The “humble” cover letter gets no respect, (Rodney Dangerfield).
Most of the times the cover letters are neglected as job-seekers spend a lot of energy and time on their resumes.
This is a big mistake!
A cover letter that is well-written in most cases can help you land you more job interviews than the resume. Using tried and tested marketing strategies seldom found in the regular cover letter, the cover letter can be your one chance to really “market” yourself to an employer..
With a traditional resume or CV, there’s only so much you can do. I believe a well written cover letter is critical to the success of your job search than the resume or any other written document.
The 7 secrets of a highly-effective resume cover letter
With over 20 years of experience in the marketing world, I bring to you my 7 secrets of a highly-effective resume cover letter:
- ADDRESS your cover letter to a particular person. Make sure to find out the person you should address your cover letter to. “Dear Sir/Madam” is unexciting.
- OPEN with a sentence that is attention-grabbing and will grip the reader. This will definitely guarantee your resume and cover letter get a closer look.
- REMEMBER less is better. The good cover letters have a lot of white space. Cover letters that are focused clear, sweet and short get more job interviews period.
- FOCUS on the employer and what you can do for them. How can you benefit the organization positively? Carry out a research and relate this clearly and simply in your letter.
- CHOOSE WORDS that show passion and enthusiasm for the job you seek. Then, go with this passion into the interview with you.
- REQUEST ONE ACTION you want the hiring Manager to take: “I would love an opportunity for a personal interview this week.” (Until you ask you can never know.)
- FINISH your cover letter with something telling and positive like, “Thank you so much for this opportunity, I look forward to being interviewed at your earliest convenience. .” Sincerely, Peter. (Notice how Peter assumes he’ll get the interview? This is smart, clever, and in most cases works like a charm).
Land Yourself More Job Interviews
Your cover letter should be thought of as a sales letter. The resume cover letter’s only purpose is to help you land more job interviews. That’s the essence. If you follow my proven marketing strategies I’ve mentioned above you will land yourself more job interviews than others.
To have any chance of getting the job, find yourself a way to get your “foot in the company door”. You can open the doors of opportunity wide open with the right cover letter. Bear in mind that a number of job interviews translate to more job offers.
In Conclusion
Conclusively, the most critical advice I can give you is this: FOLLOW-UP every contact, job lead, communication and contact. The “golden key” to landing yourself that dream job is following up. Use thank you letters, follow-up phone calls, even follow-up cover letters. Your chances of success can double up by Following-up. It is also the one secret ingredient missing from 99% of every job-seeker’s playbook.
Also check out the following article: Job Applications – Identify Your Transferable Skills