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A Professional CV That Actually Gets Replies

Why most CVs die unread

A recruiter spends seconds, not minutes. A CV that lists duties ("responsible for sales") tells them nothing they can verify. A CV that shows proof with numbers ("grew walk-in sales by a third in 4 months by adding a follow-up list") tells them exactly what you'll do for them. Duties are claims; proof is evidence. Evidence gets replies.

The one-page, proof-first structure

Section	What goes in it
Header	Name, city, phone, email, one link (portfolio / LinkedIn / business page). No photo unless asked, no "CV" as a title.
One-line summary	Who you help + the result you deliver. "I help retail shops turn walk-ins into repeat buyers."
Proof bullets	3–5 per role, each with a number or a named outcome. Verb + what + result.
Skills	Only the ones you can demonstrate in an interview. Tools you've actually used.
Education / certs	Brief. Recent and relevant first.

The 10-second test

Hand your CV to someone who doesn't know you. Give them ten seconds. Ask: "What do I do, and what result do I deliver?" If they can't answer, rewrite until they can. A CV that fails the test is a diary; a CV that passes is a pitch.

The cousin of a CV: when you're a business

Once you sell services instead of seeking a job, your CV becomes two things: a proposal (what you'll do, for how much, by when) and a public page (your proof a stranger can check). Same job as a CV — prove you're worth trusting — different shape. Build both the same proof-first way.

A CV isn't a list of where you've been. It's evidence of what you'll do next. Proof with numbers beats adjectives every single time.

The business-version of a CV, in minutes: AI Business drafts your proposal and builds your public proof page in your own voice. Open Proposal Generator →

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