Make your cover letter stand out! To set yourself apart, research your potential employer and make a list of the top five reason that you are an excellent candidate. Set yourself apart by telling that employer how will you help them achieve their goals.
Constructing your letter with a heading, date and inside address in standard business block style format. Make sure the design matches your resume.
It's best to address your letter to a specific person (e.g., "Dear Ms. Smith:"), but use “Dear Hiring Manager,” if there's no way to find that out. Avoid vague greetings such as "Dear Sir/Madam:" and “To Whom it May Concern:.”
Employers are busy and do not care to wade through unnecessary information. Your opening paragraph should clearly state the position you are applying for and the referral source. Open with a synopsis of why are you’re a top candidate for this position.
In the body of the letter, make your sales pitch. When writing the body text, keep in mind that employers are interested in what you can do for them, not learn about your life story. Demonstrate how your credentials, motivation and track record would benefit their operation. Refer to your top five selling points and mention or list them in the body.
Back up achievements with specific examples of how your performance benefited current and former employers. Precede your bulleted list with a statement such as “Highlights of my credentials include” Keep your letter positive and upbeat. This is not the place to complain about your current situation or past employers.
Close with a call to action and express strong interested in a personal interview to discuss your qualifications. Make sure to use a professional ending such as Respectfully yours, or Sincerely.
Yet, some compelling cover letters don’t get read! Your cover letter is a perfect opportunity to introduce yourself to potential employers, dazzle them with your credentials and persuade them to read your resume, right? Sure -- unless it never gets read.
While it's important that your resume is accompanied by a hard-hitting cover letter, busy employers often review your resume before deciding whether or not to take the time to read your cover letter, which means they may never get to it.
Knowing this potential fate for your cover letter, the best strategy is to craft your resume with the assumption that your letter might not get read. If your resume omits important details found in your cover letter, revise the resume to incorporate any information you think would entice an employer to call you.
Is Your Resume Up to Date? If you haven't updated your resume recently and are using the cover letter to explain your recent employment, educational credentials, etc., take the time to update it now.
What's Your Objective? Are you using a one-size-fits-all-jobs resume and relying on your cover letter to clarify your career goal? If your resume does not clearly spell out your objective, you could be overlooked. If you have more than one career goal you will achieve better results when you set up multiple resume versions, each one targeting a different objective.
Have You Elaborated on Your Work Experience and Accomplishments? When scanning through piles of resumes, hiring managers will review your last couple of positions to see if your experience matches their needs. Don't skimp on your employment details. For your most recent (and most related) positions, write a paragraph that describes your primary job tasks so hiring managers understand the scope of your duties. Then show that you're a top performer by adding a Key Contributions section for each position held. Write about challenges you faced in each of your positions, the results of your work and the ways your employers benefited from your performance. Don't just rely on your cover letter for this in case it doesn't get read.
Are Your Skills Clearly Listed? Employers will look for candidates with a specific skill set. Create a bulleted section called Areas of Expertise that includes the keywords for your related skills and proficiencies.
Are You Willing to Relocate? While this may feel like it belongs in your letter, if you are available to relocate or have definite plans to move, include this information in your résumé’s heading along with your current address. For example, put: “Relocating to Ocala, FL in Dec. 2003” or “Available to Relocate Internationally.”
Are you Reachable? If your cover letter states the best way to reach you (e.g., by cell phone), be sure this information is also included on your resume. You want to make it as easy as possible for interested hiring managers to contact you.
Use your Reference List as a marketing tool Smart job seekers know that top references can seal the deal! Make yours stand out. Carefully select your references, and speak with each of them to ensure they fully understand their help will make the difference in your next job. Review your skills and accomplishments so they can effectively help sell you to a potential employer. Follow these tips to make your reference list into a powerful marketing tool.
Choose references that know the value of your work and will speak positively about you. Don't include references that have impressive job titles but don't really know much about you. Your references should also have good communication skills so they can convince hiring managers you would be a valued employee.
You don't need to confine your references to current or former supervisors. When selecting your references, consider the message you're trying to convey. For example, if you're a breeding manager trying to prove your conception rate, list the farm’s consulting veterinarian. Other possibilities include vendors, customers, instructors, professors, advisors, and industry leaders.
Avoid family members and friends -- unless you worked with them in a business capacity. Everyone knows Aunt Sue will only have wonderful things to say about you.
Get permission to supply your contact information to potential employers. Provide an updated copy of your resume to all of your references to help them sell you. If you've been asked for a set number of references, it's a good idea to provide a couple more than requested. This way, if the employer isn't able to reach one or two of your contacts, he may continue trying to reach other contacts on your list. Availability of references may speed up your job offer.
The number of references you should provide depends but most job seekers should list three to five references.
Create a document for your references with a header like "Professional Reference List," and follow with your references' names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses. You might also provide a short synopsis of your relationship with the reference and the number of years you've been acquainted. Keep the design consistent with your resume and cover letter, using the same heading, fonts and general layout.
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