As you’re working on your cover letter you have several goals. You want to produce an attractive and professional-looking business letter. You want to make the hiring authority’s job as simple as possible and you also want to highlight your unique skills and experience.
A professional-looking cover letter gets read.
A business letter is short and well formatted. It is printed on quality stationery. The location of your name and address, the date and the name and address of the person you’re sending this to can vary. Many word processing programs will have templates for you to use. Before you send your letter out, proofread it for spelling and grammar and correct use of words.
Simplify the Hiring Authority’s Job
Don’t leave your reader guessing about your letter. Include any information you have about the job for which you applying (title, reference number, etc.). Highlight experience in your most recent or current job that relates to the position, make sure your contact information is correct.
If you are providing any references in your letter, make sure that the names and contact information are correct and let the reference know you’ve included them, so a phone call won’t be a surprise.
Highlight Your Relevant Skills and Experience
The cover letter should contain short descriptions of the skills you have that match what’s required in the job. Be truthful. Exaggerations and lies will get caught. That will insure you’re not going to be considered.
Print a copy of your cover letter and look at it. It should be attractively formatted, placed well on the page and contain the information you want to convey to the hiring authority. Take this one last opportunity to proofread and check phone numbers and e-mail addresses.
The first time you do this, it’s a challenge. Once you get the format and words down, you’ll have mastered cover letters.
