According to human capital solutions provider CareerBuilder, 46% of European workers, who have been made redundant over the past year, have done something to make themselves more attractive to potential employers.
Efforts include losing weight, dressing to appear younger or older or changing hairstyle.
And a third have changed their online persona, updating their social networking sites to appear more professional to recruiters.
The survey of 1,100 jobseekers shows 75% have applied for positions for which they are over-qualified, 74% would accept a lower salary than they have been used to and 64% would relocate to another city or country to find work.
Farhan Yasin, president of CareerBuilder for EMEA, said: "Today's workers are dealing with record unemployment rates and longer job searches. To stay competitive in the long run, employers will be looking to add jobs in areas that drive revenue, customer retention and innovation first."
