The ability to write an effective cover letter is just as crucial as crafting a strong resume when it comes to job seeking. A cover letter should always accompany a resume, whether it is sent through traditional mail, email, fax, or another electronic submission method. Follow-up letters, thank-you notes, reference sheets, salary histories, and job acceptance letters are other tools that job seekers use. With strong cover letter writing skills and excellent resume writing skills, composing these other written tools should be easy.
The ultimate goal of writing a cover letter is to capture the attention of the hiring manager, just like with a resume. However, the method and format are slightly different. A resume covers most, if not all, of a person’s professional career and typically runs one to two pages. On the other hand, a cover letter is a brief page that serves as an introduction to the resume. Cover letter writing should be direct and able to quickly grab the reader’s attention, with the goal of compelling them to read the attached resume.
Many people make the mistake of saying too much in their cover letter. A good cover letter is short and to the point, highlighting two or three key points from the resume. Following the adage of “tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you told them” applies to both resume and cover letter writing.
For example, if you are a materials handling manager for a defense contractor seeking another position, you should use buzzwords like MRP, lean manufacturing, ISO 9000, and cost savings in your writing. Your cover letter should reflect how you have added value to your current and past employers through these achievements.
Your resume will provide more detail about how you accomplished these goals. In the body of the cover letter, two bulleted paragraphs can emphasize that you have experience in quality assurance and control, MRP, ISO 9000, QS 9000, and lean manufacturing, and have demonstrated significant cost savings for employers through inventory level reductions, on-time supplier delivery, and other strategies.
According to several surveys, hiring managers only devote about fifteen seconds to each resume and cover letter they review. With that in mind, your writing skills need to be exceptional to entice the hiring manager to review your resume. Your resume writing skills need to be equally impressive to convince the reader to invite you for an interview. Ultimately, your interviewing skills need to be excellent to secure the job offer. Good cover letter writing skills are the first step in a positive chain of events that leads to job satisfaction and a great paycheck.
