How Much Should You Pay For Resume Writing Services?

By Richard White

How much should you pay for a resume? You may get a career summary written for you for as small a fee as $20 or as large a fee as $500. The question is – which price is reasonable? To understand the right charge for a resume writing service, you need to pay attention to the old adage – you get what you pay for.
 

When you opt for a professional writer to prepare your resume, you pay for his/her expertise. When you pay a professional a sum as meagre as $20 for a resume, you cannot expect his/her expertise to be similar to that of someone who charges $500 for the same.

 

You need to pay the right fee to ensure that the job is done properly. The ultimate objective is to get a resume that can ensure an interview and eventually a job. However, this is often not as easy as it sounds, especially after the recent recession. The job market is fiercely competitive and a run-of-the-mill application will be lost amongst numerous similar ones.

 

The Process - How Resume Writing Works

The process a resume writer uses indicates whether you will end up with a good resume or just an average one. Here are the steps involved in the process in which a competent writing service works.
 

Step 1: You find a service and fill out an online questionnaire. The first step, in most cases, involves a questionnaire. However, the objective differs for different writing services. While a good writing service requires it to find out basic information about you, a resume factory uses it as the sole source of information to embellish a template.

Step 2: You are matched up with a professional writer. A competent writing service has a number of professional writers who specialize in different types of resumes. After you fill out the online questionnaire, they find a suitable writer with the appropriate skills to work on your career summary.

Step 3: The writer consults you to find out your career details. Only a face-to-face or telephone interview can help the writer find out minute details about your career. He/she needs to know your background, the competencies that make you unique and the way you can contribute to a company’s growth and development.

Step 4: The writer prepares your resume. Only after the professional writer has a clear and accurate idea of your career, he/she can create a good document. This involves the creation of a customized resume from scratch, with individualized content and presentation. An appropriate document is not only about what it says but also how it says.

Step 5: You and the writer work together to perfect the resume. The document may not be perfect at this step. You may require modifications and alterations to the content or the format. The writer must discuss the changes you think are necessary for the document and complete them as per your requirements.

Your Level of Expertise In Your Field

Now that you have an idea about how a competent service will work, the question remains the same – how much should you pay for a resume? Apart from the expertise available from a writing service, another factor also affects the cost of your career summary – the level at which you are in your career.

For a recent graduate, i.e., a candidate looking for entry-level work, the resume must focus on the educational background as well as any part or full time experience the candidate has in such a manner that it corresponds to the requirements set by the prospective employers.

This type of career summaries is the shortest of the lot, and therefore, more affordable than other types, writing these requires specific skills. The lack of work experience must not become the highlight; instead, the focus must be on the educational achievements.

For a professional, i.e., a candidate with 2-3 years of work experience, the resume must highlight your achievements in your field along with your skills and competencies. The writer needs to discuss your work experience and accomplishments before he/she can put them down on paper.

This type of writing service is more expensive than that for beginners; the reason for this is the writer needs to spend considerable time to know you and understand your achievements before he/she can complete the task.

For an executive, i.e., a candidate with 10-12 years of progressive experience in the same field, the resume must focus on the skills and competencies that make the candidate an invaluable addition to a company in a specific niche. For this purpose, the professional writer must specialize in this type of writing.

This type of writing service is the most expensive amongst all. The writer needs to have in-depth knowledge of the specific field along with appropriate writing and marketing skills to present your career summary in an attractive manner.

Author Bio: Richard White works as an editor at Yellow Brick Path. He enjoys varying his work and researching new and different approaches to his work. He shares an interest in career counseling and recruitment. Follow him on Twitter.
 

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