How to Write a Great Resume Cover Letter (With Examples)
|
|
At recent survey of 1,000 executives revealed that 91 percent found cover letters to be valuable in their evaluation of candidates. Your cover letter can add information that isn't in your resume and help establish a communication channel between two professionals with a common interest. The right cover letter can get your resume read with serious attention. A good cover letter and subsequent follow-up letters can speed your candidacy through the four stages all employers go through in the recruitment, screening, and selection cycle. They won't win you the job in and of themselves, but they can make a big difference in the way you are perceived, helping you stand out from the competition. Cover letters are most effective when you develop a plan of attack that includes reaching out directly to hiring authorities. Whenever someone in a position to hire you reads your resume and cover letter, the odds of getting that interview increase dramatically, because you have skipped right over the initial hurdle -- getting pulled from the resume database -- and you are pitching directly to a recruiter or hiring manager. The Goal of a Cover LetterThe primary goal of every job search is to get into conversation, as quickly and as frequently as possible, with people in a position to hire you, because without conversations, job offers don't get made. Top Job Search Issue: Difficulty reaching hiring authorities with the candidate's message is one of the major reasons job searches stall. This happens when job searches involve themselves, almost exclusively, with posting resumes to resume banks and responding to job postings by uploading resumes into other resume databases. However, when you can get your resume, personalized with a cover letter, in front of recruiters and hiring authorities, you differentiate yourself and dramatically increase your chances of landing an interview. Cover Letters: The Key to Your Job SearchNine out of ten hiring managers prefer a cover letter with a resume, so a great cover letter will guarantee your resume gets read with serious attention. It will set you apart from other candidates and increase your interviews. You'll even have more productive and successful interviews, because the hiring manager will have a better idea of who you are professionally and who you are as a person. The sample section that follows includes many types of job search letters that you can use throughout your search to help your candidacy stand out. Cover Letter ExamplesApart from the sender's name and address (the personal stationery aspect), all letters adhere to Houghton Mifflin's Best Writer's Guide specifications. To those who might notice these things, it is important that we present an impeccable attention to detail. We hope these examples give you a good idea of how many different types of responses you need to have prepared for your job search journey. International Sales & Marketing Cover Letter ExampleTo: Operations Director Cover Letter ExampleTo:
Sincerely, [Your name] [Your telephone number] Response to Accounting Job Posting ExampleTo: An ex-Silicon Valley headhunter & HR Director of a publicly traded storage company, N.Y. Times bestseller, Martin Yate CPC, brings a lifetime of street-wise career management experience to his work. |
resource center
Blog
The Watercooler Blog
Get workplace tips and trends related to employee retention, engagement, interviewing and more.
Fill 'er up
Award-winning service
Top 0.5% in America!
PrideStaff has earned ClearlyRated's Best of Staffing Client and Talent 10-Year Diamond Awards for 3+ years. Less than 0.5% of all staffing firms receive this level of achievement.
See all our awards