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Stand Out for the Job and Create an Exceptional Cover Letter
When searching for a job in a tough economy, you want to give yourself every possible advantage, and a killer cover letter will set you apart from your competition. A cover letter is a short introduction to you and your skill set that accompanies your resume. While a resume conveys factual information like work history, timelines and evolution of skills and responsibilities, a cover letter shows how you can apply your talents.
You could rely solely on your resume to tell your story and hope that an employer can read between the lines to see that you are the most qualified from among many applicants, but the truth is, that doesn't always happen, especially if there are many applicants with similar experience. A cover letter can help an employer differentiate you from the crowd.
How to Put a Great Cover Letter Together
The thought of writing a cover letter may seem daunting and time-consuming for many, but nothing is further from the truth. By following these easy steps, even the most writing-shy candidates can put together a great cover letter that can help them stand out in a sea of applicants.
Step 1: Identify the Employer's Needs
Read the job description and think about the necessary and preferred skills stated in the ad. If it helps, write or type them into a short list. The more specific the ad, the better idea you will have of what kind of skill sets an employer is looking for. Even if the ad is more general, you will be able to pick up at least one or two major qualifications that an employer is seeking.
Step 2: Identify Your Relevant Skills
Think about your unique skill sets, interest and experience, referring to your resume to help jog your memory of past positions that you've held or relevant coursework taken in school. Now pair your skills and aspects of your experience with the list of the employer's needs from Step 1. Note any additional skills that you have that the ad did not list but that could be beneficial to the position.
Step 3: Write What You Would Speak
Now imagine sitting face to face with the employer in an interview and being asked these two key questions:
“Why should I hire you?”
“Why do your skill sets and experience matter to this position?”
Write or type one or two sentences to answer each question, using your comparative list from Steps 1 and 2 as reference. Once you have completed the answers to these questions, you're nearly done with your cover letter. All you have to do now is put it into a proper format.
(1) Salutation: If the company contact name is unknown, use “To Whom It May Concern:” instead. Avoid using antiquated salutations such as “Dear Sirs/Madams.”
(2) Reference and Intent: This introductory sentence tells the employer which position you are applying for and how you heard about the position. If you are responding to an ad, cite the source, such as Working World magazine. It can even be a personal reference, such as “Your Regional Manager Joe Smith informs me that you are seeking a [position title].”
(3) Answer to Step 3, Question 1: This sentence will answer a potential employer’s question of, “Why should I hire you?”
(4) Answer to Step 3, Question 2: This sentence will answer a potential employer’s question of, “Why do your skills matter to this position?”
(5) Resume and/or Relevant Sample Links: In addition to referring to an attached resume, you may also wish to provide relevant links [“You will find more information about me and my experience in the attached resume and online portfolio: www.yoursite.com.] While your personal blog may be interesting, save any personal information that you want to share for a later interview. If you don't have any samples, simply refer to your resume only.
(6) How to Contact You: This sentence lets the potential employer know where to best reach you as well as your intent to interview with them for the position.
(7) Closing: Similar to the salutation, a simple “Sincerely,” followed by your first and last name, email address and phone number is a simple and professional way to close your cover letter.
SIDEBAR
Often overlooked, a well-crafted follow-up letter sent after an interview can put you light years ahead of other candidates. A follow-up letter serves three purposes: 1) to thank the interviewer for taking time out of his or her day to meet with you, 2) to keep your talents fresh in the interviewer's mind, and 3) to express continued interest in the position available. The tone is professional, yet friendly and approachable. Here is an example:
This letter achieves three things:
(1) Thanks the interviewer for his or her time.
(2) Keeps your specific talents fresh in the interviewer's mind.
(3) Expresses continued interest in the position available.
Multiple Interviews at the Same Company?
Make sure that each follow-up letter is tailored specifically for each person who interviewed you. Never send out the same letter to multiple people within the same organization. It is not unusual for managers to compare notes and observations. You don’t want your note to seem like a form letter.
Be aware of inadvertent formatting issues. The text formatting of some word processing programs can be misinterpreted into symbols and errant line breaks when it reaches the web. Your best bet is to compose your letter in your email browser instead of cutting and pasting from another source. If you are worried about accidentally sending before you are finished, simply do not enter an address to send to until you are done.
Final Dos and Don’ts
Do…
• Proofread and spell-check, including the interviewer's name.
• Send your follow-up letter within 24 hours of your interview.
• Send your follow-up letter from a professional-sounding email address. DiscoChick2000 may be great for your online dating profile, but will detract from your credibility as a candidate.
Don’t…
• Be too personal. Keep any conversational references relevant to the company or job.
• Wait too long to send it. With so many applicants in the running, you want to stay fresh in the interviewer's mind.
• Follow up on your follow-up letter to see if it was received. If you haven't heard anything in a week, it is okay to send an email to inquire about the progress of the candidate selection process.
This article is from WorkingWorld.com
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Reddit1 COMMENTS
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Catherine Rhodes
Most job applicants don't realize how critically important a cover letter is. Never skip this step. If should be short, neatly prepared and contain a brief (one or two sentences) summary of why you're right for the job. Understand that employers go through a stack of resumes with the intent of "weeding out" candidates in order to narrow the field. The first cut may be those who do not include a cover letter. Give yourself every possible advantage.
