A cover letter sample checklist should include all the elements that a cover letter needs to have.

1. Length. Cover letter samples should be between one paragraph and one page.

2. Job Knowledge. The cover letter should show that you know what the job is expected to do, and needs to accomplish for success.

3. Reasons. The letter should prove that you have accomplishments and achievements in your past that prove you can be successful at the target job.

4. Call to action. The cover letter sample should end with the next step that the reader needs to take. This will probably be to call you for an interview.

5. Personality. Probably the most subtle of all the factors. Have you ever noticed how different writers can be identified by their “voice” even on a piece of paper? Your letter’s “voice” should reflect your intelligence and professionalism.

The cover letters that get attention are the letters that address the needs of the organization and demonstrate that the writer can meet those needs. For most professional positions, that means quickly summarizing the applicant’s past accomplishments and achievements.

Each position, however, has different requirements and different ways and showing those in the cover letters. A friend of mine applying  for his first advertising copywriting job lacked experience in that field. But he knew from research that clear, clever, humorous writing was a prime requirement.

In his cover letter, he tried to prove that he had succeeded at every job that he had ever held, and made the case that he would also succeed at the target job. In this list of jobs and achievements, he included “Summer Lifeguard: No Drownings.”

This letter got him the interview that got him the job. 

One time, I was working to fill a marketing executive position and received dozens of cover letters and resumes from potential applicants.

As I was reading the letters, I noticed that two of the applicants had sent in nearly identical letters. Obviously, both of these candidates had used a free cover letter from a book or the Internet.

Knowing that the content of the cover letter was taken from a random, free cover letter, source made me doubt the truth of the claims that the candidate’s made in their letters. Furthermore, since the position required a great deal of report-writing, someone who couldn’t even write a simple argument about their own qualifications probably wouldn’t be a strong fit.

Since it was a competitive position, I was looking for reasons to eliminate candidates from the pool instead of reasons to include candidates, so those two job-searchers who obviously used free cover letters did not get interviews.

Cover Letter Templates found online can seem like a godsend to a job searcher looking for a quick way to get a letter out.  Using these letters is not completely without risk, though. If any of the following starts happening to you, you might be better off going another route.

1. Too Many Changes.

The whole point of a cover letter template is to make things easier. If you have a template in which all the information in the letter has to be changed to match your information, then you’ve defeated the whole point of the process. In this case, you’d be better off just writing a letter from scratch.

2. Stale Words

Some free templates have been kicking around for years, decades even. If something about how the cover letter template is worded seems a little old-fashioned or familiar, then you would be better off writing something fresher for yourself.

A cover letter format needs to call up a couple of specificadjectives in the recipients mind. Those adjectives are “clean,” “neat” and“professional.” If your letter looks like it might make someone think“original,” “creative” or “artsy-craftsy” then your efforts are on the wrongtrack.

The impression that your letter makes depends on very subtleand seemingly insignificant factors. Page margins, font choices and linespacing might seem like small issues, but if these cover letter formats are alla little “off” that makes the whole page look “off” to the reader. One thing toconsider is that the hiring manager is likely to receive dozens if not hundredsof these kinds of letters in a year and quickly notices something that isn’t inline with professional standards.

A safe bet is to use your word processor’s automatic coverletter format function, or to take advantage of a professional lettergenerator.

5. Saying Too Much.

Cover letters should be one page, max. Period.

4. Saying Too Little.

A cover letter should do more for you than a post-it that says “Here’s my resume!” The letter is an opportunity to show off your personality, your writing skills, and your grasp of why you should get the job. Getting all that into two or three paragraphs will do more for your job search than just about anything else you do.

3. Saying the Wrong Thing.

Don’t say how much you want the job. Say how useful you will be to them when you have it.

2. Not Asking for the Interview.

Self-explanatory.

1. “To Whom It May Concern”

A cover letter isn’t a piece of junk mail. It needs to go to a specific person. If you don’t know who it is before you write the letter, call the company and find out.

According to this article derived from Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers, the three best areas for job growth are all to be found in the “professional/services” categories. Specifically, jobs in the technical/mathematics field, jobs in the community/service field and jobs in the health services field are particularly hot right now.

Network technicians, college instructors and nurses head the list of  the specific jobs most heavily in demand this year. In addition to requiring specific training and experience, one element that all these jobs have in common is a necessity for strong problem-solving, communication and client-service skills.

For the job searcher who wants to land one of these jobs, having the right degree and background will get you considered, but your presentation will be what lands the position. Ideally, each element of your presentation will strategically work with every other element to highlight these characteristics. What this means in practice is that you need to discover what problems the job needs to solve, then create miniature narratives that quickly tell how you have solved those problems in your career.

Once you have those mini-narratives, then you should find a way to include them at every contact you have with the hiring manager. For instance, include them in your cover letter, be ready to talk about them in your job interview and in your follow up thank you letter. This strategic approach makes sure that your strongest selling points get heard and reinforced by the target company.

Resume. Interview suit. Professional references. Practice interview questions. All of these job search tools have their place. But ahead of them all is the application letter. The application letter is the document that gets the whole interview ball rolling by creating interest in your potential value to the company.

Application letter writing secrets.

A well-written application letter shouldn’t be confused with some quickly written note that just says “here’s my resume.” The effective letter is the result of research and thought. Specifically, the letter should show that you know what the company needs and how your experience proves that you can meet those needs.

Amazing application letter results. 

An application letter like this proves several things to the hiring manager who reads it. First, it shows that you “get it.” You know what the company need, and that you know how to provide those skills. More subtly, it shows that you aren’t “all about you” in your job search process. Yeah, you’ve got your ambitions and desires, but are mature enough to put those into a perspective of how you can meet other people’s needs. Lastly, it shows that you are intelligent, strategic, articulate and pay attention to getting details right.

That’s an amazing result for a three or four paragraph letter!

Though email has caused some people to forget the covering letter’s persuasive power, employment professionals know that a well-crafted covering letter commands even more respect than ever.

Covering letters make you stand out. 

“If 99% of the candidates are doing something, then the 1% doing something different stand out even more,” says Steven Schneider, an employment coach and executive recruiter based in Los Angeles. “For a hiring executive who is bombarded with one-sentence emails that don’t say anything, getting a well-written letter that gives valuable information is a nice change.”

Short and to the point is the way to go. 

Schneider recommends that his candidates for positions write a one or two paragraph letter that addresses the hiring executive’s needs and quickly explains how the candidate can fill them. Besides showing enthusiasm for the job, and an attention to detail, a well-written letter creates a sense of rapport early in the interview process, he says.

A short cut to the interview. 

“Hiring executives who receive a personalized, targeted covering letter say that they begin the phone or personal interview with a better sense of the candidate’s qualities and background. That allows them to progress to deeper topics of interest, faster. The end result is the candidate is able to make a more positive impression.”

Hi and welcome to the Official Amazing Cover Letters blog …

Over the coming weeks and months I'll be revealing killer tips, tricks and techniques you can immediately put to use which are guaranteed to supercharge your job searching efforts. I'll also make sure you're kept in the loop about any new tools or websites that will help you get more done, faster and cheaper and as "all work and no play makes Jack or JilI a dull boy or girl" (trying to be PC here) I'll also be sharing some crazy stuff that's made me laugh, cry or just stare at my computer screen in complete bewilderment, because let's face it … landing that perfect job can be hard work - so if you can't kick back with a beer, or whatever - what's the point?

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Cheers

Jimmy