Impactful, distinct and concise cover letters get job interviews
Cover letters, those daunting self important documents that everyone dreads writing. Some say that you don’t even need them; that they aren't often read. They are still needed and are quite relevant. Follow this expert advice to make your cover letter stand out.
Do
- praise the company
- write a passion paragraph
- keep it short
- make it conversational
- ask for an interview
Don't
- send it through the mail
- over share
- send it with typos
- start every sentence with the same word or clause
- go too soft
Do praise the company
The biggest reason cover letters don’t carry a punch is because the candidate hasn't properly conveyed to the potential employer why they want to work there. Praise the company over and over. Talk about why you would like to work for them. Talk about what you know of them. Talk about their reputation. Share whatever you know, and if you don’t know anything, do some research.
Do write a passion paragraph
Equally important in getting a cover letter to stand out from the stack is to properly convey your passion. Why do you want to do this work? Why of the stacks of resumes in front of them, should they not overlook yours? What is the why behind why you’ve chosen this career?
Do keep it short
Ideally cover letters are half a page. If you need to take up a full page, just make sure that it’s balanced with lots of passion statements. Try never to go past one page.
Do make it conversational
I can’t speak to professional fields i.e: lawyers, doctors, but for the average role, an informal tone is best. “Dear Hiring Manager…” is a great opening heading. Cover letters can be a simple introductory text in an email, they don’t have to be formatted in traditional letter format.
Do ask for an interview
At the end of your letter, declare your interest and how you look forward to a chance to interview.
Do not send it through the mail
Sorry USPS, but the days of paper and mail resumes are gone. If you send yours through the mail, even as a follow up to an online submission, you run the risk of appearing out of touch with modern times.
Do not over share
The cover letter is a tease of what they’ll find on your resume, and what they’ll learn by meeting you. Explain how you’re eager to share your stories of success in an interview, don’t recount them all on the cover letter.
Do not send it with typos
Make sure you've edited the cover letter thoroughly. Don’t rely on spell check to catch everything. I've known many a recruiter who will toss a resume with too many misspellings or typos.
Do not start every sentence with the same word or clause
Shake up your writing a bit by the way you craft each sentence. “I was responsible for” or even just a variation on I becomes very tedious to read.
Do not go too soft
Be careful that your letter doesn't drift into the hopelessness category. Write with conviction and remove as many works like “hope” and “try” as you can.
Summary
In summary, write from the heart, keep your writing tight and compel the reader to call you. As a recruiter, cover letters can be very dry reading. Aim to make your’s jump out of the pile and excite the reader to call you for an interview, because you want that job!
