Recently in Cover Letter Tips Category

A cover letter is supposed to be brief, readable, and professional. A fax cover sheet or a handwritten note should preferably never be used, especially when you want an employer to view you as a serious potential employee. The ideal cover letter is four to five paragraphs long, with each paragraph consisting of maybe three or four sentences. Keep in mind, too, that “less is more.” Your letter should preferably be no more than one page in length. Write clearly and concisely, and stay focused in each paragraph.

For example, one could use the following for writing an amazing cover letter:

1. write one or two sentences to introduce the purpose of your contact;
2. write a second paragraph to highlight your relevant skills and work experience;
3. write a third paragraph to outline academic credentials and relevant certifications;
4. write a quick paragraph outlining salary requirements (include such a paragraph only in response to a querying employer, of course); and lastly …
5. write a closing paragraph that reminds the reader how to reach you.

This tip is excerpted with permission from Designing a Cover Letter to “Wow” Hiring Personnel, an e-book by Teena Rose. For more cover-letter tips, visit Teena’s Bookstore to download your copy for $27.77. You can also download a free 19-page excerpt.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

You can find many books, websites, and other guides with hundreds of sample cover letters. Use them as a starting point to help you get ideas for format and content, but don’t copy them. Write your cover letter in your own words so it has your voice and style. Take the time to research the company and convey your own enthusiasm for the job. A bland, generic cover letter says that you didn’t care enough about the position or the employer to expend any effort creating a specific and detailed letter.

This tip is excerpted with permission from Designing a Cover Letter to “Wow” Hiring Personnel, an e-book by Teena Rose. For more cover-letter tips, visit Teena’s Bookstore to download your copy for $27.77. You can also download a free 19-page excerpt.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

When you’re planning to relocate, submitting your resume with a cover letter to various companies in hopes of establishing a relationship and inquiring about employment opportunities is a great idea. A cover letter is an extremely important part of your direct-mail campaign, but also be sure you’ve devised an overall strategy about relocating. Research companies in the new location, decide which ones to target, and identify key people to contact. Our Quintessential Careers Directory of Company Career Centershttp://www.quintcareers.com/career_centers/ can help you reach major targeted companies. And once you’ve sent out your cover-letter and resume packages, make sure you follow up and contact these people to try to get some interviews, either by phone or as soon as you arrive at your new location. For help with your cover letter, visit Cover Letter Resources for Job-Seekers, which includes a link to our Cover Letter Tutorial.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

A resume by itself can be limiting; but when paired with a cover letter, both documents serve as a highly effective tag team. Consider this: An employer has a large number of applicants to review, yet he or she can take only seconds to consider each candidate. By knowing what is useful to the employer and calling attention to that in your cover letter, for example, you help quickly answer the question, “Why should I hire this person?” Focus the letter not only on your skill set, but also consider including details on how you can help the employer with what pains them.

This tip is excerpted with permission from Designing a Cover Letter to “Wow” Hiring Personnel, an e-book by Teena Rose. For more cover-letter tips, visit Teena’s Bookstore to download your copy for $27.77. You can also download a free 19-page excerpt.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

The importance of first impressions is clear when it comes to cover letters. In just a few paragraphs, you’ll present your communication skills, your attention to detail, your interest in the company, and let’s not forget your qualifications that are perfect for the job. A cover letter is also a great place to shine a bit of your personality too. Not sure what details to snapshot in your cover letter? Start by making a list of the top 10-20 components of your professional value and cross- reference that list to what the employer seeks. Your professional value, plus employer’s wants/needs, equals a great snapshot of you in a letter. Voila!

This tip is excerpted with permission from Designing a Cover Letter to “Wow” Hiring Personnel, an e-book by Teena Rose. For more cover-letter tips, visit Teena’s Bookstore to download your copy for $27.77. You can also download a free 19-page excerpt.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

A paragraph in your cover letter should describe who you are and what makes you stand out writes Deborah Brown-Volkman, president of Surpass Your Dreams, Inc. a career, life, and mentor coaching company. “Include your strengths and what you are passionate about in your career.” Brown-Volkman advises that you think of this paragraph as completing the sentence, “Here’s why I am a good candidate…”

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

Understanding how to portray your skills as transferable is one of the most important concepts you can master in writing a cover letter. Learn why and how to do it in resumes and cover letters in our article, Strategic Portrayal of Transferable Skills is a Vital Job Search Technique.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

Although not stated in an ad or mentioned in conversation, an employer likely wishes to see a cover letter accompanying your resume. True, not all employers share the same views on cover letters and therefore can’t all be put in the same barrel of opinion. But, there’s a certain degree of risk when the employer expects a cover letter but doesn’t receive one. Let’s face it, the cover letter serves as a chance for you to sell yourself further— even if only a tiny bit more. A resume lists what you’ve done, sure, yet the cover letter lets you further tailor your message to each cover letter recipient. For example, what can you do when employers seek a specific skill you haven’t done for a while? Highlighting your knowledge of the skill within the resume can sometimes be tricky, while introducing it within a cover letter can be much easier. So, leverage your cover letter to introduce and reinforce your value to employers.

This tip is excerpted with permission from Designing a Cover Letter to “Wow” Hiring Personnel, an e-book by Teena Rose. For more cover-letter tips, visit Teena’s Bookstore to download your copy for $27.77. You can also download a free 19-page excerpt..

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

Listing addresses correctly will show the letter recipient that you are a professional — accurately include spelling of names, the inclusion of the recipient’s position title, and full company address. For example:

—————————————————————————————-

July 2, 2010

John McNeil, Director of Operations
S3 Plastics Corporation, Inc.
242118 Corporate Way
San Antonio, TX 78227

Dear Mr. McNeil:

This tip is excerpted with permission from Designing a Cover Letter to “Wow” Hiring Personnel, an e-book by Teena Rose. For more cover-letter tips, visit Teena’s Bookstore to download your copy for $27.77. You can also download a free 19-page excerpt.

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.

One paragraph in your cover letter should discuss your accomplishments or highlights that you want to showcase or have the employer locate quickly, writes Deborah Brown-Volkman, president of Surpass Your Dreams, Inc. a career, life, and mentor coaching company. “Bullets work well in making your accomplishments easy to read.” Brown-Volkman suggests thinking of this paragraph as filling in the details of this sentence: “Here are relevant examples of what I have done that match with what you are looking for…”

Get a FREE resume evaluation from Quintessential Resumes and Cover Letters, powered by About Jobs Resume Writing Service. Or order a resume, cover letter, or other career-marketing document.