CV Keywords Scanner: Pull Them From the Job Post and Place Them

A CV keywords scanner helps you find the language an ATS may need to parse from a job application. The useful part is not copying every word. It is pulling relevant terms from the job post, matching them to facts you can prove, and placing them where both software and a recruiter can find them.

Use the same process for company career sites and LinkedIn Easy Apply. Start with the job post. Then build a keyword map before editing your CV.

What to pull from a job description

Read the post once for context. Read it a second time with a marker. Separate the language into four groups:

• Required skills and methods
• Software, platforms, and technical tools
• Job functions and deliverables
• Qualifications, certifications, and industry terms

Pay attention to repeated phrases and terms in the requirements or responsibilities sections. A tool name is usually worth preserving exactly. If the post says Python, do not replace it with “coding.” If it says Salesforce, do not reduce it to “CRM systems.”

Here is a shortened job-post excerpt:

We are seeking a Marketing Analyst to manage Google Analytics 4, build Looker Studio dashboards, and analyse campaign performance using SQL. The successful candidate will conduct A/B testing, report conversion rates, and work with paid search teams. Experience with HubSpot and a degree in marketing are preferred.

The terms to extract are not all equal. Google Analytics 4, Looker Studio, SQL, A/B testing, conversion rates, paid search, and HubSpot are specific keywords. Marketing Analyst is the target role. A marketing degree is a qualification. “Successful candidate” is not a useful CV keyword.

For a broader process, see this guide to a resume keywords list. It covers how to collect terms before you start rewriting.

Build a keyword map before editing

Do not paste the entire job post into your CV. Create a working table instead. For each job phrase, write the truthful phrase you can use and the place where you can support it.

Job-post phrase	Resume phrase	Where to place it	Evidence to check
Google Analytics 4	Google Analytics 4	Skills and experience	Reports, events, traffic analysis
Looker Studio dashboards	Looker Studio dashboards	Skills and experience	Dashboard built, maintained, or used
SQL	SQL	Skills and experience	Queries, data pulls, reporting
A/B testing	A/B testing	Experience	Test design, results, or recommendation
Conversion rates	Conversion rate analysis	Experience	Rate tracked, compared, or improved
Paid search	Paid search campaigns	Skills and experience	Campaign reporting or management
HubSpot	HubSpot	Skills	CRM, email, or automation work
Marketing Analyst	Marketing Analyst	Headline or summary, if accurate	Comparable analyst responsibilities

The “evidence to check” column prevents empty keyword placement. If you have used SQL for reporting, write SQL. If you have only watched a beginner course, do not present yourself as an experienced SQL user. You can mention training in a separate education or certifications section when it is relevant.

This is also where you decide between variations. If a post uses “conversion rate” and you used “conversion rates,” either can be accurate. For a named product or programming language, keep the exact spelling used in the post and add a familiar variation only when it is true.

Place keywords in two locations

A skills section gives the parser a clean list. Experience bullets give the terms meaning. Use both when both are truthful.

Example skills section

Technical skills: SQL, Google Analytics 4, Looker Studio, HubSpot, Excel

Marketing analytics: Conversion rate analysis, A/B testing, paid search reporting, campaign performance analysis

This is easier to scan than a paragraph filled with terms. Use clear section headings such as Skills, Technical Skills, Experience, Education, and Certifications. Avoid putting important terms inside a graphic, image, chart, or text box that may not read correctly in every system.

Example experience bullets

• Built Looker Studio dashboards using Google Analytics 4 data to report traffic, campaign performance, and conversion rates to weekly marketing meetings.
• Used SQL to combine campaign and customer data, reducing manual reporting work and giving the paid search team a consistent performance view.
• Planned A/B testing for landing page messages and reviewed conversion rate results before recommending the next campaign variation.

Each bullet has a keyword and an action. It also gives a reader something to assess. You can improve the bullet further with a real number, time period, audience, or result from your work.

A keyword alone is weak. “SQL, Google Analytics 4, A/B testing” in a skills section may help a scan, but it does not explain your level. The experience section supplies that context.

Avoid keyword stuffing

Keyword stuffing is the practice of forcing repeated terms into a CV without making the writing clearer. It can make the document harder to read and may create claims you cannot defend.

Here is the same work written two ways.

Stuffed version

• Used SQL, Google Analytics 4, Looker Studio, HubSpot, A/B testing, paid search, conversion rates, marketing analytics, SQL reporting, and campaign performance to perform marketing analysis and marketing reporting.

This bullet repeats SQL, crams in unrelated terms, and gives no clear result. A recruiter cannot tell what you actually did.

Natural version

• Used SQL to combine campaign data, then built Looker Studio dashboards from Google Analytics 4 data to help the paid search team compare conversion rates across landing page tests.

The natural version uses the relevant terms once. It connects them to a task and a business use. Put the remaining true tools in the skills section rather than repeating them in every bullet.

Do not use hidden white text, tiny text, or a block of keywords placed behind an image. It is deceptive, can damage the visible document, and is not a reliable way to pass parsing. Do not add a tool simply because it appears in the post. A missing keyword is better than a false claim.

The related guide on ATS keywords explains how to match job language without turning your CV into a list of search terms.

Run a CV keywords scan and read the result

Once you have edited the document, export it as a PDF if the application asks for PDF. Open the exported file. Select the text and paste it into a plain-text editor. Check that the order is sensible, headings remain visible, and no important content disappeared.

Then run the file through the ATS resume checker. Upload your CV PDF and paste the same job description. The tool returns a match score, missing keywords, and gaps. Its scan is useful for finding omissions in your file. It does not produce the number from an employer's Workday or Greenhouse system, and no public checker can prove what a particular employer's system will do.

If you want a draft based on your existing information, paste the job into YourUnique.cv. You can upload your CV, keep its layout or choose a built-in template, and receive a CV written from your profile facts. Review the result line by line. A generated draft must not add experience that is absent from your source material.

Fix gaps without inventing experience

A scan may show a keyword as missing for several reasons:

1. You have the skill, but used a different phrase.
2. The term is present in the PDF but did not parse cleanly.
3. You have related experience, but not the exact tool.
4. You do not have the skill.

For the first case, update the wording if it remains accurate. For the second, simplify the layout and repeat the plain-text paste test. For the third, describe the related experience without claiming the missing tool. For the fourth, leave it out.

For example, if a job asks for Tableau and you have built Power BI dashboards, you can write “Power BI dashboard development” and explain the reporting outcome. Do not write Tableau unless you have actually used it. You may still apply if the rest of your background fits. Keyword matching is one part of an application, not a reason to misstate your history.

Check the resume vs job match tool when your question is whether your current experience fits the post. It reports overlapping skills and gaps. It does not tell you to claim missing experience.

A repeatable five-pass method

Use this sequence for each tailored application:

Pass 1: Extract

Copy the job description into a working document. Mark tools, methods, qualifications, role terms, and repeated responsibilities.

Pass 2: Verify

For every marked term, ask where you used it. Write the employer, project, course, or certification that supports it.

Pass 3: Place

Add relevant tools and skills to a compact skills section. Add the strongest terms to experience bullets where they describe real work.

Pass 4: Edit

Remove repetition. Replace vague words with the exact tool or method when accurate. Keep bullets readable for a human.

Pass 5: Test

Export the final file. Paste its text into a plain-text editor. Run a checker against the exact job description. Fix parsing problems and missing truthful terms, not every difference in wording.

YourUnique.cv can also create a tailored draft from your profile facts and provide an ATS read against the job description. Treat that read as an editing aid. Confirm the file, facts, dates, and keywords yourself before sending it.

Apply today checklist

• Save the CV in the file type requested by the employer.
• Use clear headings for contact details, summary, skills, experience, and education.
• Add relevant job terms to a readable skills section.
• Support the most important terms in at least five truthful experience bullets where possible.
• Keep exact names for tools such as Python, SQL, Salesforce, or Google Analytics 4 when you have used them.
• Remove repeated phrases, hidden white text, and unsupported skills.
• Paste the exported file into a plain-text editor and check the reading order.
• Run the final file through the ATS resume checker with the exact job post.
• Read every bullet as a recruiter would before applying.