Want your resume to be read? In a highly competitive job market it’s no easy feat. The solution is to write a killer cover letter that garners attention. Your cover letter functions as the first impression. If it’s not done right, you won’t get a chance to make any more. Things like improper formatting and failure to customize your cover letter to the job you’re applying to can make the difference between rising to the top of the stack and being completely disregarded.
Here are five tips for writing an attention-getting cover letter that will help you land the job:
Format Properly
Your cover letter must look professional and be formatted properly to be considered. Make sure your letterhead is positioned correctly in the left-hand corner and contains all the required information such as your full name and contact information. Put the full name of the person you’re writing to and their address a couple spaces down from your letterhead. Two more spaces down, greet that person. Make sure you have the right contact.
Your font should be easy to read and match the font type and size on your resume. If in doubt on how you should format your cover letter, do an online search for cover letter templates. There are many examples you can use or reference.
If sending your cover letter via email, you may want to have your cover letter in the body of the email. Many recruiters and hiring managers prefer it. If you’re attaching both your resume and cover letter, make sure you include a message in the body of the email that provides an explanation for who you are and what is attached. Otherwise, your email will be deleted.
If you’re concerned about someone altering your information or spell-checker highlighting typos or grammatical errors you might have missed, you should make your cover letter and resume PDFs.
Be Straight And To The Point
You don’t want to be vague, but rambling on isn’t a good way to go either. Your cover letter shouldn’t exceed a page. Keeping it at about three paragraphs is a good rule of thumb.
You want to give a compelling reason to read your resume, and you want to do it quickly and succinctly. Recruiters and hiring managers are short on time. Focus on key selling points and accomplishments and how they make you the ultimate fit. Omit minute details.
Customize Your Cover Letter For The Job You’re Applying For
Your cover letter should be tailor-made for each job you’re applying for. This shows genuine interest and makes for an engaging read. Beyond showing that your skills and experience match up with the job description, you want to make it clear you’re a good fit for the company and its culture. Explain what excites you about the company, how it matches up with your work style and values, and why you would be a perfect match.
Sell Yourself
Your cover letter is the place to flaunt your accomplishments. If you’ve made prolific contributions to your company, break down the details. Just what did you do to increase sales or improve procedures? If you won awards, built a large team with a high success rate or received an unprecedented amount of customer praise, make sure to foreground it.
To really kick it up a notch, carefully examine the job description, and using examples from your impressive background information, explain exactly how your background applies and what you can do for your prospective employer.
Proofread, And Then Proofread Some More
Spell-checker can only take you so far and a grammatical error, misspelled word or typo could make or break you. Regardless of how minor, recruiters and hiring managers tend to frown on these blunders.
Read your cover letter several times, then have someone else give it a read. You may even want to consider hiring a copy editor, especially if writing isn’t your forte or English is your second language.
Want your resume to be just as impactful as your cover letter? Read this: The Top Three Ways To Make Your Resume Stand Out From The Crowd
What do you think makes for an attention-getting cover letter? What advice have you received in the past? Is there anything we missed? We’d love to hear from you. Please comment below.