfolio.
4. A growing number of employers are utilizing artificial intelligence (A.I.) and other computer scanning programs to review résumés and portfolios. Generally, only those résumés or portfolios “approved” by the A.I. or software will then be reviewed by a person. This means that your résumé or portfolio needs to both beat the computer and appeal to the person who finally sees it. This takes very specialized knowledge of computer programs and industry practices.
The list goes on, but we think we have made the point. Although having multiple skills and multitasking are great attributes in the job market, it takes specialized skills, knowledge, and experience to craft a résumé or portfolio that actually works.
FAQ 4: I know how to appropriately dress and speak. Do I really need interview preparation training?
Please read the answer to question 3, the same principle applies here.
FAQ 5: Do you also write curricula vitae?
Yes.
FAQ 6: Does the economy play a role in whether I should obtain these products?
Very much so. If the economy is doing well, people are expecting upward mobility and are willing to change jobs and careers in the pursuit of a better lifestyle. As a result, employers must do more to retain employees, which in turn results in more competition for advancement within the workplace, making it more difficult to get into other companies even as they are growing.
If the economy is not doing well, people are working just to maintain their current lifestyle and are not as willing to take risks and make changes. As a result, employers do not have to work as hard to retain employees, which in turn means that employers can be much more selective about whom they hire, retain, and promote. You should to be ready for both scenarios.
FAQ 7: Is the cost of a résumé, portfolio, or interview preparation worth the money?
This is obviously a matter of opinion. However, we can provide some objective information that helps demonstrate the value of these items.
Consider that the cost of these items will cost the equivalent of anywhere between an hour to a couple days’ worth of salary, depending on your career level and profession. Now ask yourself if that cost is worth the long-term income and benefits you will obtain with your new job, career, or promotion.
Also, consider that nearly all of us make financial investments in every aspect of our lives; for our health, fitness, homes, vacations, hobbies, play, and more. Why would you not make a financial investment in the actual income that allows you to do and pay for these things?
FAQ 8: What is wrong with using artificial intelligence to write my résumé or portfolio?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) can definitely be a useful tool when utilized in the right situations and in the correct manner. As professional résumé and portfolio writers we stay up to date on relevant technological developments and that includes AI. Briefly, some of the pitfalls of artificial intelligence as it specifically relates to résumés and portfolios include:
1. Like all computer programs, AI is subject to spyware, viruses, Trojan horses, and crashes.
2. Employers frown upon AI generated résumés and portfolios and are increasingly using software that detects if a résumé, portfolio, or other document is AI generated.
3. From content to formatting and general design, AI creates documents that are consciously and sub-consciously displeasing to people in general and critical reviewers in particular; and résumés and portfolios are certainly critically reviewed documents.
4. AI fails to understand and comprehend human psychology and motivation. Understanding these things and knowing how to use them is invaluable when creating résumés and portfolios because at the end of the day it is another person who will have final review of these documents and decides who gets called for an interview and who does not.
5. AI programs copy and maintain permanent records of all functions performed and all work done. This is integral to how AI programs function as they are “learning” dependent programs. Without permanent retention the program cannot function. As a result, AI programs also observe (spy on) everything you do on the device or system on which they are installed or to which they are connected, even when you are not using the program or have not activated it.
6. Organizations and companies that provide online résumé writing and portfolio creating AI programs, whether free or for a fee, are guilty of the following:
-Sharing your information over unsecured networks.
-Utilizing stagnate and inflexible one-size-fits all résumé templates.
-Maintaining ownership of both your information and the product it creates for you.
-Engaging in data mining and selling your information to third parties including debt collectors and marketers.
-Engaging in dynamic pricing wherein the AI program analyzes you and your data to determine how much sellers can get away with charging you based upon how much the AI thinks you will pay and then providing that information to third parties.
FAQ 9: Why do you not provide samples of your résumés and portfolios on the website?
1. The proven designs, formats, and formulas that we have developed are proprietary. You can of course do what you want with your product after you have purchased it. However, by posting samples we would be inviting our competition to attempt to copy our work. If you are wondering what is stopping a competitor from simply pretending to be a client, the answer is nothing. At least he would have paid first! Besides, competitors would have to purchase several dozen versions of each product to even start to copy our quality work. At the end of the day, we are not going to make it easy for them.
2. Many individuals will attempt to create their own résumé or portfolio based upon samples. This results in a poor résumé or portfolio because these items are not plug and play one size fits all, which is why each product we create is individualized and personalized. Nevertheless, people will try. The result is a poor résumé or portfolio for the consumer and lost revenue for us. The person that does this will sometimes assert that our résumés and portfolios are poor because of the feedback that their creation received. We choose not to contribute to or encourage this in any way.
3. This website provides a great example of our work. All of the content is written, edited, and designed by us in house, with no outsourcing whatsoever. The professionalism, thoroughness, and overall quality of this website serve to demonstrate our writing skills, attention to detail, and ability to create an excellent product.
4. The number of online samples that were not actually created by the person or company posting them might surprise you.
FAQ 10: Why do you not provide testimonials on your website?
Testimonials are like references that you have absolutely no way of checking! Just as with the résumé and portfolio samples we mentioned above, you would be surprised how many website testimonials are completely fabricated. Fake reviews and testimonials are so prevalent that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has even addressed the problem. Unfortunately, the reality is that the FTC will have little impact on the many billions of fake reviews found online and provided in person. If you are impressed with our website content and design, with the services we offer, with our procedures, with our privacy policy and terms, and with our prices; you do not need quote extracts from a complete stranger that you have no way of verifying, to tell you that you should consider us.
FAQ 11: Do you belong to, or have any certifications, from any résumé writing associations?
No.
1. There is absolutely no such thing as an official résumé writing association or certification. Every single so-called résumé writing certification is offered by a private for profit business, usually an L.L.C., that is owned and operated by one or two individuals. Not one of these part-time basement businesses is accredited by any academically recognized body such as the Middle States Association on Higher Education, or licensed by a government agency such as a State Department of Education or even a State Board of Ethics and Professionalism. In fact, in our research we discovered that a very prominent résumé certification business operating in the United States was incorporated and run by a hair dresser who self-certified herself as a résumé writing instructor! We have found these “companies” operating without business licenses as well as having many other unprofessional issues.
2. Upon close examination you will easily find these businesses have less to do with skill development and more to do with “building your six-figure income business”. When was the last time a reputable professional certification program concerned itself with anything other than the mastery of the expertise, skills, and ethics necessary to perform the task for which the student was training? Imagine a teacher college selling their students a membership to grow their teaching “biz”. The academic and ethical problems would be astonishing.
3. In our opinion, no third party self-appointed commercial entity is qualified to declare anybody competent, let alone an expert, in this particular field.
4. Our education, training, experience, expertise, this website, etc., all speak to our qualifications and to the quality of our work. And yes, WJPL Résumés and Portfolios is a fully registered business entity in our state with all required business, sale, and tax licenses as required by law.
FAQ 12: Do you offer tiered pricing?
No.
1. Many companies utilize a tiered pricing structure based upon whether they determine you are ”entry”, “intermediate”, “professional”, “executive”, “advanced”, etc. These terms are very nebulous and determining what constitutes each level is equally subjective. Let’s be realistic; almost no one falls squarely into any particular category.
2. This pricing structure lends itself to allowing you to be charged based upon how much can be gotten out of you. This does not seem right to us.
3. Since all of your personal and professional information must first be handed over in order to make a determination as to your tier, that provides an opportunity to engage in high pressure sales tactics. Once you have gone through all the trouble of providing your information, you can be more easily pressured into deciding that it is easier just to go with that company. This also does not seem right to us.
4. Regardless of your background, education, and experience, we will provide you with the highest quality product and service. Our flat, fully disclosed fees reflect this ethical approach.
FAQ 13: Do you offer a guarantee?
No.
You have our word that we will provide the absolutely highest quality résumés, portfolios, and interview training at a fair and reasonable price. However, it is impossible to make any promise as to what results will be obtained. In our opinion, anyone who offers a résumé guarantee either does not understand how résumés work and/or is being intentionally misleading. Résumés do not get people hired or promoted. Résumés get you an interview, and a successful interview is what gets you hired or promoted. Clearly, no résumé writer can guarantee how well you are going to do in an interview. In addition, there are many variables that may impact an advertised or posted position such as office politics and nepotism. In addition, how qualified are you for that specific position or has someone else already been selected but the appearance of a search must be made? What if you simply remind the interviewer of someone he dislikes? Résumés are extremely important for getting past the first important step. However, there is an equally important second step, and sometimes there are behind the scenes factors that prevent even the truly best candidates from securing, let alone passing, an interview.
Every résumé guarantee that we have seen has significant fine print in which you will find four things. First, that you must perform a long list of extremely time consuming, difficult, and costly requirements in order to qualify for a potential refund. Second, many of the items on the list are unprofessional and will actually impede your chances of obtaining a position. Third, the evidence that you must provide proving that you performed every requirement is itself extremely time consuming, difficult, and costly; including the required form and manner of delivery. Fourth, you have a very short deadline to complete all of the requirements and to deliver the proof. Looking for a job is hard enough without having to work a second job just to try to claim a guarantee that is virtually impossible to get.