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Effective Cover Letters

The cover letter serves as a "calling card" for your resume and can often mean the difference between a quick glance or a careful reading of your resume.

Sample Cover Letter :

     Application Letter
     Experienced Executive
     Modified Executive Briefing
     Prospecting Letter

Education Cover Letters :

Teaching Prospecting Letter
Teaching Relocation Letter

Who Needs a Cover Letter?

Anyone who sends a resume! A resume should always be sent with an accompanying cover letter. Cover letters are essentially sales letters, and all good sales letters are written with the reader’s specific needs in mind. This implies that you should always customize each letter as much as possible to the specific needs of the employer you’re writing to.

Tempted to use a generic cover letter to accompany your resume? Consider this: The volume of resumes and cover letters employers receive annually allows them to be choosy about what they read. A well-written cover letter:

tailors your qualifications to the specific opportunity available.

illustrates the time you’ve invested in researching the company.

reflects your personality, your attention to detail, your communication skills, your enthusiasm, and your professionalism.

Regardless of the type of cover letter written, keep in mind the following suggestions:

Address the cover letter to a specific person, if possible. A quick telephone call to the company can be helpful in determining the name and correct spelling of the recipient. If you can’t obtain this information, address the letter to "Dear Hiring Manager" or "Dear Human Resource Manager." Another good suggestion is to simply use a subject line in place of the salutation. It is usually best to avoid salutations like "Dear Sir", "Dear Madam", or "To Whom It May Concern."

Keep it brief. Limit the letter to one page. Remember, the purpose of a cover letter is to highlight select information from your resume that makes you uniquely qualified for the position, not to repeat the entire resume. Cover letters should contain no more than 3-4 paragraphs.

Match yourself to the opportunity. Effective cover letters are accomplishment-oriented and focus on specific skills or abilities. Rather than claiming to be "competent" and "qualified," illustrate specifically how you are "competent" and "qualified" by giving supporting evidence or examples. Use the cover letter to highlight your qualifications in relation to the specific job or company.

Illustrate your interest. Show you know something about the organization and/or industry. This is where your research and networking will pay off. Also, use terminology and phrases meaningful to the employer.

Write in your own style. This means writing in a concise, conversational tone and avoiding overused statements like, "Enclosed please find my resume for your review." Use the active voice to make your letter more emphatic. Strong, action-oriented words clearly describe your accomplishments.

Put yourself in the position of the recipient. As you write your cover letter, try to downplay "I" and "me" and emphasize the reader through using the word "you" as often as possible. Focus on the recipient by making your accomplishments and skills the subject of your sentences and emphasizing what these can contribute to the reader’s organization.

Pay attention to detail. Employers want employees who write well, and your writing skills are displayed in your cover letter. Professional letter writing assumes no grammar, spelling, or typographical errors. Ask someone to proofread your letter for content, clarity, and correctness.

First impressions count. The average employer receives over 200,000 letters annually from eager job applicants. As superficial as it sounds, letters are often disregarded based on their looks. Yours should appear professional by:

typing your cover letter using a simple serif font (like Times Roman)

mailing your cover letter and resume in a matching envelope or a 9" by 12" envelope (this way, you won’t need to fold your cover letter and resume)

printing your cover letter on the same quality paper as your resume. White or muted colored paper is fine--it’s the quality of the paper that counts

signing your letter (blue or blank ink is recommended)

using white space to balance your letter

Don’t Forget to Follow-Up

Successful job applicants follow-up their cover letters and resumes within 3-5 days of its delivery to a potential employer. Mentioning in your cover letter that you will be telephoning at a later date is not an empty formality. You MUST call if you say you will; otherwise, you show a lack of follow-through and enthusiasm.

Experts advise making 3-7 attempts to reach the employer. Obtaining the e-mail account of the individual is another way to initiate this contact. If you still can’t reach the person to whom you have written, send a follow-up letter requesting information on the status of your application and expressing your continued interest.

Even if you aren’t invited to an interview, you can still gain valuable information to assist in your job search. By adding the employer to your networking contact list, you may be alerted to opportunities at other companies or may gain valuable tips on improving your cover letter and resume.

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