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Several Brief Hints On Writing Good Cover Letters

Several Brief Hints On Writing Good Cover Letters

By Michael Murray

When you apply for a job you may need to submit a cover letter along with your resume. Your cover letter will help you to describe your specific skills, experiences, and interest in the role. You can also detail your knowledge about the company you are applying to and also what you know about the specific job and industry as well. In order to write good cover letters it is important that you focus on a few key elements if you want to get your foot in the door.

It is important that you do not start off your letter with 'to whom it may concern', or 'dear Sir or Mdm'. This is very impersonal and instead you should try to get the name of the specific manager who is going to deal with your application. Call up the human resources Department in order to find out who you should address the letter to.

Make sure that all of your punctuation, spelling, and grammar is completely accurate before you ever submit your resume and your covering letter. Assuming you are using some sort of word processing software there should be some tools that will help you to check the detail of your letter for mistakes and therefore you should take advantage of this before submitting your application.

You need to make sure you fully analyzed the job to which you are applying. Find out what specific skills and needs your employer is looking for. By doing this you can then address those needs by detailing your experiences and skills, always making sure that these are relevant to the job and industry you are intending to work in.

Your opening sentence is quite important. This is going to set the tone for the entire letter and therefore you need to try to write something that is engaging and which will get the reader's attention. Do not simply start off with something generic but try to get creative and try to address the needs of the employer straightaway.

In the main body of the letter you can demonstrate some of your knowledge of the actual company, its role in the industry, and what your role is going to be. It is very important for you to do as much research as you can in order to appear professional.

Make sure that the covering letter is also coordinated with your resume. It needs to be visually appealing but shouldn't be over the top or too stylish. Try to keep a single font size and a specific style of writing for the entire letter. Do not use any colours or anything too extravagant. The success of your cover letter will depend on the detail and not on the presentation.

Once you have completed your letter it is certainly important for you to read over at a few times and proofread it properly. It may be a good idea to also get someone else to look over it once or twice to get some feedback. If there are any changes that need to be made, change them and then get it checked again. Only once you are fully satisfied with it should you submit it alongside your resume.