Use these cover letter tips to stand out from the pack and get your resume noticed and read.
Cover letter tips #1: A cover letter is an opportunity to pique a hiring manager's interest and provide him or her with a sense of your overall suitability and personality. Ensure the primary decision-maker receives your documents by addressing them directly to him or her.
The sample cover letters available to you in PDF (coming soon) will give you a great idea of how to properly format your cover letter.
Cover letter tips #2: A generic introduction such as "To Whom It May Concern" won't even get the rest of your cover letter read, let alone land you the coveted job interview. And if you see sample cover letters addressed in this manner, well, that tells you something about the quality of that resource. Stay away.
Cover letter tips #3: In the first sentence, explain how you learned of the position -- This information tells the hiring manager how well you know the firm and position. This alone can prompt the recipient to keep reading.
Cover letter tips #4: Next, draw the reader's attention to your resume by mentioning two or three qualities that distinguish you from other candidates. Don't rehash your resume; instead, summarize the qualifications and expertise that are likely to most interest the employer.
Cover letter tips #5: Paint a picture of how hiring you will help the company. This is extremely important. If your cover letter doesn't at least begin to explain how hiring you will benefit the company, your resume won't get read.
Tip #6: Understand that nowadays, your cover letter is at least as crucial as your resume when it comes to landing the job interview. Your cover letter IS NOT just there to say, "Hey, here's my resume." That won't cut it in today's job market.
Tip #7: The cover letter also is a good place to explain any recent gaps in your employment. Offer examples of any professional development or unpaid work you did during your period of unemployment.
Mention, for example, if you chaired an event for a local nonprofit or pursued a certification - anything that would add to your skills and qualities needed for this particular position. Read that last part again. If it's not going to be relevant to the position, then don't add it.
Cover letter tips #9: In closing the document, ask for the opportunity to discuss the available opening and indicate when you'll follow up.
Ensuring Readability
If you are sending your resume by e-mail, try to find out if the company wants to receive it as an attachment, a text-only version or both. Many firms request a text-only version pasted into the body of an e-mail message.
DO NOT send a resume as an attachment unless they specifically tell you to do so. If you do, it will just get deleted.
To ensure the readability of an electronically transmitted resume, align all text with the left margin and eliminate indentations and other formatting, such as boldface, italic or underlined type. Replace bullets with asterisks or simple dashes.
Cover letter tips #10: Before submitting your documents to a prospective employer, e-mail the sample cover letters and resumes to yourself or a friend to see how well it transmits. You can then make adjustments as necessary.
Don't skip over this part. The last thing you want in an email cover letter and resume is for this type of formatting to happen. If it does, your resume will not get read and you will not get called. It doesn't look very professional, does it?
Tip #11: Keep each line in an email to 65 characters or less. This should prevent this type of formatting from happening.
Tip #12: Remember, when applying via email, send sample cover letters and resumes to yourself or a friend FIRST!
Cover letter tips #13: After you've finalized your cover letter, resume and e-mail message, check and recheck them for errors in spelling or punctuation. A simple typo can eliminate you from consideration.
Cover letter tips #14: Regardless of your qualifications and experience, if you make mistakes on your employment documents, hiring managers might assume you'll be equally careless on the job. Enlist a spouse, friend or colleague to review your materials for mistakes and to ensure you haven't left out any critical information.
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