Job (Cover) Letters....Ugh!

Ok, so writing a specific job letter to every company you apply for can be tedious. I used to have a standard cover letter that I just changed up when applying to various jobs, but Dr. Bethany Lee (my Business Writing professor) says that is very, very wrong. You are susceptible to accidentally not changing something from before and oops...ATT just got a cover letter for Verizon.

Plus, devising a job letter can be sometimes difficult and I was really unsure of any particular format before. I always sound like I'm sucking up, instead of trying to get the company's attention. Not good, either.

Dr. Lee gave us some useful hints and structure to writing a job letter:

Structure of a Job Letter:

Should be 4 paragraphs:

Paragraph 1 -- Introduction: This should have all the information about the job you are applying for including the position title and how you heard about it.

Example:

"Perhaps I am the experienced Store Manager you seek per your ad on Career Builder for Moorehead Communications’ new Mishawaka store location. Your newly acquired partnership with HHGregg is an exciting new venture and I believe I would be an asset to this business endeavor."

Paragraph 2 -- Qualifications: This is where you WOW them with your skills, education, and experience. Start with your strongest attribute for the specific position and close with the 2nd strongest.

Example:

"Per my resume, I have worked in customer service for over 15 years with 6 of those years playing the management role. I have spent 3 years in the wireless industry where I have played major roles in customer satisfaction, sales, technical support and generating new business. Although I’ve held few sales positions, I believe every aspect of quality customer service also deals in sales on a daily basis. I have excellent written and oral communications skills, a fantastic personality, a positive attitude, and a respectful work ethic."

Paragraph 3 -- Company Info: Always do some research on the company you are applying to. Even if you just add one fact about the company, they see you are actually interested because you took the time to find out more. This is also a good place to state how you would fit into the company.

Example:

"Your reputation, honesty and stability in indirect wireless sales over the past 19 years are a welcome quality to the wireless business. I have dealt with indirect sales companies in previous positions and the lack of customer care was often apparent. Your strong and dedicated value towards the customer is a clear-cut reason for your success. I would be honored to take part in your mission and growth."

Paragraph 4 -- Contact Info: Here you should review your contact information as well as availability. (Try to be available as much as possible.) I would say anytime because a voice mail is better than them not calling because they were not available between 9am and noon.

Example:

"I appreciate your time and consideration in speaking with you further. I am available anytime at (931) xxx-xxxx or by email at jxxxx@yahoo.com. I would appreciate the opportunity to interview with you and discuss what I can bring to Moorehead Communications and The Cellular Connection."

Simple enough, right!

Well I've written two this morning, so honestly I'm all done with Job Letters for the day. However, good luck to you and let me know if I can help in any way.

Thanks for Reading.