The World’s Best Video CVs

Generation Y and Generation Z have either grown up in a world in which technology was steadily evolving or born into a world in which technology was already a huge part of their everyday life.

Both generations are somewhat familiar with technology and use it every day. Because of this, it is no wonder that the generations have gone for a more advanced way of promoting themselves to employers: Through video CVs.

So what is a video CV?

Video CVs are videos used as a substitute for a written CV. The videos will typically include a short introduction of the applicant as well as the applicant’s skills, education and personal interests.

It is a way to tell a story about an applicant and their professional interests but in an entertaining and captivating way. So how can video CVs look?

The funny one

In this video CV, Mark Leruste tell us about himself in a funny, yet professional way. He talks about his achievements, qualifications, past experiences, and interests.

Leruste finishes the video by stating the reasons why an employer should pick him out of the “(…) 7 billion people living on this planet.”

The personal one

In this video CV, Pauline Mathieu takes you on a journey and shows you a usual day at her job.

Throughout the video, Pauline also shows clips of her life while she uses voice-over to tell about her qualifications, personal interests, and experiences.

The animated one

This video CV is slightly different than the two others as the video in itself is entirely animated and does not feature any video of the applicant.

Still, the applicant, Tran Dai Duong, uses his animation skills to talk about his education, personality traits, and professional experiences.

As you might see in the videos, the three videos all focus on four key elements: Telling a story, being brief, being specific and having a call-to-action.

4 Tips for Your Video CV

1. Tell a story

This is important as it is used to tell the viewer about the applicant in a fun and different way. It should also be personal and reflect the specific applicant’s personality.

For example, what Mark Leruste does so brilliantly in his video CV is that he tells the viewer about himself but in a fun and entertaining way. This includes short snippets of him where he tells the viewer about his personal interests and then proceeds to make fun of himself by showing snippets of him doing sports he is terrible at.

This way, he shows not only his interests but also his fun personality.

2. Be brief

This is important as the viewer might stop paying attention if the video is too long. So what is too long? It’s rather subjective as some sources say no more than 90 seconds.

Even though the videos we look at are more than the usually recommended 90 seconds, the videos still manage to be brief and catch the attention of the viewer through the applicants’ individual creativity and story.

In the span of no more than three minutes and thirty-five seconds, Mark Leruste, Pauline Mathieu and Tran Dai Duong all manage to get their points across and tell a potential employer about themselves and their motives for the video CVs.

3. Be specific

It is a good idea to be specific in a video CV. This includes tailoring the video to a specific field, job or company.

An example of this is how Pauline Mathieu specifically looks for a job as a Product Placement Agent in which she can mix fashion and audiovisual.

Every other aspect of her video CV is tailored to tell the viewer about her experiences, personal interests and qualifications that relate to the job she looks for. This makes it easier for a potential employer to pinpoint exactly what kind of job an applicant is looking for.

4. Have a call-to-action

Last but not least, applicants should include a call-to-action to make it easier for an employer to reach them. This can include references to LinkedIn, email addresses, etc. This can make or break whether or not a potential employer will contact the applicant.

In all three videos, the applicants include some type of call-to-action at the end as all three include at least their email address. This provides the employer with the perfect incentive to contact the applicants.

Even though these three videos have kept it brief, told a story, been specific, and included a call-to-action, there are no guidelines for making the perfect video CV. Still, what you should take from the videos is that a video CV should be personally tailored to you to best show your personality.

A video CV is just one of the ways the youth tries to get employers’ attention. In over a decade, CompanYoung has researched trends in the different generations. Contact us today, and we’ll gladly discuss our research with you.