Small business owners and job seekers are both looking for an income source. Fortunately, some of the tips meant for businesses fueled by profits can be used for individuals seeking work. One of those tips is decluttering. Outside of household spring-cleaning, de-cluttering can also do wonders to ads, websites, and even resumes. There are ways to spot the things that you should cut in order to find success.

Resumes

Tailor the resume to the job you are trying to get at the time. Cut the clutter in the resume, which includes the information about unrelated jobs, accomplishments, and references. For example, when applying for a job at a bakery, your work history in retail may be relevant to your skills as a cashier and in customer service. However, the detailed information on your stint as data entry clerk can be left out.

• Purge your list of family and friends who cannot attest to your work experience or skill.
• Cut the needless inflation of your job experience.
• Provide only the skills and objectives that talk more about your ability to exaggerate than your asset on the job.

A rule of thumb for resumes is to keep them to one page for unskilled and general labor jobs.

Websites

A customer cannot and will not patronize a site that is too complex. Many businesses try so hard to get the information out to their customers that they end up creating a site that is too cluttered to navigate. Fortunately, it is not hard to simplify.

• Condense your navigation buttons and give them general titles. Too many buttons can turn the page into a maze. Condense the information into buttons that are titled to cover all of the information on them. Use titles like “Services,” “Rates,” or “Amenities.”
• Place information on .pdf files or temporary pages that can be accessed on these newly condensed pages. Entitle the links so that the view can choose the information they need.
• Create an area that is for special notices, news or updates. Customers know to look at this area for new information. This will cut down on the banners, flashing images and other things that business owners tend to use to draw attention to certain information.
• Update the site regularly, removing outdated information.
• Seek feedback from users on navigability and use it!

Ads

Some of the best and most effective ads out there are simple. De-clutter your ads without losing their effectiveness.

• Plan your message. Know what you want to say before creating the ad in order to use your graphics and words efficiently.
• Use images to help the words. Some ads get to be too wordy. Pick images that help convey your message.
• Leverage your brand. Sometimes, the logo and a trusted slogan are all it takes to alert customers to your business.

This spring and summer, strike out on the road to success without the clutter that can prevent employers and customers from seeing what you or your business is really about.