Applying for a job is a serious business and if you want to succeed, you cannot rely on luck. While some applicants choose to send the same resume for different job positions, this strategy is proven as an outdated one. And, really, would you send the same application letter to get the position you want badly?
Creating a resume plus an application letter needs you to devote time and effort. Employers, as a rule, search for the personalities who have something special, who stand out from the crowd with their creative thinking, confidence, and knowing what they can do well. For this reason, your cover letter should also be excellent.
The first thing that will help you write a good cover letter (along with a resume) is perceiving this paper as a strategic element that can be used to show how the experience you acquired in the past can help the company get benefits. Seeing it as a strategy might feel scary if you are applying for the first couple of times but, as the saying goes, practice makes perfect. So, the first goal of this short read is to give you a step-by-step guide to write an effective job application essay.
Follow These Simple 10 Steps to Nail a Job Application Letter
When we speak about ‘writing a cover letter’, we surely imply typing and designing it with the help of basic computer programs (which is a great reason to rejoice for people with poor handwriting). This motivates that at the start, you’ve got to think of the template for a cover letter. As a whole, the process of creating a cover letter will look like this.
Step 1. Pick a nice template.
The first impression tells how everything you wrote will be understood. That is why the design matters so much. Even such details like letter and line spacing, fonts, location of different information blocks are super significant. You can choose ready-made cover letter templates, customize them, or create from scratch. Just make sure the letter looks neat, minimalistic, and there is nothing that could possibly distract the reader from the key points.
Step 2. Work at contact info.
The first header you are to fill in after your name and surname is your contacts. Here you are to state the city, phone number, e-mail, and your social media profiles in LinkedIn or Facebook (if needed). Your contacts are usually followed by the addresses and the name of the HR manager you are writing to. Sequence all of it right, check how your email address sounds (name+surname format is preferable), and you’re good to go.
Step 3. Greet the HR manager right.
Addressing a person is what contributes to forming your professional image. And it’s not a must to stick to the popular ‘Dear Sir or Madam’. It’s a cliche phrase that is better to replace with ‘Dear Hiring Manager’ or ‘To whom it may concern’.
Step 4. Capture attention in the introduction.
You don’t want to sound boring from the very beginning, right? Introduction should set you apart from hundreds of other application letters. A good advice is not to enlist your previous work places (as if anybody cares) but to grab attention and surprise an HR with the key achievements of yours.
Step 5. Give good arguments why you deserve the position.
In the body part, you must not be shy. If a job requires the skills you mastered excellently, mention them! Be accurate in describing the results of your work and achievements. E.g., if you used to manage projects in web design each worth $10,000 and carried out a range of specific goals, make sure you tell about it.
Step 6. Show the good knowledge of the company.
If it’s your dream job and you couldn’t see yourself at any other place, you naturally learn everything about the firm’s goals, principles, vision, and what they call ‘a philosophy’. You go the same way they go. If it’s a company producing goods or providing services, show that you tried them, explain why its culture is close to your worldview.
Step 7. Write a strong closure.
If there’s anything you didn’t mention in the body, a closing paragraph is a perfect place to do it. Let it be the final point that convicts the HR manager that you are the one they need to hire. This little hook can win you a place.
Step 8. Be polite.
Yes, times change and the evolution of cover letters in both design and content proves it. Nevertheless, politeness is always to the point. Make sure you have the words of gratitude in the last paragraph – anyway, the manager spent some time reading it.
Step 9. Include a ‘call to action’.
The last words in the wrap up need to stimulate some kind of action. This will show your anticipation and the active position of waiting for the results.
Step 10. Check the stylistics.
The final point in a job application letter should also express your awareness of how to write formal letters. And not just at the end, – use formal vocabulary in the whole letter. Good options of closing words can be ‘Kind regards’, ‘Sincerely’, ‘Best regards’.
For those of you who think they lack the skills for nailing a good cover letter, there is another way – to have someone write your essay for pay. Experts at WriteMyPaperHub will do it flawlessly and provide you with nice samples to follow later.
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