I know this is going to be upsetting to some people, job seekers, resume writers, and maybe even some hiring managers (who for some odd reason rather hire form over substance), but by and large, “pretty” resumes just do not work. They look nice. They can provide a solid first impression. But, overall, looking good isn’t enough to make them effective.

Why? I mean, after all, haven’t we been bombarded for years with resume advice that tells us the prettier, the better?

Before the days of online postings, candidates would spend hours putting together fancy portfolios, fretting over which quality paper to print their resumes and cover letters on, filling folders with extra special stuff like bios, project highlights, and recommendations, only to have recruiters and many hiring managers toss it all out to focus solely on the resume.

When it comes down to it, you just can’t trick someone into thinking you’re the best candidate. What makes your resume stand out in a tall pile (or among hundreds of online submissions) is how well you align your abilities with that company’s needs. That’s it. End of story.

Of course, you should present your material in a clear, concise, error-free, and attractive way. But attractive does not mean 4-color brochure that screams adjectives like “dynamic” everywhere. After all, you want to be taken seriously, don’t you?

I know, I know. We all hear the legends about the bold candidate who took a big chance and prepared the most unique document ever known to man. In the end, he ends up with not just the job, but the girl too!

The truth is that in most of those cases, it is not the unique document or even the bold chance that gets him the job. It is the fact that this candidate recognizes the one thing that will make him stand out: He understands what the company is looking for, and he provides it.

Let’s face it. Most of us are just lazy. We want to stand out as job seekers, but we want a pretty piece of paper to do it for us. We are hoping that the more attractive it is and that the more “Wow” words we use will cover over a multitude of limitations (lack of experience, too many job changes, etc.).

Instead we should be preparing solid resumes that speak directly to the desires of our target market. What is it that they want to know about us? What is it that they want to hear? Then we should be taking these resumes and spending our creative juices on figuring out how to get these documents into the right hands.

For some reason, we seem so willing to pay for a resume, but we invest virtually nothing into creating a job search strategy. Yet it is the strategy, not the resume, that will be the most effective.

Don’t get me wrong. As a resume writer, I do think resumes are important and should be done well. But I think they are only one part of the equation. Candidates want to be bold on paper, but they are anything but bold when it comes to conducting their job search.