Because every job application needs a cover letter!
By Hayley from Jobulo
Cover letters are a great addition to a CV and in many cases can increase your chances of securing a job interview. When a recruiter or employer advertises a vacancy, they want to receive applications from candidates that have both the skill-set and passion to fulfill the role and a good cover letter can help you demonstrate that on your job application. So if you’re preparing to apply for a new job or just need some general cover letter tips, here are 5 ways you can Improve your cover letter.
#1 Keep It Short
You should treat your cover letter as you do your CV and try to keep it short and concise. An employer will be overwhelmed by a CV that is pages and pages long and this is the same when they are reading a cover letter. An employer needs to get to the key points quickly and if your cover letter is too long it can distract them and some employers may even skip reading it all together! To ensure your cover letter gets read, try to keep it to a page. A few paragraphs of text is usually enough to introduce your expertise and to grab the employer’s attention!
#2 Make It Relevant
The point of a cover letter is simple – it’s supposed to support your CV and tell an employer why they should invite you to a job interview. If your cover letter is completely irrelevant to the role and the company you’re applying to, then it’s difficult to get this message across. When a recruiter reads your cover letter they need to see your passion for the role, your knowledge of the company and the skills you think you could bring to their organisation so it’s crucial your cover letter matches the job role. Before you write it re-read the job description and pick out the key skills and experience the employer is looking for. Use your cover letter to explain how you’ve used these skills and why you want to work for their company.
Make it relevant
#3 Personalise It
It’s really easy to address your cover letter to ‘Sir’ or ‘Madam’ but the reality is most employers don’t like that! Most job adverts will list the name of the Hiring Manager so there’s no reason why you shouldn’t personalise your application. Address your cover letter to the person hiring for the role to win extra points.
#4 Refer To Your CV
Your cover letter should support your CV so it’s vital that you refer to it. If your cover letter is filled with statements and experiences that don’t match your CV then the employer is going to get confused. When writing your cover letter have your CV next to you and refer to it regularly to keep your cover letter succinct and to the point.
#5 Spell Check
If you send out your cover letter and it’s full of spelling mistakes it can be very damaging for your job interview chances. An employer will automatically think you haven’t put that much effort into the application so to avoid this, spell check your cover letter before sending it!
Don’t forget to do a spell check
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You may also want to check out the top 5 reasons hobbies are important on a CV.
