How to Write a Resume That Actually Works for Marketing and Communications Execs
By: Jon Cohen
A resume is no longer just a record of where you have worked. In marketing and communications, it is your most important ‘campaign’. It is your positioning statement, your narrative, and often your only chance to make a strong first impression before a HR or hiring manager moves on.
Despite this, many talented professionals still struggle with how to write a resume that reflects their real value. They rely on generic templates, overstuffed skills lists, or outdated formats that fail to speak to modern hiring practices. Others know how to write well—but not how to write strategically for an applicant tracking system (ATS), a time-poor recruiter, and a competitive global market.
If you are wondering how to make a resume that stands out, communicates credibility, and supports your next career move, the answer starts with understanding what a professional resume really needs to do.
Why a Resume Still Matters in Marketing and Communications
In creative and communications roles, it is tempting to believe that online portfolios, LinkedIn profiles, or personal brands carry more weight than a resume. The resume remains the foundation of every hiring decision. It’s the ‘first impression’ that gets you in the door.
Recruiters and hiring managers still rely on resumes to:
- Quickly assess experience and seniority
- Scan for relevant resume skills examples
- Compare candidates objectively
- Filter applicants through ATS software
A strong professional resume does not just list responsibilities. It frames your experience as outcomes, impact, and leadership. It shows how you think, how you communicate, and how you position value—skills that are central to marketing and communications roles.
What to Include in a Resume for Marketing and Communications Professionals
While there is no single perfect format, every effective resume for marketing and communications professionals should include the following elements.
A Strong Professional Summary
Your professional summary is often the most overlooked—and most powerful—section of the resume. Think of it as your headline.
An effective example of summary in CV form should:
- Be concise (3–4 lines)
- Clearly define your role and seniority
- Highlight your core strengths and industry focus
- Signal the value you bring to an organization
This is not a career objective. It is a positioning statement that tells the reader exactly why they should keep reading.
Relevant Skills That Go Beyond Buzzwords
Many candidates ask which skills for resume sections matter most. The answer is quality over quantity.
Instead of listing everything you have ever done, focus on good skills to put on a resume that align with the role you are targeting. For marketing and communications professionals, this often includes:
- Content strategy and editorial planning
- Brand positioning and messaging
- Digital marketing and analytics
- Campaign development
- Stakeholder and cross-functional collaboration
- Leadership and team management
The best skills to put on a resume are those that match job descriptions and reflect your actual expertise. Generic lists do not impress recruiters or ATS systems.
Experience Written as Impact, Not Tasks
Your work experience should not read like a job description. Hiring managers are looking for results. You need to go beyond listing daily job functions and dig into how you excelled.
Each role should clearly show:
- What you were responsible for
- How you approached the work
- What changed or improved because of your contribution
This is where strong resume skills examples and measurable outcomes make the difference between a good resume and a great one.
Education and Early-Career Considerations
For those earlier in their careers—or writing a resume for college student or student resume—the focus shifts slightly.
Education, internships, projects, and transferable skills matter more at this stage. The key is still clarity and relevance, not length. A well-structured resume that shows initiative and communication skills will always outperform a longer, unfocused one.
Resume Templates: Helpful Tool or Limiting Shortcut?
Search results are full of resume templates, including the widely referenced Harvard resume template. Templates can be useful starting points, especially for structure and formatting.
However, templates are not a career strategy.
A template does not:
- Tailor language to your industry
- Select the right skills to include on resume
- Shape your narrative
- Optimize content for ATS
For marketing and communications professionals, resumes that look good but lack strategic clarity often fail to move candidates forward. Design should support content—not distract from it.
Resume vs. CV: Knowing the Difference
Many professionals also ask how to write a CV and whether a CV is the same as a resume.
In short:
- A resume is concise and role-specific
- A CV is longer and more comprehensive, often used in academic or international contexts
Knowing which document is expected—and how to structure it correctly—is critical, particularly for global roles or senior positions.
Why Professional Resume Editing Makes a Difference
One of the biggest challenges professionals face is objectivity. When you are too close to your own experience, it becomes difficult to see what matters most—or what should be removed.
This is where a third-party partner like CareerStudio adds real value.
Professional resume support is not about rewriting your career. It is about:
- Clarifying your positioning
- Strengthening structure and flow
- Improving language precision and tone
- Aligning your experience with hiring expectations
For non-native English speakers or globally mobile professionals, this support becomes even more critical. Small language nuances can significantly affect how credibility and confidence are perceived.
At CareerStudio, resumes are treated as editorial documents—not templates. Every edit is intentional, every section purposeful, and every word chosen to support your career goals.
Your Resume Is Your Personal Marketing Asset
Whether you are advancing in your field, changing roles, or re-entering the job market, your resume is often the first signal of your professional value.
Learning how to write a resume is not just about formatting. It is about strategy, clarity, and storytelling. When done well, a resume opens doors. When done poorly, it quietly closes them.
If you want a resume that reflects who you are—and where you are going—invest the same care and expertise you would apply to any important piece of personal or professional communication.
