Cutting to the Chase with Cover Letters - Career Advice

Drake Editorial

The Art & Science of Writing Cover Letters

For every person who says the cover letter is not important you’ll find another who says it is. Many prospective employers view the cover letter as a way of getting their first impression of you. The cover letter reveals:

• How well you communicate
• What your experience and qualifications are—briefly
• Your level of professionalism
• How detail oriented you are (i.e., are there typos or other errors?)

To make the best first impression, you need to understand what to include and what not to!

What is a Cover Letter?

A cover letter is an introduction, a sales pitch, and a proposal for further action all in one. It gives the reader a taste of what is to come–not by simply summarising the resume, but by highlighting the aspects of your background that will be most relevant to the position. A cover letter also demonstrates that you can organise your thoughts and express yourself clearly and appropriately; in other words, it reflects your communication skills and, to some extent, your personality.

Five things to think about before writing

If you find yourself struck by writer’s block at about the “Dear Mr. or Ms.” point, ask yourself the following five questions.

1. What is the prospective employer looking for? Which skills, knowledge and experience would be an asset in the job you are targeting?
2. What are your objectives? Are you applying for a specific job, trying to get an interview, or simply hoping to get someone to spend 10 or 15 minutes with you discussing at that organisation?
3. What are three to five qualities that you would bring to this employer or this job? If you’re responding to a specific job listing, look for “clues” that will tell you what they are really looking for. If you’re not applying for a particular job opening, then think of which skills, knowledge and experience would typically be valued.
4. How can you match your experience to the job? What are at least two specific accomplishments you can mention which give credence to the qualities you identified in question number three?
5. Why do you want to work for the organisation or person? What do you know about them? What is it about their products or services, philosophy, mission, organisational culture, goals and needs that relates to your own background, values and objectives?

When you’ve addressed these five issues, you’re ready to start.

Anatomy of a Cover Letter

When writing a cover letter, it can help to break your approach down into its various parts and concentrate on just one section at a time. Here’s what goes into each of the four main sections of a cover letter:

THE BEGINNING

This is where you tell employers who you are, why you’re writing, and how you heard about the organisation or the specific opening. The “who you are” part is a brief introduction of yourself with a phrase like: “I am in my final year at XYZ University graduating in May with a degree in biology.” Just mention the basic facts about you and your situation, choosing the ones that will be most relevant to the employer. The “why you’re writing” part is where you mention which position you are applying for, or what your job objective is if no specific opening has been advertised. Then be sure to tell them how you heard about the organisation or the job.

THE MIDDLE

1. The Sales Pitch

It’s best to get right to the point. The objective of this part of the letter is to list–either in paragraph form or as an actual list of bullet points–the reasons why the reader should see you as a viable candidate. It’s best to start with a statement that provides an overview of your qualifications, then go into them more specifically, using the examples you identified before you started writing. A typical opening statement might sound something like: “As a political science student and former campaign volunteer for the Conservative party, I offer the following skills and accomplishments.”

2. The Flattery

This is the “why them” section of your letter. It’s where you flatter the reader a bit by commenting on something positive about the organisation and letting them know why you would want to work there. You might mention the organisation’s reputation, sales record, size, corporate culture, management philosophy or anything else that they take pride in. Prospective employers like to know that you have chosen them for a reason and that they’re not just one of hundreds of companies you’re writing to as part of a mass mailing.

THE END

A Request for Further Action

Some people think of this final section of a cover letter as the closing, but it’s much more than that. The closing paragraph isn’t just about thanking the reader for taking the time to read your letter or for considering you as a candidate for a job. It’s also about where to go from here–about opening the door to further contact. It’s where you suggest how to proceed, usually by saying that you will call or email the reader to follow up and see if a meeting can be arranged. The important thing is to end the letter in an assertive, but courteous way by taking the initiative to follow up.

Once you’ve gotten these four sections of the letter completed in terms of content, go back and smooth out any rough edges of your writing and check for typos, misspellings and grammatical errors. Then you’re ready for “Sincerely” or “Best Regards” and your signature, and you’re off and running on the road to a great job.

Looking to put your cover letter into practice? Check out Drake’s latest jobs available - https://au.drakeintl.com/job-seeker/

Looking for more information on developing your personal brand? Contact Drake today on 13 14 48  or visit us at au.drakeintl.com.