5 Must-Have Points for an Outstanding Cover Letter
Writing cover letters is an art. Here you can find some tips on how to nail your cover letter writing skills and land the job you love.
It’s 2020 and yes, cover letters are still a thing.
Why do cover letters still play such a major role in most application processes?
Well, cover letters are probably the first and only opportunity for candidates to use their voice, pitch themselves to hiring managers and stand out from the rest of the applicants’ cohort.
While CVs mostly work as technical sheets with sterile listings of professional and personal details, cover letters have the power to tell more about candidates’ personalities and attitudes.
Two facts make cover letters be the most important part of an application:
- Hiring managers do not spend more than 5–7 seconds reading a resume.
- You will not be the only candidate for the role.
Considering the little amount of time spent by hiring managers on reading a resume and a large number of applicants for the role, the cover letter is your tool to stand out from the rest of the candidates and persuade the recruiter to keep reading your application.
If you still don’t know how to nail your cover letter, here I have created a list of 5 things you need to know before writing one.
1 — Keep it short but strategic
Ideally, your cover letter takes no longer than half of a page (reference: Times New Romans, 12, double line).
Little space, a lot to say: Make it strategic.
Think of your cover letter as your elevator pitch.
In the first few lines, you need to persuade the recruiter to keep reading your application and spend more time reviewing it.
2 — Tailor it and make it company- AND role-centric
The worst impression a recruiter can get from your cover letter is that it was recycled from other applications.
Your cover letter has to be authentic and tailored specifically to the company and the role you are applying for.
This requires a certain level of research and empathy with the objectives and mission of the company in question.
Make sure you understand what the company does, what is the “tone” of its social presence (formal, youth, ironic, commercial, etc.) and what is the language of its employer branding strategy.
Moreover, recruiters are less interested in what you can do and rather want to know what you can do FOR THE COMPANY and how you can use your experience and skills to succeed in that role.
Make sure that these questions get replied in your cover letter.
3 — Add relevant information only
All your work experiences, your thesis’ title, your childhood hobbies (unless they concretely relate to the role), your reason to be in the city… are details that recruiters don’t look for in a cover letter.
The cover letter is NOT an articulated version of your CV.
It’s not a memoir. It’s not an academic application (unless you are applying for a Ph.D. or a role in academia).
The cover letter is a storytelling exercise aiming to boost your professional profile to get a job.
Make sure to select the most relevant information and turn it into a catching summary of your professional path.
4 — Be creative. Avoid rhetorics
Recruiters spend their entire day reading cover letters and applications.
This is why the best way to catch their attention is to offer something different and creative.
While reading your CL, recruiters should think “FINALLY!”. Finally a well-written CL, a catchy and convincing description, an authentic voice.
You do not need to “overdo”. No need to be over-eclectic or over-original. You just need to empathize with your audience (recruiters) and step into their shoes.
Think of what YOU would enjoy reading more: A standard intro letter or a sparkling professional pitch?
We know the answer!
Be creative, own your professional personality and make it pop up outstandingly in your CL.
Avoid rhetorical sentences and cliché-ish tones.
Be honest to yourself first and take some time to think about why you are applying and what is that makes you feel you’re the perfect match for the job and what is that makes you run for that position.
Your CL should include an authentic overview of all these points.
5 — Details matter
Avoid names’ misspelling, typos, grammar incorrectness.
Recruiters won’t applaud you or give you extra points for writing properly (they take it for granted).
However, their opinion will change drastically if they stumble across grammatical errors and linguistic inaccuracies especially misspelled names.
Double-check your letter and let someone proofread it before sending it out.
Do you want to deep dive into the art of writing cover letters and get to know how to write one that will be a free pass to every advanced applications’ stage?
Schedule a call here!
I am looking forward to working together :)
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