A good CV is often not enough to get a job you are looking for. Usually special automated systems check all the CV sections (your qualifications, education and other factors) and then make a decision, if you fit the position. So there’s another option for you – send a cover letter directly to the company’s recruiter.
A lot of job seekers use cover letters and manage to get into the company. Such letter will show your communication and writing skills, your motivation and how your qualifications would be perfect for that particular position. So here are some tips you can use, if you want to impress a hiring manager.
Expand Your Resume
There is no need to repeat your CV in the cover letter. For example, your CV has the following information:
“During my summer internship I was working as a marketing analyst’s assistant.”
Your cover letter will sound differently:
“Deep knowledge of statistical skills like SPSS and Excel helped me analyze large datasets of marketing information, find correlations and interpret the results. More importantly, the findings provided necessary information for further marketing strategies.”
What Can You Offer This Company?
Don’t focus on phrases like “your company can give me a lot of opportunities” or “I can learn more about this” or “I want to gain more experience in this”. A hiring manager would be interested in what you can bring to the company.
Check the Requirements For the Job
Don’t just describe your set of skills. First, you want to check the list of skills and characteristics in the job description. And then you mention these skills according to the list and how you used them in your work. Same goes for personal attributes. If you possess the attributes, mentioned in the description, give some examples – where and how you showed them.
Focus On Your Strong Sides
You may be good at something, but all people have some weaknesses or gaps in knowledge. The hiring manager don’t want you to defend yourself. You should position yourself as a strong and confident personality. So mention only relevant information.
Use Facts and Numbers
If you have a previous job experience (even unpaid internship), it’s worthy to include some numbers. Statistics is a very powerful visualization tool. It will show the recruiter that you previous work experience was important for company.
Get Some Help With Editing
If you know someone you can trust with editing your cover letter, it will be great if you ask for help. Make sure this person has enough experience in job-seeking and writing cover letters. The best option is one if your parents or professor from your college. These people will advice you how to rewrite some parts, so the whole thing could sound more clear.
Share Some Testimonials
Don’t be shy! If people want to say some nice things about your skills, let them. Ask your college professors or previous employers to write even a couple of sentences about your qualities and achievements. Remember, that good recommendations speak for themselves.
Don’t Sound Too Professional
It’s great if you know how to write formal letters and sound like a professional. But you should be yourself and show who you really are. Don’t overuse formal words – it’s not a winning strategy. Sound friendly and personal, so the hiring manager could understand your message better.
Be Unique
There are plenty of cover letter examples on the Internet. You can read some of them for inspiration. But never try to plagiarize because the recruiters have memorized all that samples, since many people send the same templates all the time. You need to be different than thousands of other candidates to even be considered for the position.
Don’t Try Too Hard
Don’t try to sound too excited about the position. The recruiters won’t like a letter with a lot of adverbs, describing how thrilled you are about this position. You aim is to show your personality, not scare the people off. Hiring managers want to find an honest person who will work hard and will understand and follow company’s corporate values.
Final Adjustments
There are some great apps available online for checking your papers, for example you can use Hemingway. This app will check how your paper sounds for others. You’ll be able to change some sentences which are too hard to understand. Your letter should have short and clear sentences. And you should try to keep it short! Stick to three paragraphs, that’s going to be more than enough. Recruiters are busy people who usually can spend couple of minutes to read your letter.
Cover letter writing is a challenge, and everyone was struggling with it one day. Try your best to be original and forget about boring templates you’ve seen all over the Internet.