Freelance Marketplace Critique of the Week: 5.24.05
You’ve posted your mini-bios at the MB Freelance Marketplace in hopes of snagging a great freelance – or full-time – gig. Good for you! But, are you completely satisfied with your listing? Do you think you’ve described your accomplishments, specialties and skills in the best possible light? Let’s check in with our expert, Jane Ashen Turkewitz, the premiere resume writer for MediaBistro, in our weekly segment where a real Marketplace profile, just like yours, is critiqued to give its owner insight on how to make it even more effective. As a former media recruiter, Jane has reviewed thousands of resumes and has successfully placed candidates at Time Inc., Hearst, Hachette, Primedia and other major media companies. Turkewitz has written hundreds of resumes for writers, editors, publishers, sales executives, marketers, graphic designers, business managers, technology executives, public relations professionals and others.
The critique of the week belongs to Janice Daciuk, MS, RD, which is exciting because I work with many RDs in my day job. Anyway, Janice’s profile begins:
Quirky and creative I live to eat. I love writing and being a part of the food and nutrition journalism world. If I’m not in the kitchen whipping up a snack or at the computer composing for newspapers, cookbooks and national magazines, you are sure to find me with my head in the latest food magazine, glued to Food Network TV or salivating over one of my favorite cookbooks. Everything about food fascinates me as does the relationship between food, people and places. I have a particular soft spot for the Southern coasts and make a pig of myself whenever I get the chance to visit. I have covered topics from the most standard nutrition pieces to racy items about how food affects your sex life. I am a dietitian but don’t let that scare you. New York Times food writer and book author Amanda Hesser is my hero and the late Julia Child, my inspiration.
Jane says,
Oh Janice, let me help you! I read your Professional/Personal Overview and I thought you were writing a plea to Overeaters Anonymous! I’m sorry. You did ask me to be gentle. Although I enjoy the idea of using a fun voice to describe skills and strengths, I feel as though you have missed out on a lot of key sales points. I would have no idea that you were published by reading your profile, until I get down to “media client list.” Tone down your summary and let it be known on top that your work has been featured in Cooking Light. Also, get in there that you are not only a dietician, but that you have an M.S. in Nutrition Communication from Tufts. In a nutshell, you are just selling yourself too short. One final note – put the newspaper clip before your newsletter when you show samples. Good luck!
Also, I think you need a comma after “creative.”
If you’d like your profile critiqued by Jane (and really, if you took the time to create one you should have the best one possible), drop a line to the Marketplace people.
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