Note from Neville:
I wanted to show everyone how to write a kick ass cover letter….so I’m bringing in someone who’s read thousands of resumes, thousands of cover letters, and acts as the gatekeeper between thousands of people and the jobs they’re hunting for. Denise Renee.
Denise Renee can tell you which cover letters suck, which are amazing, and which are a total waste of your time. I added lots of poorly-drawn illustrations into this article so blame those on me, not Denise Renee!
Denise Renee starts talking typing here:
Thanks Neville!
I have held several positions where I’ve performed HR functions throughout my career, such as on-boarding new employees, training, interviewing and hiring. A few years ago, I worked for an Executive Recruiting firm where I learned the industry inside and out. I also had an all-access backstage pass to the side of CareerBuilder.com job seekers don’t normally see.
I have been a gatekeeper, guarding the door of employment for a few lucky souls. So I know from personal experience that gatekeepers don’t have a lot of time. They are trying to wade through the deluge of resumes they receive daily and they want to get to the most relevant applicants as quickly as possible. A heavily reference study conducted by TheLadders.com back in 2012 revealed that recruiters spent an average of 6 seconds reading a resume before deciding if they were interested or not in reading more. If a hiring manager receives an email with a cover letter and resume attached to it, 9 times out of 10, they are going straight for the resume.
In fact, I think that cover letters are a waste of time (with only 3 exceptions).
When was the last time you were verbally asked to hand in a cover letter?
Back in the day when resumes were physically mailed (or faxed) to companies, a cover letter served a practical purpose. It was seen before the resume and was intended to entice the recipient to take a further look at what was enclosed:
Today, however, resumes are, more often than not, received electronically. Whether directly submitted via a company’s website, vetted by a recruiting firm, or sourced from an applicant pool such as Careerbuilder.com, resumes are digitally delivered without being married to a cover letter.
You must understand…..
If there is a digital database of resumes, there is an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) in place. When recruiting firms, individual companies and online applicant pools like CareerBuilder receive resumes, they are scanned and the relevant information is put into buckets like:
- Name.
- City/State.
- Job Title.
- Relevant keywords inside your resume (such as “Manager” or “Executive” or “Microsoft Excel” or “QuickBooks”)
So when a recruiter or a hiring manager has a position to fill and wants to search their internal database (or the database of a site like CareerBuilder), they can essentially do a “Google search” of the skill sets they are looking for, and the database shows them a list of resumes.
In all my years in recruiting I’ve never seen a cover letter given much relevance by an ATS.
It’s all about the resume baby.
And today, your resume must be friendly to two things:
1.) The ATS (Applicant Tracking System)…so when someone types in certain keywords your resume pops up.
2.) The human who will skim through those resumes that decides who gets a pre-screening phone call. This person is The Gatekeeper and can make-or-break your chances of getting an interview.
For today’s job hunter, a cover letter is sometimes a deer-in-headlights afterthought. They think after they’ve polished up their resume, “Maybe I should write a cover letter!” Fresh out of ideas, what usually gets cranked out reads like recycled resume hash that goes something like this:
Bad Cover Letter Example:
If this letter is supposed to entice the hiring manager to further examine the resume, it’s an epic fail.
Why?
Well, because:
- It’s highly impersonal. (“Dear Hiring Manager.” …Seriously???)
- It reads like a generic, plastic wrapped product that came off a cover letter assembly line when Reagan was President.
- It only focuses on the job seeker and their desire for an interview, not what the employers wants or needs.
- It’s a snooze fest. (That should probably be listed as #1)!
- It just summarizes what’s in the resume, so there’s no compelling reason to look at the resume…which is supposed to be the point of a cover letter, right?
So in the digital age, there’s not much point to writing a cover letter……well, except in these three cases:
The Only 3 Times You Must Write A Cover Letter:
I actually think there are three situations where cover letters are important, if not mandatory:
Situation #1.) When you are specifically asked for one by an individual company’s website.
Some companies have their own in-depth online application process via their website. You may have discovered this by being redirected when using a site like Indeed.com or CareerBuilder.com or if you are conducting a proactive job search. If their process requests that you submit a cover letter, then submit a cover letter! You never want to leave out a step in a hiring process because I can promise you, the person on the other end sorting through those applications is just PRAYING you give them a reason to disqualify you; you’ll be one less application to read. Not paying attention to instructions during the application or interview process with any company is a red flag to them; you may not follow instructions if hired. So I wouldn’t play with that if I were you.
General template:
Example: when the company asks for specific suggestions
Example: when the company asks for a specific word to be mentioned
Example: when a content manager asks for article ideas in the cover letter
Situation #2.) when a connection has been made for you.
If you are serious about landing your next position, you wouldn’t rely on a passive method such as submitting your resume to CareerBuilder.com and to company websites as your sole strategy. Tapping into your network is an excellent way to be proactive about your job search. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 70% of jobs are found through networking or are unadvertised positions. So when one of your friends, colleague or mentors say, “I have someone you should send your resume too,” follow through on that lead! You now now have a golden opportunity to bypass the recruiting “black hole” of online applications and HR blockades to put your resume in the hands of a warm-blooded influencer at the company. It most definitely should be accompanied by a well crafted cover letter.
General template:
Example: CMO reaching out to a startup founder via mutual friend
Example: PPC specialist reaching out to a big brand leader via a mutual connection
Example: reaching out to development agency officers before moving to a new country
Situation #3.) When you are conducting a proactive job search.
Where a cover letter is relevant, if not mandatory is when you are conducting a proactive job search. It’s when you’ve identified specific companies you’d like to work with (regardless if they are currently hiring in your field or not), you’ve thoroughly researched their history and growth plans and you’ve crafted a strategy to find your way in. Once you’ve identified the best individual to make your introduction, you’ll most certainly want to whip up a customized cover letter and send it off via snail mail with your resume; both should be on that fancy paper you can get at Office Depot or Staples.
General template:
Example: copywriter reaching out to a marketing agency
Example: Lawyer reaching out to a clean tech consulting firm
Example: Web developer reaching out to a local sports team
Example: reaching out to a founder after listening to their podcast interview
How To Write An Attention Grabbing Cover Letter That Gets You Phone Calls:
This next part is only for those of you who don’t see yourself as the average “Jo/anna Shmoe” employee. If you put a high value on your skillset and you understand that you are both the CEO and CMO of “You Inc.” you are probably a proactive type of job seeker and you’ll immediately get what I’m about to say next.
In order to write an effective cover letter, you have to write it like a sales letter:
Yes, the same kind of sales letter that Neville teaches the people in his copywriting course to write. Remember Bobby and the boring emails he used to write to influential client prospects? That’s exactly how most people churn out cover letters. Boring, stale, snooze material.
Remember, you are the CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) of “You Inc.” It’s your job to show your potential customers (recruiters and hiring managers) that you have the best solution or product (your superior skill set) that will solve their business problems.
This will require that you understand that company’s vision, goals and pain points. You’re not going to get that simply from a job posting on Indeed.com. You’ll actually need to engage in the “hunting” part of “job hunting.” You can gain a 360 degree perspective of your target companies by doing things like studying their website, searching for press clippings, stalking their employees on Linkedin (in a professional way, of course), going to association meetings that some of their employees are a part of or by attending industry events the company will have a presence, just to name a few tactics.
When you are adequately armed with both the knowledge of what the company’s current trajectory is, along with an appropriate influencer within the company to direct your resume to, you can now write your cover letter.
The Cover Letter Checklist:
Your cover letter must take everything that is wrong in my bad cover letter example above and do the exact opposite. A cover letter that will have a hiring manager or recruiter calling you before they’ve finished reading will:
So to craft this masterpiece, you simply follow a tried and true copywriting formula: AIDA.
A – Grab their Attention
I – Spark their Interest
D – Create Desire
A – Invite them to take Action
So let’s say Emily Employee has decided she wants to work at Global Technical Services. She’s done her research and learned that their Atlanta area expansion has not been going very well. Local news reports revealed that their contractor relationships have been failing and they’ve been refunding their end-user clients to make up for lack of poor service. Emily has the Regional Manager, Richard Robinson’s contact info. So now instead of the snooze fest letter she sent above, she’ll send one that sounds more like this:
Good Cover Letter Example:
Here’s why this cover letter will perform better for Emily:
- She immediately grabs Richard’s attention by addressing him by name.
- She addresses the company’s biggest pain points: their current PR problem and their profit problem.
- She stirs up interest by showing how her existing relationships in the field can contribute to a potential solution.
- She is showing how she’ll be a benefit to the organization.
Richard is probably salivating with desire to get his hands on Emily’s connections and she gives him an action to take….review her resume and call her. If you were Richard, wouldn’t you call Emily?
::::Denise Renee drops the mic and sashays off stage!::::
Ok, I’m back!
But there you have it: when and how to write a relevant cover letter. When job seekers start thinking more like marketers and sales professionals, I have the pleasure of seeing them become better resume and cover letter writers. I hope this nudges you one step closer to landing your dream job!
Sincerely,
Denise Renee
Download this entire Cover Letter Post for your own files or sharing with colleagues:
P.S. Neville back with you. Whenever people ask “where can I find a copywriter” for the HR industry, I always refer them to Denise Renee. Years ago she took one of my classes and I was blown away by the content she wrote about how to cleverly stuff a resume with keywords so it shows up in a recruiters list. You can grab her free ebook 5 Essential Resume Hacks or stalk her for cool personal branding and career tips on Facebook or Periscope.
If you ever have job-related or professional space copy to be written, keep Denise Renee in your Copywriting Rolodex.
P.P.S. If you would like to ask Denise Renee any questions about your own cover letter or resume, ask below! She kindly said she’d answer them all. She was the gatekeeper for thousands of job seekers, so she knows a lot of the tricks of the trade.
Other articles to help you at work:
How to write a good memo.
Effective workplace communications skills.
I was unaware before applying that cover letter plays this much of importance in interview so decided to create one for myself but didn’t had any idea about how and what should I include or which mistakes should I avoid while creating one but this article helped me while creating a cover letter so thank you for the help.
Hi Renee,
When applying for a job in a Sports Bet Centre, how does one compose an application letter for that?
Hi Samuel, thanks for reaching out with your question. I’m not familiar with Sports Bet Centre, but the same principles I shared in this article should help you compose a customized cover letter that will grab the hiring manager’s attention. All the best on your job applications!
~Denise Renee
Here’s what I like about this cover letter: It’s short. It sums up the résumé as it relates to the job. It asks for the job.
The writer of this letter took the time to think through what would be relevant to me. Instead of scattering lots of facts in hopes that one was relevant, the candidate offered up an opinion as to which experiences I should focus on. http://www.itlogic.co.ug/
Hi Neville and Denise,
I absolutely love this article and keep coming back to it ever since a friend on Twitter alerted me to it! I’m in the process of applying for a job I really want, which I know I’m qualified for, but I just can’t come up with a cover letter I’m satisfied with. I have a bad habit of taking way too long on cover letters (and your advice has helped with that!) and for some reason, I feel burned out / stumped with this one. My main question is what your thoughts are on mentioning that you have been alerted to the job posting by someone?
Long story short, I am applying for a receptionist position in an arts organisation I have rented studio space from before and my family member hires space from currently. It was this family member who alerted me to the job post and while she’s not a member of staff from the organisation, she is a long-standing tenant of their studio space. Is there a way I can use this in my cover letter to show my support for the company without sounding like I’m name-dropping? Should I use this information at all?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks, and keep up the awesome work :)
Emily
Hi Emily, I’m so glad you’ve found this article to be a good resource for you. I would say if you have an “in” with the studio, use it. But use it to land a phone conversation or meeting with the appropirate person. Even if the name you have isn’t the hiring manager, you can still ring them up, tell them you heard about the position, share your connection and excitement about working there, then politely ask who is the person you should speak with. They might just transfer you on the spot! Making a human connection to the hiring manager and getting them excited about receiving your resume before you hit send makes a world of difference. At that point, once you’ve made that human connection, there’s no need to mention it in the cover letter. Use your cover letter to address whatever pain points you uncovered in your personal conversation and show how you will be an asset. Hope this helps!
Hey Denise,
Thanks so much for the tip – I’ll give the recruitment officer a call tomorrow during my lunch break!
Really super grateful for the help you guys have given – thanks for such a quick response!
Emily
Hey Emily, no problem! And if by chance you want your resume to be looked at before you send it out, I offer that as a service, if you are interested (totally no pressure). You can get details if you’d like at http://bit.ly/res-rev. Good luck!!
Thanks for sharing this great info. One question, what are your recommendations for freelancers? I’m trying this new path and I’m not sure in the proper way to contact potential clients.
Hi Adolfo,
Thanks for reading and for your question. As a freelancer, what you do to get clients is going to be different than how you go about getting a job… unless you are looking to be a 1099 contractor inside of a company. It is always a good idea as a freelancer to keep your resume up to date because you never know when you may need it. But as a freelancer looking to get clients, you’ll need to put together a tailored marketing plan which should include a mix of networking, online branding, social media, and some direct response tactics, like sending the “good” letter that Bobby sends out to Mr. Moneybags (https://copywritingcourse.com/what-is-copywriting). Those letters/emails should be directed to influencers you’d like to work with.
What a great insight knowledge you share us. Thank you so much.
Hey Lapth, my pleasure! Glad you got something out of the article!
Glad you liked it Lapth!
Hey Nev & Denise,
You should find a way to teach this as a class to graduating students at UT or any grad school really. So many students think they are king-sh*t because they just graduated and have experience managing a Facebook page or a Twitter feed for some random club. I’ve had the unfortunate job of screening dozens of resumes for a Jr. Online Marketing job. In the job description we specifically asked for a cover letter to screen out people who can’t follow instructions. I would say 19/20 cover letters we received did not follow AIDA or have anything about our company and how they would help. Typical cover letter is all me, me, me.
It’s so easy to stand out from the masses by following the advice in this blog. This blog touched on so many good points. I’m going to forward it to every applicant we deny going forward!
Hi Lucas, thanks so much for reading and for your comments… you truly made me laugh out loud! I’m glad you found it helpful and thanks in advance for sharing :)!
Heh heh…..I went to UT so I know this first hand :)
A lot of college students are just a little ignorant on the subject and don’t know this, so hopefully this info circulates to them.
Also just managing some Facebook page is about the MAXIMUM experience a lot of those kids will have. I remember being in an “entrepreneur club” at UT with 200+ members, and it was literally just me and one other dude that actually had a business. Even fewer had any valid real-world work experience.
At that age people are still a little young and dumb……which makes it SUPER EASY for someone in that group to completely out-excel their classmates!
I remember one friend who had an internship at AMD for a few months, and he read the book “Excel For Dummies” before he got there. Turns out he was considered some high-level Excel expert since he could do relatively simple things like concatenate a list of data. When his whole department got laid off, he was offered a full-time position because the VP knew he was the guy everyone came to for computer help.
Even small skills like that go a looonngg way!
Thanks for sharing Lucas :)
I love the idea of making the cover letter about them, and the resume about you. Good way to think about it! I guess I’ve always tried to make the resume do both.
Hi Jonathan, thanks for reading and for sharing your comments. Resumes and cover letters are absolutely all about them and what you can do for them. If you don’t paint that picture for them, you’ll be overlooked.
Yup, divide and conquer those tasks!
Neville:
1. You wrote twice that you’re back with us, once at the end of the post, another time in the first P.S.
2. Shouldn’t the line “I have someone you should send your resume too” use to instead of too?
3. Another typo here: “You now now have a golden opportunity …”
4. Why don’t you change the “Questions or Komments” to “Kuestions or Komments?” Just a thought.
Thanks for getting Denise here, and for publishing her post. I’d like you to publish a post for freelancers (not just freelance writers and copywriters) how to get clients, some day.
Thanks for the sharp eye Raspal!
I actually do have a post about getting clients (not just for copywriters) that’s right here:
https://copywritingcourse.com/consulting-as-a-side-job/
People always wanted me to do a whole course about it, but I didn’t think there was enough complexity for a full course, so I just made one giant show-you-how post.
Thanks for the link to the great post! I’d love to see a course too, but for now, the post would suffice.
And, thanks a ton for the hard work you put into it, sitting late nights. :)
I’ll probably read it bit by bit, and then use those bits.
Kuestion 1: “Dear Hiring Manager.” In 2007-08, I read and subscribed to a newsletter from someone who guaranteed that his cover letter and resume tips would always work. He advised to use “Dear Hiring Manager,” if we couldn’t find out/weren’t sure about the name of the person who’d read our email/cover letter. Those days, even though LinkedIn existed, many people didn’t know the best way to use it, or recommend connecting. BUT, this newsletter guy also advised to put two lines at the very top, before the “Hiring Manager.”
He advised to use “PLEASE NOTE: I apologize for the impersonal greeting. I wanted to address this cover letter to you by name but it was not provided online and I was unable to obtain it. I am very interested in the position of ________.”
I used it many times till 2008-09 and did get some responses to my emails/cover letters. Even got some jobs. Of course the rest of the cover letter had to be interesting, though short. Starting with something like, “Five reasons why I believe I may be the candidate you are searching for the [INSERT POSITION HERE] position.”
And then, ending the cover letter with a P.S. (like Neville does in his newsletters).
In case of pitches I’ve sent to editors, if I don’t know their names, I’ve used “Hi there.”
Kuestion 2: I’d like to ask about the word “Dear” – what’s your reaction of getting it from someone you don’t even know, even if they know your name?
Just remembered after reading Chris Turner’s comment. When I sent physical coverletters and resumes, I used to call up at the company and ask the operator for the name of the head of the department to whom I needed to contact, or the HR’s name. I told them I needed to send a letter to them. Most of the times, I got the name. Sometimes I didn’t.
Even back in 2007-08, I’ve seen advice to send a physical cover letter and resume, to become a little special. So, that the busy recruiter would give some time to open and read it (it was also advised to us a colored paper, make good use of colors, to attract attention), rather than not even opening our digital resume in his/her Inbox.
I did get some calls after doing this. I also used to send a hand-written thank you note after interviews. It kind of worked, at times.
Kuestion 3: How would YOU respond to a paper cover letter and resume, and even a thank you note after an interview?
[Don’t know how Neville thinks that the manager would take home the cover letter and use it as a sleeping aid. I would’ve used it to make a pocketmod (pocketmod.com), instead.]
Kuestion 4: How about using cover letters for jobs on freelancing sites like UpWork? UpWork still advises using customized cover letters. I’ve used them a couple years ago when I searched freelance jobs there, but not sure whether I got hired due to the cover letter or the resume. :) I did spend a huge amount of time to perfect both.
Kuestion 5: I don’t need to write resume for regular jobs now. I used to have a one-page resume and another three-page one. I used them depending on the job and the post. The one-page resume was short but actually had the best copy. But, what’s the perfect length for a resume. a) for a technical position, and b) for a non-technical position?
Kuestion 6: If you were scanning resumes, what is it that you look for in those 6 seconds? What would grab your attention? Can you tell us?
Kuestion 7: What’s the difference between a resume and a CV? I didn’t know they were different. People here use any of the two words to refer to the resume. At least that’s what I thought.
Kuestion 8: If you don’t have proper educational qualifications, or got bad grades, but have great experience in the field you’re applying for, how would you mention this in your resume?
Thanks Neville and Denise for publishing this post.
Hi Raspal, thanks for reading and for your list of kuestions :)
K1 – not much of a question, but thanks for sharing your experience. At the end of the day, it’s all about what works best for you.
K2 – Dear is a common salutation in business letters. I wouldn’t stress out over it.
K3 – For me, if someone took the time to send a paper cover letter, resume and thank you note, I would remember it and them. But the had better be pretty amazing on paper too so that I would actually want to hire them!
K4 – I hire freelancers through UpWork and I appreciate when someone takes the time to represent themselves well in writing from our first meeting. It is usually a good indicator for me for how the rest of our interactions will be… I’ve never been wrong yet.
K5 – Regardless of position, one page is best; two pages max if you have really juicy info to share. At the end of the day, a resume is intended to invite further conversation, not share your whole life story on it.
K6 – I look for keywords relevant to the position I’m hiring for. If I see some, I stop and read carefully. If I don’t see any, I move on because clearly that person didn’t pay attention to what the job requirements were or they didn’t care… and why would I want to hire them?
K7 – CV’s are longer and basically tell your professional story. They are usually used by MD’s, PhD’s, educators and those kinda folks. Google it and look at examples.
K8 – As long as you have the degree, grades don’t matter… unless you’re applying to grad school. But then again, they’ll see your transcript. Keep grades off resumes and focus on relevant experience.
Thanks for answering all the questions. I’m saving this whole post into my pocket account.
Seems I forgot to paste the kuestion for K1. What I meant to ask is: what if someone still isn’t able to find the name of the person they need to address the cover letter to, today? Can they use what the guy suggested? Would that “PLEASE NOTE …” sentence in bold font, make you to read the rest of the cover letter if one landed in your e-mail Inbox?
About K4 again: I know you answered someone about the length of the cover letter, but this one’s about UpWork. How much should be the approx. length of the cover letter? How much would be too long? This would help me to help some friends.
About K6: So, if I made those (few) keywords bold, it’d be easy for you to scan the one-page resume in 2-3 seconds and know that you want to read it in full. Am I right?
Hey Raspal, Thanks for your additional questions… but this is starting to feel like a consulting session and I charge for those! LOL!
K1 – I’ve never tried that before so use your best judgement. Ultimately, this stuff is an art and a series of best practices, not a science.
K6 – Cover letters in general are brief teasers. Use enough words to get the job done and let your resume do it’s job.
K7 – No need to bold keywords on a resume. They will be seen.
I’ve often resorted to using LinkedIn and doing a search of the employer’s website to try and find the name of an actual person to address my cover letter to. Sometimes, however, I run into dead ends and have to get creative. I’ve called an employer before and asked for the name of the person who manages or oversees the area where I’m applying. That usually yields an appropriate name. Even if it’s not 100% correct, just the fact that you got a name on there that’s reasonably close is sometimes enough. I even had a prospective employer ask me about my cover letter and how I addressed it. When I explained to him how I went about getting the name, he smiled and nodded. “Resourceful,” he said. “I like that.” I wound up getting the job. :D
Hey Chris, thanks for reading and sharing your comments… that’s awesome! Employers value resourcefulness. And the funny thing is, it doesn’t take a whole ton of effort… it’s just that most people won’t take the time to think or get creative. Keep doing what you’re doing :)
Thanks awesome Chris, so glad you initiative got you the job!
Hi Denise,
Thank you for the article – it is brilliant, and I love your comments.
I am currently in a job seeking after 6 years of being in a single company. I have little idea what my value is for other employers and how to find a match, but with every your comment was like ray of light which dispels darkness so I feel much better now and I have new strategy to try. Thank you for that.
Those insights pushed me to thoughts that sometimes after one or two screening interviews you come to people who decide whether you a good fit for them and you have no idea what it is going to be and what to be prepared for. I don’t know, may be those people should shot an interview on which they can throw some insights on what they look for. This why people often rely on personal connections – it is hard to describe desired fit in job posting (and most job postings have same problems as Denise’s bad cover letter or speak buzz words). As a result I may apply for a position which is actually not a best fit for me and avoid position which is good.
But, coming back to recruiters, I have a question regarding resume – should I filter irrelevant experience from it? For example, If I am applying for a position of a Excel worker, should I specify that I have 3+ years of experience in Word?
Thank you for answers,
Oleg
Hi Oleg, thanks for reading and for your comments; I’m glad I can be a ray of hope :). The very first thing that you said which caught my attention is about understanding your value. If you don’t know and understand what value you bring, it will be very difficult for a potential employer to see that. So I would encourage you to truly reflect on your hard and soft skills.
You should always customize a resume for the positions you are applying to as much as possible. You always want to keep them focused on what is most relevant to what THEY are looking for. So make sure you highlight what is relevant for them first. If they want Excel, give the Excel first, with plenty of examples. If you want to mention Word for diversity, that’s fine, just make it secondary.
Finding the right “fit” takes time and there is no exact science to it. Just like you need to be clear on what value you bring, you also need to be clear about what you want and don’t want in a work environment so that when you see signs, you can act accordingly.
Hey Oleg, you WANT TO BE A TRIPLE THREAT TO THEM!
So like Denise said, mention the Excel part to….but position your other skills at “Complimentary Skills.” This way it doesn’t look like your skills are random, but complimentary and ADD value to the Excel job.
Such as:
“In addition to knowing Excel well, I also have three years of experience in the Microsoft Office suite dealing with Word documents on an advanced level. In fact at my last job, we would frequently link Excel and Word docs together which was extremely helpful for the department.”
Having extra skills is always a plus, especially if it’s in the same realm (such as in the Microsoft Office suite of products).
Good luck Oleg!
Hi Denise,
Thank you for sharing your expertise with us.
I am graduating from university in a month and am currently hunting for my first entry level job. While I have a number of self-developed skills useful to the jobs I am applying for, I have no practical experience in my prospective field. This lack of experience feels like a death sentence, especially when I compare my resume to that of colleagues on LinkedIn who managed to get work placements.
What I do have going for me is a willingness to sop up knowledge (I read Neville’s work for a reason). How would you recommend positioning this desire to continue to develop professionally as to diminish my lack of professional experience? Is this doable? Furthermore, would it help to speak to my lack of professional experience on my cover letter?
I have loads of practical retail experience with no job gaps, but outside of teamwork, much of this experience doesn’t seem to carry over very well to the communications jobs I am pursuing.
Finally, would you have any general advice for soon to be graduates?
Thank you once again,
Joe
Hi Joe, thanks for reading and thanks for your question. Whether you are just coming into the job market or you’ve been in it forever, it’s all about framing. First, you need to look at your experiences and frame them as an asset, not a liability in your own mind. Then you need to frame a positive picture for your new potential employer. Always frame your resume (and cover letter) to what the reader needs to see. Never admit to your limitations; always play up your strengths. And help them see the transferable skills you have. While you may not have worked in an office, I’m sure you’ve picked up valuable customer service, time management and communications skills in your retail jobs… all of which are valuable in the corporate world. If you’re not feeling very confident, use a skills-based resume format which highlights the qualities I’m sure even entry level positions require (rather than putting the emphasis on where you worked). Once you can sell yourself on this, you’ll be able to sell it to an employeer too.
Great question Joe!
I would highly suggest you figure out what the valuable skills are in your position. Is it having a big network? Having a big Instagram following? Knowing how to draw? Whatever…..
Figure it out and GET GOOD AT THOSE.
Get gigs on Fiverr.
Get gigs on Craigslist.
Get gigs through friends.
Make sure you get hella experience in all the things that would make you the ideal employee, and that will be impressive.
Good luck Joe!
Really great article! Thanks for the insights!
I have a question if you don’t mind – of course, customizing each letter to the T (specific to each company) is really valuable, but what if you don’t know too much about their specific pain points? How do you balance between a high-quality letter and sending enough (quality vs. quantity)? I personally know how many people can get caught up too much on one side (ie: blasting generic cover letters or spending forever on one and never getting it sent out).
Thanks!
Gregory
Hi Greg, thanks for reading and thanks for your question. Again, if it is a proactive search, you will already be cyber stalking them so you will know their pain points. If you’re just applying through Craig’sList or Monster.com, etc, you won’t know that info and in which cases, it doesn’t’ really matter.
Great post Denise. Thanks for sharing. Very timely too. Just had an intro phone interview for a potential job. I was not looking for a job but the recruiter reached out to me.
With the help of my wife (the writer in our household) we stayed up late last night updating my resume. At the end of it all I knew that I need to spend time to give my resume a complete overhaul. I was not happy with the results but it was good enough. So I need to make some serious changes soon. Because of this I have a ton of questions…
1) My resume is 2 pages long, by adding my most current job it takes it to 3 pages. What are your thoughts on having a resume with pages. Is resume page length an important factor? Do recruiters get turned off by more than 2 pages?
2) If I have to trim some information… How do you (recruiters in general) feel about putting a one liner for positions early on in my career. Or what do you recommend with experiences that are 15 years or older. What is the best way to include them in a resume without taking on too much real estate.
3) What is the most important message to convey on a resume? The things that I have been responsible for or examples of accomplishment and results?
4) If I worked for one company for over 10 years and have had over 7 positions as I moved up the ladder. Do you feel necessary that I must list every single one of them? How could I streamline that so that my resume is not too long.
5) What are things that are less important in a resume as you become more seasoned with over 25 years of work experience?
Thanks in advance for your advice with this.
Ohh….some great questions….I’m curious to see Denise Renee’s responses also!!
Hi Roberto, thanks so much for reading and really taking time to process everything (as evidenced by your very detailed questions). I’m going to answer them briefly, however, because if I take any longer, I’ll have to charge you! LOL! (Just kidding!)
#1 – 3+ pages are for CV’s. In a resume, it’s excessive. You don’t need to include every. single. job.
#2 – Always keep your resume tight and relevant to the position you are applying for. If you have lots of varied experiences, leave off the ones that to relate to the position you are applying for. Keep your reader focused.
#3 – Both. But keep both brief. Expound during a phone or in-person interview.
#4 – See #1 and #2.
#5 – See #1 and #2. Additionally, stick to the last, most relevant 10 – 15 years.
Neville, you’re doing an awesome job! Happy to share this post with my friends, who are job hunting at the moment.
And Denise, how do you recognize “sugarcoated” resumes? Are there any “bulls**t” indicators? I mean there has to be many applicants who put themselves in strangers shoes in their application. Not only it wastes your time, but also may prevent actually honest and suitable applicants from getting the job…
Neville, Denise – Thank you, Greetings from Latvia and Keep sharing cool stuff! :)
Ansis
Hi Ansis, thanks for reading and for sharing! Sometimes when people overuse common buzzwords (like “team player, go-getter, etc.) without showing any proof, that’s usually a red flag for me. Or if things sound so good to be true and then you speak with them on the phone, it becomes apparent that either they hired a professional to write their resume or they simply “over-embellish.” My #1 tip to job seekers is to never lie or embellish on a resume because it only hurts the job seeker in the end. The truth is always revealed!
Thanks so much Ansis…..Denise got most of the content here done (I just drew dumb images) :-P
You know I’m a HUGE HATER of buzzwords. I completely agree with Denise that words like “Team Player” mean absolutely nothing without context.
Here’s how I would do it.
BAD WAY:
I’m a team leader.
GOOD WAY:
I’m a team player. For example, there was a huge crisis in the accounting department when a bunch of people suddenly left the company and no one knew what to do. I immediately took charge, handled the crisis, and even got an award for “Incredible Leadership Shown” from the CEO.
Just giving a quick example (few sentence, no need to re-hash the whole incident) can solidify you as a “leader” rather than just SAYING you’re a leader.
Alllrighty, I got the picture and thanks for both answers! :) Although, two things came to my mind:
1) ~6 seconds scanning time;
2) “decent length” A4 resume.
Sooo, what if I write a resume that contains buzzwords, which have an indication like asterisk (e.g. Team Player*) with a (second) back up page with a context explaining each and every one of them (such as Neville wrote)?
Denise, have you ever received a resume in such form?
Hi again Ansis. You don’t want your resume getting off into very lengthy territory. You want to keep your examples “in line” with your descriptions, not off on a secondary page. I’m getting the sense that you have some anxiety around length. The reality is that there is no what way to know exactly what will catch a recruiter’s eye when they are giving their 6-second scan. So just make sure you don’t waste words and that everything is as tightly and concisely written as possible.
The advice above is solid but it fills me with dread that everything is already so automated, at least in the US.
It’s a fact of my life that I have never got a job from a standard Cover Letter + CV/Resume. Yet, I have gotten jobs for others when I write up their Resumes. There was a period there was something almost mystical going on and people (in my network) used to seek me out as apparently I had the “lucky touch”.
What works for me is if I write a bit of a story. Start with some pattern-interrupt based on my research of the company/potential employer. Because of exactly that bit of info that a Resume has 6, 9 or whatever seconds to make it beyond the initial scan by the human eye.
Actually now that I think of it I approach Cover Letters more like writing a Press Release.
I am always told that my Cover Letter is what made the difference and got the potential employer really interested in me.
Hi Vesc, thanks for reading and for sharing your experience. If you notice, the cover letter sample is very much a pattern-interrupt! It is all about grabbing attention in a short amount of time. Stories work wonderfully too, but not everyone is a skilled enough writer to pull it off. You keep doing what works for you!
Thanks for sharing Vesc!
Definitely keep doing what works for you.
If you’re a great writer, then giving a story works. However if you’re read OTHER PEOPLE’S stories sometimes they’re just terrible and badly written. For those folks, maybe just sticking to listing facts is best :)
Thanks for this timely and informative article!
Some of the responses were SPOT on (like Ms Katherine Chalmers).
Question: In your cover letter example, how did you come up with “at 25% increase in profits”? I though it’s better to under promise and over deliver.
Question: Do you think it would be beneficial to include links to your online profiles in the cover letter?
Hi Kimberly, thanks for reading and for your questions. #1 – that is just an example of a tangible result. Whatever you promise, it should be based on what you know you can deliver and that should be “provable” by your prior performance. #2 – remember that the goal of your cover letter is to get them to read your resume and qualifications listed therein. If you want to include additional profiles, websites and portfolios, include that on your resume. Don’t distract the reader from opening / reading your resume first. If they want to go get more info after reading your resume, they will.
Great questions Kimberly.
I would definitely start keeping a list of accomplishments from your work life on file (maybe just create a Google Doc so you can update it from anywhere, even a phone). Then when it comes time to update your resume, you’ll have SO many examples you’ll have the problem of select what NOT to put in!
I certainly benefit from writing things down immediately so I don’t forget them later in the future.
Hi Denise,
One thing I’ve always struggled with… is understanding the employers specific problem that you address in the cover letter and provide a solution for.
How do you conduct research to understand their specific problems and needs?
Thanks!
-Ben
Hi Ben, thanks for reading and for your question. I know I didn’t spend a lot of time talking about this but let me highlight what I did share:
“This will require that you understand that company’s vision, goals and pain points. You’re not going to get that simply from a job posting on Indeed.com. You’ll actually need to engage in the “hunting” part of “job hunting.” You can gain a 360 degree perspective of your target companies by doing things like studying their website, searching for press clippings, stalking their employees on Linkedin (in a professional way, of course), going to association meetings that some of their employees are a part of or by attending industry events the company will have a presence, just to name a few tactics.”
Does that help?
Yes it does. I thought about it a bit more and came up with 20-25 ways to do more in depth research.
Thanks again !
Hey Ben, try these (and be proactive about this)!
–Go to company website, find their events.
–Go to company website, find their fundraiser or charity events. Find employees from there at the booths and chat them up.
–Figure out who in your network knows anything about the company.
–Google the hell out of them.
–Setup a Google Alert so a notification pops up with any news.
–Read their quarterly investor updates (if they are public).
–Listen to their quarterly investor calls (if they are public).
–Subscribe to their Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIN
Hope this helps!
Awesome! This helps my concrete-sequential nerd brain a lot.
You da man Neville!
This is some solid information.
I’ve tried looking for my first job, but have had no luck. Probably because I haven’t read about this beforehand.
I’ve had a bit more luck doing some copywriting gigs on Upwork.
Oh well, still great information to have!
Thanks Neville! Thanks Denise!
Hi Mike, thanks for reading and for your comments! Continued luck to you on Upwork!
Hey Mikestar. I would suggest also taking some small copywriting gigs on Fiverr just to build up your repetoire and get more exposure (low money, high volume of jobs at first).
I am actually doing a full post about this next Monday!
This post came at a great time for me, thanks for the great content. I was just wondering how you would suggest addressing the cover letter if you can’t find out the name of the person doing the hiring?
Hi Jayne, thanks for reading and thanks for your question. If you are conducting a proactive job search, it is imperative that you exhaust all your resources to find the appropriate person and their name. If not, find out someone who might be in that department and direct it to them. They can pass it upstream appropriately. But if you’re just submitting something through the usual online channels like CareerBuilder, I wouldn’t stress about it and use a generic “Dear Hiring Manager.”
Hey Jayne, you should try going through LinkedIN and Facebook to see if you know ANYONE AT ALL at the company you’re trying to apply to.
Chances are you’ll have a friend or at least a friend-of-a-friend that will.
If that doesn’t work, try asking friends in the same industry if they know any contacts at that company. Good luck!
While focusing your cover letter on how you can achieve goals the company cares about is valuable, a few other aspects of this post do not at all track with my experience as either a hiring manager or job searcher. Here are a few points to consider from a non-HR perspective:
1) Avoid HR at all costs
If your strategy for getting a job depends on getting past someone like Renee, you’re doing something *seriously* wrong in your job search. Even if you see a posting on a job site, you should be focused on finding someone you know in your network or researching online to find who the “actual” hiring manager is and reaching out to him/her via other means. HR generalists seldom have sufficient domain knowledge to fully evaluate mid-level to senior managers and technical professionals. Plus, unless you’re a low level admin or intern, the HR person almost *never* has the power to hire you; they simply have virtually unlimited power to say no. Avoid.
2) Your email cover letter is extremely important to hiring managers
While HR people might ignore the cover letter and click right to the resume 9x out of 10 times, as a hiring manager my review process is exactly the opposite. I’m not using a CTS so I get applications via email whether directly from the posting service or forwarded from an HR consultant. I don’t even bother to open the attached resume 8x out of 10.
If you cannot write a single cogent paragraph that addresses how you can successfully accomplish the role outlined in my job posting, then you’re clearly unqualified for *any* professional level position on my team. At the very least, simply showing that you actually read the posting puts you ahead of 80% applicants since most cannot be bothered to actually read all 450 or so words in the description. If you use the query in your email to ask some inane question that was ANSWERED in the job posting, your application is DOA when it gets to my inbox. I’m not opening your resume.
(BTW – If you want me to review your resume file more than once, don’t name the file “MyResume.pdf.” How do you expect a busy hiring manager to find it in a download folder with 25 other resumes with virtually the same name? Put your last name in the filename.)
3) Don’t use the first name and last name in the salutation. That affectation went out of style 35 years ago.
Hi Katherine, thanks so much for reading and for your insightful comments. You actually are backing up my secondary point and that is people should be conducting a proactive job search, one in which they find out who the actual hiring manager or person they’ll be reporting to is and connecting directly with them. Thanks also for the tip on not using both the first and last name :).
Some great tips here Katherine! Definitely NevBox-worthy for the effort :)
Hi,
Many thanks for the tips, I receive a few cv and in almost all cases the applicant doesn’t talk about my needs but about theirs. Sometimes I really struggle to figure out whether they would be good for the job that I am looking for, so in the end we usually hire people based on personal recomendations via our network.
YES. This is exactly what I was hoping people would learn from Denise! That a cover letter should be about the company’s needs, not your own (why would they care about YOU right off the bat if they don’t even know you)??
Good to hear this sentiment is backed up by your experience Ugo.
Hi Ugo, thanks so much for reading and for your comments. Your experiences back up the reality that many jobs are filled via networking/personal referrals. Thanks so much for sharing!
Before I started working freelance, I applied for jobs. This involved writing the dreaded cover letter. I hated dong that. But for freelance gigs, I’ll often respond to ads online, various boards and also craigslist. The thing I used to hate – writing cover letters that got printed out and faxed back in the 1700s – is actually pretty easy (for me) responding online. I don’t know why one’s easier and the other isn’t.
So I’ll shoot out an email that talks directly to the person posting – about their specific exact thing they’re looking for. And sometimes I’ll throw a question out there that’s specifically about their apple orchard, or their beverage distribution, something relevant that shows I’ve put a modicum of thought into their business. Like I’m already working for them.
The beauty of this post of Denise’s is that I didn’t know I still had this hang-up about cover letters. And that I’ve basically solved my own problem if I just use my online approach to writing ye olde cover letter. Thanks for that.
Nice! I was actually really glad that Denise discussed NOT having a cover letter, and how they’re actually kinda dumb in this day-and-age for most cases.
Normally I see articles advocating spending a lot of time on cover letters which seems like a waste of time if 98% of recruiters don’t even care about them.
Hi Sheiler, thanks for reading and thanks for your comments. I’m glad to be helpful in any way I can :)!
Hi Denise,
I guess I must think of cover letters going to a company = having a robot read them. (hey, not that there’s anything wrong with that…) But being able to put a face to the recipient is key. At least for me. So perhaps I’ll just imagine your face the next time I have to write a letter ;) So I don’t get all caught up with the actual term ‘cover letter’. Oh see, I got a chill.
My dad spent his career in personnel. He once told me the hardest job I’d ever have was looking for a job.
He was right. Great article.
Lol….that seems like a pretty accurate quote. Job hunting is probably one of the most daunting things for a lot of people, I bet it puts people WAY outside their comfort zones.
Hi Dave, thanks for reading and for your positive comments. You are so right… looking for a job IS a full-time job!!
If I had known this before, maybe I hadn’t been without a job for so long! But then again, I recently started my own company so I don’t have to worry about writing cover letters anymore. However I could use lots of copywriting tips though for my own business marketing. Off course that’s why I follow your blog and read all of your posts. Thanks Neville, greetings from Belgium!
Thanks Jasper! Despite what medium you’re writing for, good copywriting can go a long way. So even reading an article about cover letters might actually help you become a better copywriter in a different aspect of business.
Thanks for reading, and I’ll keep trying to put out the best damn information I can possibly make :)
Hi Jasper, thanks for reading and your comments. I would keep this advice in your arsenal because even as a business owner, you will probably need to write proposals or other persuasive pieces to a decision maker. The principles and power of copywrting remain the same. You still have to capture their attention and show them how you are the best option for a service provider. Make sense?
I have always heard you have to “Sell yourself” in a job interview or resume. This approach to the cover letter is excellent in showing the marketing aspect of a candidate. Excellent!
Awesome, glad you got something good out of this Sharlette (also….very unique spelling of your name)!
Hi Scharlette, thanks for reading and I’m so glad you enjoyed the article and got something out of it!
Hey Denise
This is a great post I will consider for my following job opportunity. Do you suggest to follow up to a cover letter after some time with no response? If it is appropriate to follow up, how much time you should wait to do it to not look desperate or uninterested?
Regards
Hi Daniel, thanks for reading and for your question. You should always follow up. You don’t want to be like a stalker and call every day but one week is appropriate, especially if they said they would get back to you. I would say follow up twice by phone and at least once by email. If after three touches you still don’t hear back, move on.
You know what’s funny Daniel?
A lot of times when hiring, it sometimes just comes down to WHO CALLED ME AT THE RIGHT MOMENT.
If you are really nice and respectful on the phone, a lot of people won’t get annoyed if you called twice a week.
Twice a day? That’s pushing it.
Great post, thanks! When applying for jobs that would involve a substantial relication (from asia back to the US in my case), should it be addressed in the cover letter?
For example: I do not expect the new employer to cover relocation expenses.
Ohh, good question. Curious to see Denise’s response on this one.
Hi Steve, thanks for reading and for your great question. As a rule of thumb during a job hunt and interviewing process, don’t create an issue where there isn’t one. And don’t highlight them either. Remember your cover letter is to entice the reader to view your resume and qualifications. Relocation is only an issue once you’ve been offered and have accepted a job. Try your best not to make in an issue or big deal during the interview process either. Depending on what country you’re in, you’re very likely around 10 -14 hours ahead of East Coast time. Just be sure to avail yourself for phone calls or Skype sessions during the employer’s local business times. If you don’t frame it as a big deal, they won’t see it as a big deal either. Only mention your location if you absolutely have to and just verbally say you are planning on moving back to the States soon at your own expense and move on to the next topic. I hope that helps!
Thanks for the response! I’ll share it with my mastermind group of people trying to relocate back to their home countries after building up their careers overseas.
Outstanding post!
Thanks Elijah….gotta credit Denise Renee on this one :)
Hi Elijah J, thanks for reading and thanks for your positive feedback!!
Thanks! I’m beginning a job search after many years being out of the job market. I was wondering how cover letters fit into the world of internet job hunting … now I know!
Well fortunately for you, Denise’s advice is to NOT make a cover letter for digital job hunting (unless it’s one of those three specific cases).
Hi Liz, thanks for reading and for your question. The internet is a great place to launch a job search but if you notice, I don’t recommend relying only on using sites like CareerBuilder or Monster as your sole resource. There are other ways you can use the internet in your job search. Go back and re-read the second part of the article because I dropped some serious nuggets as to how a full job search should look. Once you’ve come across the situations where a cover letter is appropriate, just use the template I gave you and you’ll do great!
Big Dose of Kudos to Denise!
Actually, I’m also pretty stoked because I’m currently looking at cover letters from both sides of the table (you know what I mean, right, hiring and looking…) and note that the reject pile pretty much fits into the descriptions given by Denise in the article, and my own attempts at a cover letter are *so* nearly there!
Some good (okay, great) tips on how to make them better, too, so a big heartfelt “thanks” for those…
Best,
Guy
So glad you liked Guy! I’m glad Denise put this out there also, I’m already getting a bunch of emails thanking me (and Denise) for this article because it came at the right time for them.
Hey Guy, thanks for reading and for your comments! Glad it was helpful and validating to you! So go out there and write that awesome cover letter that you know you should be writing!!
Yay, article!
Thanks Jerz! Another good one coming out on Thursday, then another on Monday too :)
Hey Jerzy, thanks for reading! Glad you liked it :)
Great article, just goes to show you can apply copywriting anywhere. That said, what happens when 1) the HR person’s name wasn’t mentioned in the job ad, 2) you have no idea about what kind of problems the company may have and you don’t want to give fake promises 3) you have no interesting relationships to bring 4) the company has no website (they barely mention their name) from which you can do your homework?
The good cover letter example is one of a person who is hyper-qualified for the position and so the value he/she brings is conspicuous. What can I do when I don’t have significant value to offer and have little to no information about the companies I apply to? Give up on the position and try for basic, entry-level positions? But even those ask for a lot and have many applicants competing for them.
Hi Jasper, thanks for reading and thanks for your question. The first thing that stood out to me in your question is a need for an attitude adjustment (in a good way!). Always know that you have something of value to offer; it’s just a matter of finding a matching opportunity. If nothing else, even in entry level positions, hard workers, fast learners and quick thinkers can be in short supply. So if you possess one or all of those qualities, you’re already ahead of most candidates for a lot of jobs.
The second thing that stands out to me is that if you are looking at job postings with little to no information about the company, you’re probably on Monster, CareerBuilder, CraigsList or some site like that. As I mentioned in the article, in those situations, it is hard to do any research and most likely they are just asking for a resume submission so I wouldn’t stress out about a cover letter in these situations.
But patrolling these sites for job postings is very passive. You have to be intentional about your job search. You have think about what you want to do and what you are qualified for and search out companies you would be interested in working for. You can also apply to temp agencies and allow them to go to work for you and create introductions for you. You also need to work your network. So there’s more than one way to get to your perfect opportunity so don’t give up because one method isn’t working in your favor right now. Make sense?
Makes total sense Denise, thank you for taking the time to reply. I’ll follow your advice.
Jasper, I 100% agree with Denise Renne.
You need to be applying for jobs you have more in common with, or BECOME the right person for the job by doing some pre-work.
Let’s say the job involves a lot of Excel work. Then read books on Excel, outsource Excel gigs on Fiverr, create some cool templates on Excel…..become an excel MASTER so when you apply you’re 110% the absolute right person for the job!
Hi Denise,
Thank you for your the brilliant article. As a student of copywriting it’s painful to see how many people craft pieces like résumés and cover letters without giving much thought to the message they’re trying to convey and without realising that they should be communicating that they’re trying to fix the employer’s problem(s).
It’s also a lucky coincidence that you and Neville just published this today, as I had literally just started my job search as a recent graduate and I had started to think of how to write a kick-ass cover letter.
My question to you is in relation to how copywriting changes depending on the country. In the first paragraph of your good cover letter you say ‘wouldn’t it be great if in 12 months the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported on Global Technical Services’ improved vendor relationships and at least a 25% increase in profits.’
I don’t know if it’s the norm in the US, but in Europe, where I live, that would be considered a right hook, or a very direct selling approach.
Would you suggest altering the first paragraph to suit it to the UK market, and if so, what changes would you make? Or do you think it doesn’t make a difference?
Thanks in advance, and kind regards,
Pedro
Hi Pedro, thanks for reading the article and for your great question. As a student of copywriting, you already know that it is all about the reader. So as you are always writing for your audience, it should apply to culture as well. If you happen to know that a particular approach would not be well received by a person from a particular culture, don’t use it. Use what you know they will respond positively to. I am not familiar with UK culture in particular so I can’t give you a specific response. But since you seem to have a handle on it, feel free to adapt the template to suit who you are speaking to. Make sense?
Hey Pedro, NevBox-worthy question!
A lot of people in the UK have asked me this……and yes, you might need to re-phrase things based on location. But here’s what DOESN’T CHANGE throughout any culture:
If you can greatly benefit the company, they will want you.
That doesn’t change. You can maybe even phrase it: “My goal would be to get the Atlanta Journal reporting a 25% increase in revenue just 12 months from when I start.”
You can make it seem aspirational and not so direct.
Hope this helps!
great post! question: with my last job, I did not submit a cover letter, I was just asked to submit a resume online, but I made sure to email the person hiring for the position after I submitted the resume.
would you say that the email sent to the hiring manager should contain all of the items you suggested for a cover letter?
Hey Josh, it seems that you probably didn’t need a cover letter if it was electronically submitted.
According to Denise, here are the only 3 situations where you need an actual cover letter:
Situation #1.) When you are specifically asked for one by an individual company’s website.
Situation #2.) when a connection has been made for you.
Situation #3.) When you are conducting a proactive job search.
Hi Josh, thanks for reading and thanks for your question. I would say for future reference, if you every have the chance to email a person directly, you can treat the email like a cover letter. If you are only asked for your resume, then keep that “cover letter” email short. It’ can’t hurt. In that type of case, I would type the “cover letter” into the body of the email so it is the first thing they say before they open the attached resume. Hope this helps!
Thanks, Denise. I was just about to start writing my cover letter this morning when I recieved Neville’s email on cover letters. Perfect timing – thank you! I am applying for a 12 month placement as a PR Trainee in the company which I have worked for already for 3 years. My question is, do you think a cover letter is nessecary? (I personally do as I want to work specifically for this company and progress with them but just in a different department where there are more opportunities as I am currently in the sales dep). And how do you think I should adress the cover letter with the position being for a trainee placement? Thanks so much to you both – amazing content as always.
No way, FANTASTIC timing! I love it when this happens, makes me feel good :-)
Hi Arnaud, thanks for reading today’s article and for your question. There are a number of ways to “hide” gaps in your resume. The #1 simplest way is to not use a chronological format. Use a “skills” based or oriented resume instead. With that type of format, you’re focusing your attention on your qualifications, not on when you did a particular job. Hope that helps.
Hi Lois, Thanks for reading and I’m so glad the timing is spot on for you. You should DEFINITELY use a cover letter… you already have an in so exploit it. Because you are already inside of the company and know how it operates and the culture, you can speak to the needs and desires of this new department and show that why someone from the inside (that would be you!) is their perfect option. You have a formula for what you should include so go forth and write!!
Hi Denise, thanks for the great insight! How do you suggest people address a gap in their resume, especially those who have been out of the traditional employee mode for some time?
Hi Arnaud, thanks for reading today’s article and for your question. There are a number of ways to “hide” gaps in your resume. The #1 simplest way is to not use a chronological format. Use a “skills” based or oriented resume instead. With that type of format, you’re focusing your attention on your qualifications, not on when you did a particular job. Hope that helps.
Thanks Denise
How about a situation when you do not know the name of the contact person or more details about the job requirement? How do you handle that?
I wanna hear Denise Renee’s answer too……but the way I’ve done this in the past is go on LinkedIN or Facebook and see if I have any mutual friends at the company.
Let’s say I’m trying to apply for a job at Apple….I would first see who my mutual friends are that work there.
If that didn’t work, I would figure out what mutual friends work at SIMILAR companies, and ask them if they have any inroads.
A recommendation through a friend is always way more valuable it seems.
Hi Mansa, thanks for reading today’s article. I would say if you REALLY want the job, you’re going to move heaven and earth to find someone in that company to talk to. As Neville said, LinkedIn is the perfect place to network and find someone. Even if the “right person” isn’t on there, you can find someone else and give them a call. It’s easy to get past the gatekeeper at a company by asking for a specific person. Then strike up a friendly conversation and say, hey, I heard about an open position and someone gave me your name. Are you the right person to speak to about it? Laugh it off when they say no and work them till they give up the right name or at least someone else who you can talk to. You’ll need to be creative but persistence will pay off!
Thank you Denise Renee! You just saved me a bunch of time as I’m about to start job hunting again. I have one question: As a recruiter did you ever get “presents” from applicants, like a box of cookies? Would this be frowned upon?
Glad you liked Erica! I’m actually highly curious to see how Denise responds to this also…..
Bribing a recruiter….good or bad?? :)
Hi Erica, thanks for reading. I’m glad you got something out of it! Unless you’ve truly developed a close relationship with a recruiter, or unless they’ve done something truly remarkable for you or landed a job for you, I don’t suggest a gift or present. You don’t want to be seen as trying to suck up. In some places, that might get you blacklisted. And even if you send a gift to a recruiter who has helped you land a job, don’t be offended if they send it back. Some firms have extremely strict policies about accepting gifts. I hope that helps :)