Building A Strong Body for Your Cover Letter

Like a lot of things in life, when it comes to Cover Letter's, the nicer the body, the more attractive the prospect.

We can spend all day moralizing. It's just human nature. The sooner you accept it, the sooner you can get over that no matter what, if you're Cover Letter looks like this:

Chances are we've already lined up a couple of people to interview but will let you know.

Thankfully, crafting a nicely toned and attractive Cover Letter doesn't require much sweat. In fact it's not very hard at all, should you remember a few basic things:

1) There Are No Rules For Writing A Cover Letter. Too often we are made to feel that, should a Cover Letter not fit within some imaginary perfect ideal, it is an immediate reflection of how unacceptable as a human being you are. Don't get caught up in that. No one is perfect so write the Cover Letter that you feel best reflects you.

2) Remember your reader. We want to be reading it as much as you want to be writing it. Be short, be sweet, and get to the point.

3) Make it professional.

The last one is the hard part. Everyone has it in themselves to get over their fears or self doubts and tell someone why they are worth a damn. It's a skill you have to learn to do it in Corporate Speak.

Corporate Speak is a passive tone of voice that tries to communicate information as much like a professional robot as possible. It is pleasant, welcoming, and polite. It is courteous of the professional time the reader took out of their schedule to read it. And it shows that you know how to play by the rules. Resumes and Cover Letter's that veer too far on the left toward creativity risk alienating the reader. But that's another post.

This is why it is best to a build a Cover Letter template to which simple modifications can be made from job to job.

I know what you're thinking. You're always told that you need to personalize your Cover Letter for every job. Pull up five job descriptions for similar positions and read them all. They may all ask for different levels of experience, and they may all be worded differently but they all ask for the same basic things. Those are the things you build you Cover Letter from.

It's personal preference, but I think all Cover Letter's should have four paragraphs.

In as few words as possible, start with a pleasantry, state the position you are applying for and where you saw it posted. Every employer wants this information anyway. Give it to them up front.

The second paragraph is a little about yourself. The job you're doing and the company you're doing it for. How long you've been doing it and maybe what lead you to doing it, if relevant.

The third paragraph is why you're good for the job that's being advertised. Give examples of what you have done that is similar to what is being asked for. Make specific reference to achievements. Give me anything that shows that when it comes to this job, you're more than another nobody. You're this:

  
Close by thanking your reader for their time and encouraging them to contact you at the number provided at their soonest convenience, should they wish to discuss further.

Provide a salutation

Sincerely,




Michael Lippert,
Enclosure

Make sure the spelling and grammar are good, make sure you are happy with the message communicated, save and send.

You'll have to personalize the position applied for and the recipient of your letter each time. And different kinds of jobs will require you to highlight different kinds of accomplishments. But for the most part, a strong Cover Letter template, when done right, will have Recruiters seeing more of this:

 

And less of this this:

 

 

Why You Need A Cover Letter

If you want proof that nobody knows anything in the world of Recruitment, look no further than the Cover Letter.

There is not a single document in Recruitment with more question marks surrounding it than the Cover Letter.

 

And every dime store philosopher has a spin they think your Cover Letter needs to land you the interview.

 

 

Unfortunately, You Need One.

 

 

I know what you're thinking. I already said that Recruiters don't like to read.

 

I'll admit, my approach to Cover Letter's is kind of like Boarder Security. I'll check randomly or when suspicions arise.

 

But by and large they go unchecked.

 

Here's the thing though. Whether they read it or not, statistics show that the vast majority of Recruiters will not even bother to open a resume unless it is accompanied by a Cover Letter.  

 

When I get a resume that doesn't come with a Cover Letter, I start making assumptions:

 

Does this person think they are too good for Cover Letters?

Did they forget to attach it? That was dumb.

Maybe they were too lazy to write one?

 

Whatever the case, there is only one reason to write a Cover Letter and it's the only one you need:

 

Because It Looks Better  

 

There are other reasons. It provides a more detailed explanation of why you're the best person for the job. It lets you personalize your resume. It shows that you know how to effectively communicate in sentences and paragraphs. We could go on all day.

 

But at the very least, if there are two resumes that are about the same and an offer needs to be made to one of them, it doesn't matter what the Cover Letter says, the one who wrote it is getting the job.

 

Period.

 

Because they did a little bit more. Because it looks better.     

 

Now that you know you have to write a Cover Letter, next we'll talk about how to.