A content writer’s resume is their opportunity to showcase their writing samples and skills to potential employers. While all resumes should highlight relevant experiences, a content writer’s resume needs to go a step further in demonstrating their ability to craft engaging written content across various topics and platforms.
When creating a resume for content writing positions, it’s important to keep in mind what recruiters and hiring managers will be looking for. Your resume should aim to convey three key things – your writing skills and style, your subject matter expertise, and your digital marketing knowledge. With that in mind, here are some of the most important sections and information to include in a content writer’s resume:
Profile or Summary
The top of your resume should have a brief 2-3 line profile or summary introducing who you are as a writer. Highlight your strongest qualifications such as being an experienced content marketer, blogger, and online publisher with a proven track record of increasing web traffic and engagement through compelling long-form and social media content.
Writing Samples
Include 2-3 writing samples that demonstrate your ability to write clearly and engagingly across different types of content. Make sure to choose samples that are relevant to the positions you’re applying for. Provide a brief description or bullet points describing the topic, audience, purpose, and any metrics. Link to an online portfolio or Google Drive folder where hiring managers can easily access your full samples.
Subject Matter Expertise
List 3-5 topics or industries that you have in-depth subject matter expertise in through your past research, work experience, or personal interests. Hiring managers want to see that you can produce unique content across a wide range of potential topics they may need covered.
Experience Section
Detail your relevant professional experience in chronological order. For each role, include bullet points highlighting your specific content-related responsibilities, achievements, and results. Make sure to use powerful action verbs and include quantifiable metrics where possible to convey the impact of your work.
For content writing roles, describe any experience researching, interviewing SME’s, drafting blogs, ebooks, articles, social posts, website copy, newsletters, or other digital assets. Note if you have experience using content management systems like WordPress.
Education
List your relevant education including degrees, certifications, or ongoing courses in areas like writing, journalism, marketing, or technology. You don’t necessarily need to include high school if you have post-secondary education or work experience.
Technical Skills
Include a technical skills section highlighting your proficiency with content writing, design, and marketing tools. Beyond MS Office suite, list any CMS, analytics, and creative software you know how to use like Adobe Creative Suite, SEMrush, Hootsuite, etc.
Additional sections
Consider including additional, optional sections for things like awards/achievements, training/courses, freelance writing portfolio, publications/bylines if applicable. You can also include languages spoken, relevant volunteer work, or LinkedIn/website URLs.
Make sure your resume has good formatting for easy reading including sections clearly labeled in bold, consistent fonts, plenty of white space, and a professional design. Tailor your resume to the specific job by including keywords from the job description. Proofread carefully for typos or grammatical errors – as a professional writer, quality is important.
When applying for content writing jobs, think beyond just the words on your resume. Hiring managers may check out your social media profiles, blogs, or personal websites too. Make sure these profiles match your professional brand and further demonstrate your writing abilities and areas of interest. Well-rounded candidates who can prove their expertise through compelling online presences tend to have a competitive advantage.
Securing interviews and job offers often comes down to how well your resume stands out from others and conveys your value as a content creator and marketer. With samples and strategic framing of your experiences and skills, you can craft a powerful resume that highlights your abilities and inspires confidence that you’re the right fit for the role. With the right resume, your writing will get to shine and speak for itself during the hiring process.