Cover Letter Writing Tips
Cover Letters are essential in today's competitive job market. A good cover letter will differentiate you from other candidates and will also allow you to elaborate on your strengths and skills. The following guide is intended to provide a suggested format and content for your cover letter.
Top 10 Cover Letter Suggestions
- 1. Always customize your cover letter to the company you are applying to.
- 2. If possible address the cover letter to a specific person in the company.
- 3. Avoid the over used cover letter cliches. These cliches will make your cover letter seem like it was cut from a template and will not make a lasting impression.
- 4. Make sure there are absolutely no spelling errors or formatting issues before the letter is sent.
- 5. Cover letters should typically not exceed one page in length, but they also shouldn't be to short. Traditionally 3-4 paragraphs is the ideal length.
- 6. Avoid disclosing your salary information in cover letters unless at the request of the company.
- 7. Elaborate on your resume, do not simply restate facts.
- 8. Never use gender based salutations like "Dear Sirs".
- 9. Refrain from using overly complicated sentence structure or large words in an attempt to sound intelligent. The best cover letters are often simple and straight forward. The reader should not require a thesaurus to understand your message.
- 10. Always use action verbs to grab the readers attention. Employers often look specifically for action verbs, so be sure to include these words when necessary. For a list of action verbs click here: Action Verbs.
Additional Information
For more information please refer to the follow sites for cover letter samples and tips:
CareerBeam
Quintessential Careers
If you would like a Career Counselor to review your cover letter or if you need assistance writing your cover letter, please login to your SpartanCareers account to request an appointment.