Keyword matching is real but crude. It rewards using the employer's vocabulary, not hoarding terms.
Mine the requirements section
Ignore the culture paragraph. The requirements list is where the search terms live: named tools, named methods, named certifications, the job title itself. Those are what a recruiter types into the search box.
Put them in context
A skills list at the bottom is weak evidence. The same word inside an achievement bullet is strong evidence. "Reduced reconciliation time using Xero and Zapier" beats a tag cloud containing both words.
Match their phrasing, not yours
If they say "customer success" and you say "client servicing", change yours. If they say "SQL" and you wrote "database querying", write SQL. This is translation, not dishonesty — but only where it is actually true.
Common questions
How many keywords should a CV have?
There is no number. Cover the tools and methods named in the ad that you have genuinely used, inside your experience bullets.
Does keyword stuffing work?
No. Hidden or repeated keyword blocks get flagged by software and rejected by humans who read the CV.