How to Write a Cover Letter
When we send a cover letter to a job project, we show the first impression they will have of us. Learning how to make an eye-catching, original letter that speaks to our best skills is key to getting a good job.
When we find an interesting job offer and start evaluating how we can access it and find a job we like, the first thing we will have to think about is making a cover letter for that company.
The job letter is the first impression they are going to have of us, and that is why we must enter into the scope of that project in the best possible way. Surely many doubts may arise: How to make a cover letter? What structure does it have, and what information should we give? Does it have to be a complement to our curriculum vitae?
We are going to deal with all these doubts today, we are going to see the structure of a cover letter and some tips to make it the first description of our best skills. Continue reading the post!
There are also cover letters within the academic field to apply for scholarships, for example. If you need help with this letter, you can hire a professional online paper writer and get your best letter fast and easily.
Tips for writing a cover letter
We often devote a lot of care to the presentation of our resume. Still, the truth is that according to data collected by Linkedin, 2 out of 3 companies ask to arrange an interview to have a cover letter from the candidate. It makes a lot of sense since in a resume, we can see the merits and achievements of a person, but we will not get a first impression of how he expresses himself and what characteristics make him perfect for a particular job.
In addition to knowing what to put in a cover letter and what steps to follow to write it, we want to give you some handy general tips to make a good impression on the people who receive our letter:
Be concise
The most advisable thing is, without a doubt, to be concise and give specific information. Companies indeed give importance to candidates sending letters defining themselves better. Still, if they receive many letters and some of them are particularly long, they may discard them precisely because of that.
The best thing to do is to make a previous outline to know which are the unavoidable data and which are more secondary, and therefore we will only put them if we have space. The most advisable length for a letter of this type is between three and five paragraphs.
Search for originality
A business cover letter should be formal but original and unique. It is indeed best to find a classic structure and follow the parameters that these letters usually have, but we should not make the mistake of being too aseptic and express ourselves as if we were a robot.
It is best to use a close and respectful tone, describing ourselves in the professional field and providing some personal values that make us better workers, such as perseverance or good communication.
Good writing and spelling
Here comes one of the most crucial points! No matter how descriptive and well-argued, a cover letter can be ruined if it has spelling mistakes or is miswritten.
Therefore, always keep in mind:
- Write the letter in a program that detects spelling mistakes, such as Word.
- Read it several times before sending it, even leaving a reasonable amount of time in between to detect errors that have not been seen a priori.
- Consult, if necessary, with other people if they think the writing is good.
- Emphasize your strengths
The excitement of a new job offer can lead us to write too much and describe all aspects of our experience. As we have said, a long text can be distracting and even overwhelming, so it is best to be concise in describing yourself as well.
Before you start, you can write down on a piece of paper what your strengths are when it comes to work, especially thinking about which points are the ones you will apply the most to the job offer that has caught your attention.
What is its structure?
Now that we know some points to take into account to start a cover letter… What is the next step? Of course, it is to know what structure this type of letter should have so that we can use it as a template for all the data and experiences we want to write:
- Our data and the company we address: ours (name, telephone, email, and address) should be on the top right. On the other hand, the company’s information (the person to whom the letter is addressed, address, and department) is in the upper left part.
- The salutation is addressed to the company in general or to the person who has formulated the job offer.
- Our presentation, that is to say, who we are, what our profession is, and why we are addressing the company.
- The body of the letter should explain our work experience and our best skills (especially those related to the specific job position).
- The farewell, in which we express our illusion to be part of the project, and we open the possibility of arranging a personal interview.
It makes a difference when deciding what to put in a cover letter, as there will be some that talk about our general experience and others that describe our skills for a specific job.
Are all cover letters the same? Definitely not. Some letters serve as an accompaniment to send the resume, others that respond to a specific job offer, and others that are simply sent to projects that interest us but that have not formulated a job offer as such.
In short, the most important thing to know how to create the perfect cover letter is to know well the values of the company to which we are going to address, as well as to know what is the best of ourselves as professionals and to express it sincerely and warmly.