Tuesday 11 September 2012

The Writing of an Impressive Cover Letter

By Janet Ronald


For anyone looking for a job, the writing of an impressive cover letter is at the top of their list of things to do. A cover letter is really important because it will determine whether a prospective employer will call you back or not. It is for this reason that you want to make sure you write something that will be a winner.

Remember this is like a sales pitch and the product you are selling is yourself, so the letter needs to reflect that. Many employers never read beyond this letter if it is less than impressive. Your letter should engage their attention long enough for them to want to have a look at your resume, and hopefully call you for that all important interview.

Every good cover letter starts with a heading. Do not leave yours naked and take the time to make the heading stand out by bolding. The heading should include the job that you are applying for and its reference number.

The letter itself should be neatly typed on plain white paper. Format it so it looks professional and worth reading. You want it to be impressive and an untidy cover letter with tons of typing errors will not cut it.

The first sentence could either make or break the letter, so you want to be careful about how you start. You want your first sentence to grab the reader and rein them in so they will want to finish the letter. Do not forget that many people are after the same position you want and your letter has to be unique and interesting if you are to stand a chance against them all.

The whole point of the letter is to show that you are the right person for the job and they should give it to you. Make sure you let them know about your achievements so far and your strengths. This will make them see that you are an asset, which is what you are trying to achieve. Keep it short; your resume will expound on these attributes. The submission guidelines must be followed strictly so make sure you read and reread them, and follow them to the letter. If you are asked to send the cover letter as an attachment, do so. If there are no submission guidelines, you could send it as both the email body and an attachment.



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