Submit a poorly written cover letter, or no cover letter at all, and chances are your resume will not even be considered. On the other hand, a well written cover letter can almost guarantee you will receive the phone call needed to get the interview.
Below are 7 helpful pointers for writing a powerful cover letter:
• Short and to the point – Your resume is the document that conveys your qualifications; therefore your cover letter need not go on and on about how wonderful you are.
• Send it as an email – Since most resumes today are delivered through email to prospective hiring managers, this cover letter can also be the body of your introductory email.
• Announce your resume – Your cover letter serves the purpose of announcing you and your resume.
• Be clear and concise – Tell them what you are doing and clearly state what position you’re applying for: “I’m applying for the position of… Attached to this email is my resume for the position of …” Don’t assume the Human Resources person will automatically know what job you want or that they only have one opening. In addition, make sure your email subject line contains the job title of the position you are applying to.
• Mirror the job posting – Highlight a few of your qualifications as they pertain to the job posting you are applying to. You may even want to quote a few requirements directly from the ad that match your skills. Although brevity is the key here, you don’t want to merely say, “Here’s my resume. See ya. Bye.”
• Eliminate redundancy – Don’t be redundant with contact information, having it on your resume is sufficient.
• Proof read– Make sure there are no typos. It’s hard to proof your own work. Find someone to give both your cover letter and resume a glance over. If your cover letter has typos, you will not get very far.
If you’ve already completed your cover letter, what are you waiting for? Apply to one of our open jobs today.
