How To Write A Great Cover Letter To Gain Attention
The coverletter is your first opportunity to be noticed by the employer. It makes a lot of sense therefore, to take time to customise your cover letter adequately to enable the highest chance of success. Following is a step by step instruction on how to customise your cover letter to ensure it is one that stands out!
Firstly is the introduction
Keep it brief and polite and state your reason for the letter and how you learned about the job.Similar to an objective statement.
By explaining how you found out about the position, the recruiter gets a feel for your intention, and is able to see which method of advertising was utilized. This is a great opportunity to firstly specify the job you are interested in, and secondly, if you were encouraged to apply or have been referred by someone of good standing from the firm then you can add this information.
An example of a first paragraph could be:
I would like to apply for the role of [add the position] within [add the department or company] as listed above. This position caught my interest whilst I was searching on seek.com.
or
“I would like to apply for the role of [add the position] within [add the department or company] as listed above. I became aware of this position when a family friend (John Doe – Personal Assistant to CEO) encouraged me to apply and provided a recommendation.”
Secondly, What Interest You?
Next paragraph should be 1-2 sentences explaining what interests you about the position in particular. This is a good opportunity to show enthusiasm, motivation and of course explain what it is about the job, hours, location, company or field of work that caused you to notice this vacancy?
For example:
“This position is of specific interest to me because I have developed a passion for customer interaction and providing customer service. You could say I am a people person and enjoy the opportunity to make a lasting impression.”
Your Skills
The next section is vitally important to emphasis how your skills and experience fulfill the job requirements. Review the PD to see which skills they are seeking, and note the skills you have that are also present.
An example of this paragraph would be:
“In short my last role that has major relevance was adult educator at a high school for 3 years where I taught during evenings for adult life skills much like the description of this position. My diverse background includes vocational teaching and communication oriented positions that are oriented towards personal support for people as that is an area I am very much passionate about. “
Intention to follow up stated
This last section is for you to mention what action you will take to follow up. Do not under estimate the importance of this step. It can make all the difference. Include something like:
“Thank you for taking the time to consider my suitability to this position. I would like to get in touch over the next five days confirm if you require any additional information regarding my experience. “
One comment from a melbourne resume based business regarding this step is: The vital note here is to do what you state you will do. – Ensure you do actually follow up in five days with email or a call and ask if they require any further information at this point such as a list of references or a writing sample etc. This enables a perfect chance to establish rapport and be noticed. What this does is show the company that you have integrity in doing what you said you would do.
On a final note I wish you the best of luck with your cover letter. I am really interested to hear back from you once you have applied this format to your job applications.