21 Nov CV Writing UK – Free versus paid CV writing service

 

‘CV writing UK’. Here are our tips that you can use, for free, to create your perfect CV. However, if you’re looking for a professional CV writing or editing service to finesse your CV, we’d love to help.

 

Background

A CV writing UK-based team will give you the best change to get noticed! Most employers will look at and consider many candidates before choosing those they want to interview. If you have a polished, error-free CV, then you will stand a better chance of being taken seriously; you will stand out from the crowd and, hopefully, make it all the way to the pool of interviewees. 

How our CV writing service works

Just send us your draft CV to info@voicenotes.co.uk, and we will confirm the price – usually, it’s £25 + VAT. Then, if you’d like to go ahead, we’ll return a Word version with all suggested amendments and re-writes clearly marked up, to both show you what we can do and to help you ensure that your CV is the best it can be.

What is an ideal template to use for CV writing?

There are quite a few templates available for free on the internet to create a stand-out CV in minutes. Any professional style is good; there is no ‘one size fits all’.

What do you need to include?

1. Contact information
2. CV profile/personal statement
3. Work experience
4. Education
5. Skills

 

What is optional but great to include if you can?

1. Languages – a bonus. Even if not relevant to the role, it shows a skill set that could be useful.
2. Social media profile – If appropriate, add a social media profile – usually a business one like LinkedIn versus a social one like Facebook.
3. Voluntary work – where you have limited work experience for the role you are applying for, voluntary work experience is great to include, as it exemplifies dedication to a cause and kindness to others, which are the kind of traits employers will want to see in their employees.
4. Training courses – if you’ve been on any courses in a previous role, these are good to add to show skills you have learned already. Add in if you’ve received any certificates or awards too.
5. Tasks in previous roles – if you were involved in activities or tasks not directly relevant to your previous job, it is still worth writing them down, as it shows all-round involvement, which companies often look for. For instance, organising the department night out, Christmas meal, etc. 

Be factual. Employers should check facts and dates if they are serious about employing you.

How long should your CV be?

There are no right or wrong answers on this. It can depend on the job and level of seniority, but we recommend 1-2 pages.

If you don’t want to spend any money, here are some tips for proofreading your CV yourself

‘CV writing UK’ and ‘CV writing services’ are searched for thousands of times a month. Those looking could be people seeking a professional CV writing company or just tips and advice on how to do it themselves. Please see our proofreading tips below.

1. Beware of ‘spellchecker illiteracy’: By all means, use spellcheckers and other free grammar applications as a first step, but exercise caution! Never just accept their changes as correct – they often aren’t. Spellcheckers are automated applications, so they don’t have the human insight and intelligence, nor appreciation of context, required to achieve perfection. 

One very good example of where spellcheckers often don’t make the grade, and also one for you to watch for, are homonyms – words that share the same spelling or pronunciation but have different meanings. For example, incorrectly switching accept with except, affect with effect or complement with compliment will make a nonsense of a piece of writing (not to mention your credibility), so pay attention to them to ensure the appropriate word has been used.

2. Seek out a second pair of eyes: As we do tend to mentally ‘filter out’ mistakes when we know what should be there, it’s a good idea to ask a friend to give your work a read for you.

3. Read your work aloud: … as if you were performing it on stage. Do this in private if you prefer! We love this one – it really helps you determine where you should place punctuation marks, such as commas, full stops and hyphens.

 

How to choose a professional CV writing service

When you search ‘CV writing UK’ or ‘CV writing London’, you will find a whole host of companies that are willing to help. We would advise you to consider the following before choosing a service:

1. The experience of the team or freelancer.
2. The price – this will vary between providers.
3. Turnaround time – how quickly do you need your polished, finished document?
4. Do you need proofreading or copy-editing?

 

As a guide, the below is what VoiceNotes covers under ‘proofreading’ and ‘copy-editing’. 

 

The price for CV writing

When you are looking for CV writing services, there are a few options, and the price varies depending on how experienced or professional a freelancer or company is.

What our CV editing service costs

For an average profile, we charge from £25 + VAT (so £30 inclusive of VAT). In our opinion, proofreading your CV is definitely worth the time and cost.

How long does it take to proofread and copy-edit a CV?

It depends on the expertise of the service and how they are set up. Some are experts specifically in CV writing and will return your edits before you’ve made your next cup of coffee! Generally, longer turnaround times – 48 hours or two business days – are common. We appreciate that sometimes you need a CV back ASAP, and we launched our CV writing service to meet these specific deadlines and do everything we can to help.

What to look for when choosing a CV writing service

Using a proofreading and copy-editing service to ‘look your best’ is really worth the time and money. If you want to save costs, then asking a friend or family member to read through your profile may also be an option. Proofreading isn’t as expensive as audio transcription, so make your own written version first rather than dictate an audio file to save some money.

How safe is outsourcing your CV?

If fully ISO 27001 compliant, CV writing services like VoiceNotes will operate to the strictest of security standards. Companies that faithfully operate to ISO 27001 standards are as secure as it’s possible to be, and if you are looking to outsource sensitive and highly confidential data, you can do so with the utmost confidence. As a transcription and proofreading company is responsible for sensitive client data day in, day out, private and confidential information should always be held in the strictest confidence. A CV writing service is still dealing with data, so it should still adhere to these data protection guidelines.

Conclusion

A CV writing service should leave you feeling confident – now all you need to do is ace the interview! CV writing UK is the best!

 

Contact our CV writing service today to help you feel confident – 02071170066 – www.voicenotes.co.uk – info@voicenotes.co.uk.