Cover Letter Essential Part of Job Search Portfolio

Dear Sam: I’m struggling to write a cover letter. I’ve created what I believe is a good résumé, targeting the types of positions I am interested in, but now I find myself stuck when trying to write a cover letter. My friend writes a cover letter for each job she applies for, is that necessary? I fear if I can’t write one letter, how on earth can I write one for every job I apply for! If an ad doesn’t ask for a cover letter, is it okay to just send my résumé alone? Help! – Stacey

Dear Stacey: A cover letter is your opportunity to introduce yourself to a prospective employer, expand upon and personalize the experience presented in your résumé, and highlight how your skills and experiences fulfill the employer's needs. While this suggests a new cover letter needs to be written for each position, it actually does not. Your cover letter should be written with your objective in mind, just as you have your résumé, which when done well, will be presentable to most positions you are interested in applying for. You can always tailor your cover letter a little if there are specific nuances to a posting that you need to respond to, but overall you should be able to develop one résumé and one cover letter that fit the bill the majority of the time. By the way, a cover letter should be a key part to every application, regardless of whether it is requested. Keep in mind that a cover letter not only expresses your interest in the position, but it also gives the employer an opportunity to observe your attentiveness to detail, spelling, grammar, and quality of your written communication.

When writing your cover letter there are many strategies you can employ in the development and organization of the content. Here are some guidelines:

• Open the letter noting your key qualifications and the position of interest. Use the first paragraph to capture the recipient's attention and make them want to read more. To do this well, you have to clearly understand your key qualifications, the position of interest, and the intended audience. Consider the following examples of a traditional and value-added opening sentence, the latter serving to pique the reader’s interest by presenting the candidate’s key qualifications for the position of interest. Contract with the traditional opening and I think you’ll see what a difference an appropriately executed opening can do in grabbing the attention of the reader.

Traditional (loses the reader’s attention): “I am writing to apply for the merchandising manager position advertised in the newspaper.”

Value-Added (grabs and holds the reader’s attention): “Having worked for some of the nation’s leading fashion and trend-right retailers, I possess extensive experience in merchandising, inventory allocation, customer relations, and retail management.”

• Use the main body of your cover letter to explore your experiences, successes, and the skills that support your performance. Often times I will use bullet points to focus the hiring manager's attention on the most important pieces of information, which also help to break up a "heavy" one page letter. This also allows for a quick and easy way to “custom fit” a cover letter to the position of interest. This is where the bulleted sections can really be helpful as you can interchange sentences or key phrases to market your most notable skills to each position.

• Close with an action-oriented statement. Do not take the passive approach and wait for a hiring manager to call you. Of course if the advertisement says no calls, then you need to follow that advice, but most of the time a follow-up call is the appropriate strategy to reiterate your interest. A survey by the Society for Human Resource Management suggested the majority of hiring managers expect a candidate to follow-up on an opportunity, meaning this is no longer deemed a taboo practice.

• Keep it brief. Generally cover letters should be no more than one page and include ample white space to facilitate ease of readability.

• Do all you can to acquire the name of the hiring manager and address your cover letter appropriately. When all else fails write to "Dear Hiring Manager” not “To Whom it May Concern.”

• Use the same heading from your resume in order to present a clean and professional package. Don't forget to sign your letter if sending a hard copy or scan your signature and place on your electronic version for a personal touch.

Samantha Nolan is a certified professional résumé writer and owner of Ladybug Design, a full-service résumé writing firm. Reach her at dearsam@ladybug-design.com, www.ladybug-design.com, or 1-888-9-LADYBUG (1-888-952-3928).