​You’ve perfected your CV with our handy CV template and read our advice on CV no-no’s, so now it’s time to perfect the art of the cover letter!

While you won’t be able to send out the same cover letter with every job application, it’s important to follow some simple rules with a loose template for each application. Remember, according to research, employers will spend roughly a minute skimming your cover letter, so make it short (less than a page) and make your content count – it has to stand out and sell you straight away!

Follow our tips for cover letter success:

Dear Sir/Madam…

If you can avoid this, do! Always try to find a name to personalise your cover letter. This will also show that you have taken time to find the relevant person who will be reading it, which will put you in their good books straight away. You can use the company website or LinkedIn to do this.

Introduction

This is where you quickly express your interest for the role you are applying for, and that you have attached your CV and hope it is of interest. Keep this short and sweet – it’s time to move on to the important bit!

Hello…Is it me you’re looking for?

Channel Lionel here and prove you’re the right candidate for the role. This is the most important part of your cover letter. You need to pay special attention to the job description of the role you’re applying to, and pick out how you align with it and where your experience supports and proves that you would excel in this new role. For example, if the job description is asking for ‘Proven social media management across multiple platforms’ then you can explain your close involvement in social media strategy, use of Hootsuite, and the tracking of results to inform future content. If you can, talk about specific examples and campaigns that you have worked on, and briefly quantify where possible – for example ‘Thanks to the summer campaign I planned and managed, our website traffic increased by 12% over July and August 2016’. Leave the detail for the interview – make sure you stay straight to the point in this section.

Show your interest

What made you apply for the role? Here’s your chance to show your potential employer why you want to work for them, and what attracted you to the role and the company. Show you’ve done some research and if relevant, demonstrate how you would fit in with the company values and culture.

Strong finish

You just need a line or two at the end of your cover letter to express your interest (without being over eager), and sign off with an expression of hope that you will hear from them soon. It’s a good idea to include your full name, email address, phone number and LinkedIn address – this can be in a header or footer, or part of your email signature. There’s no guarantee that your potential employer is looking at your CV at the same time, so don’t give them a reason not to contact you!

Now that you’ve perfected your cover letter, what next? Take a look at our current vacancies to test your new writing skills!

In this blog