Your cover letter is a chance to catch the eye of hiring managers. If you want to get the “1%” of jobs out there, you can’t be like 99% of the other applicants. This guide will include a simple process for how to write a cover letter, what to include in a cover letter, and tips for letting your true personality shine so your resume doesn’t get passed over.
First: What to Include in a Cover Letter?
Knowing what to put in your cover letter makes life a LOT easier. Once you know what to include, it will basically write itself (kind of).
I know we said everything you’ve ever learned was wrong, but there are still some aspects that need to be included regardless of how boring they sound.
Always include:
- Personal Information
- Contact Details
- Today’s Date
- Company Info
- Opening Salutation
TIP: It’s 2018, include social media if you want. Instagram (as long as it’s not for your pets), a YouTube Channel, or Facebook will do just fine.
From there, you should have the following criteria in at least some form or fashion (we’ll talk all about how to include them after. Don’t worry).
1. An Introduction:
Professional is good. Memorable is better. Memorable AND professional basically means you’re guaranteed to get the job.
2. Relevant Skills:
Can you type 200 wpm with a coffee in one hand while petting the company dog with the other (what?!)? List it.
3. How You Fit the Company’s Needs:
If you’re trying to intern at Tesla, tell Elon Musk how you would’ve rescued the Thai cave boys. If it’s for a commercial real estate company, tell them how the industry is based on being able to sell properties that fit into an investor’s long-term goals and that you’re an expert financial planner. You get the gist. PRO TIP: Use words and phrases from the job description itself to fill in this part.
4. A Conclusion:
This is relatively straightforward. “Call them to action” by asking for an interview. Let them know you’ll contact them soon.
Tips on How to Write a Cover Letter
Before we get into how to write a cover letter, take this little factoid to heart….
The best cover letter that Jesse Hertzberg, COO of Squarespace, ever received had an F-bomb in the introduction.
Disclaimer: Before you start dropping profanity in your cover letter, let us just say that we in no way condone the usage of this vocabulary in any circumstance (though sometimes it works).
Jesse goes on to say this about cover letters in general: “I’m hard-pressed to review a CV without a cover letter, and if the cover letter doesn’t engage me, it’s as if there wasn’t one”.
Get what that means? Your cover letter has to catch the reader’s attention. If you don’t, you might as well not have one.
Here are a few ways to get that done.
1. Create a Theme:
Depending on the industry, you can create a theme for the resume. We know a cryptocurrency copywriter who once put his address as “can’t disclose” and phone number as “nice try, IRS!”. Don’t be too cheeky. Just try to make it memorable.
2. Make Some Jokes:
Keeping with the Jesse Herzberg example (this guy’s cover letter rocked), after he listed his honest credentials and experience, he offered to hook him up with the best Ashtanga yoga instructor in Portland. He also listed being a funny (insert profane word here) “person” as a qualification.
3. Create Some Mystery:
Don’t reveal EVERYTHING about yourself yet. We know we just told you to list a bunch of things about yourself but hear us out. How about adding in something like “I’ve got superpowers even beyond this but I can only reveal them if hired”. OK, that might be a bit much. Perhaps something like “I even came through at the last minute to save my furniture company $4,000 on an exhibition booth just by raving about our teakwood. I’d love to tell you more about that in the interview”.
4. Speak Straight to the Reader and Be Honest:
Hiring managers appreciate honesty. Speak directly to them. If you say you’re a perfectionist, you basically lose. Everything. Instead, say something like “I know everyone tells you they’re a perfectionist. I’m not. Perfection is the enemy of good enough. I’ll work my tail off to get it right, but I would never waste endless hours worrying about making it perfect. I just get. It. Done.”
5. Think About the Company:
The main mistake applicants make is talking too much about themselves (who doesn’t love to?). Instead, think about the company. How will you help it achieve its goals? Which anecdotes can you offer from personal experience that prove you’ve got the chops?
Knowing how to write a cover letter and what to include in it is only half the battle. From there, you’ve got to make it tantalizing, mesmerizing, pulverizing, and….OK, fine, we’ll stop. In reality, it’s got to speak directly to the reader and prove why you’ve got what it takes to drive the company forward. Think of the company, make a theme, crack a few jokes, oh, and have the right qualifications.
Use Soda PDF to create your cover letter! With these tips and the best PDF software around, you’re guaranteed to get that job!