There’s no denying it. If you are out of work, it can be very difficult to find another one. You are probably already upset at the loss of income and security, and you’ve read each day that unemployment figures are not promising. It’s more important than ever to present yourself to a prospective employer in the best light possible. That starts with the first thing any Human Resource Department or position supervisor reads—the cover letter preceding your resume.

Writing a killer cover letter is far easier than most people think. Some general principles apply, regardless of your occupation speciality or the industry. Within those, additional specifics can further spotlight your background, experience, and potential worth to the company.

Generalities

Common sense rules many of the generally applied principles.

Spelling

While many word processing programs provide a built-in dictionary, it is not complete or comprehensive. It also cannot tell whether you mean ‘two,’ ‘to,’ or ‘too.’ Each word is correctly spelled, but each means something entirely different. With most word processors, the document dictionary will accept any of the three options and not flag a misspelling. However, a human reading it will notice that you used the wrong word. You don’t need to know how to spell every word in the English language, but the words you do use should be the right ones and spelled correctly.

Punctuation

A nemesis for many, poorly punctuated cover letters and even resumes can transform your documents from killer to killed. Make sure you use contractions properly, note commas where appropriate and never use exclamation points. You are presenting fact in your cover letter that draw the reader’s attention—not selling a how-to e-book. Convince the reader to continue reading through to your resume by presenting a calm, factual letter.

Highlight

No, this doesn’t mean taking a marker and over-stroking letter content. If you have a special skill or an accomplishment that 1) applies directly to the position for which you are applying, and 2) is unique or beyond normal standards in the field, definitely mention it specifically. An example might read, “As you will see on my attached resume, I redesigned the computer file retrieval system at XYZ Corporation. Users no longer had to search for electronically stored documents by title name but now can by subject or creation date as well, minimizing wasted time and effort.”

Make sure that your experience, duties and accomplishments at XYZ Corporation are clearly noted on your resume.

Direct Address Name

Never open a cover letter with the salutation “To Whom It May Concern.”

If you were reading that opening, and you were pressed for time because you have 100 identical document sets to read, how much attention would you pay to a cover letter and resume sent to no one? The reader could easily think that he or she certainly isn’t ‘concerned’ and toss your information into the trash bin. If a contact name is noted in the job ad, address the cover letter directly to that person. If it lists just a department, make one telephone call and ask the name of the person in charge of that department. Address the envelope to the person. On the next line, note the department name. On the next, the company name and finally the address. On the cover letter, pay the person respect by writing “Dear Mrs. Brown” or appropriate address.

That touch of personalisation immediately tells the reader that you pay attention and that you went a few steps beyond what the ‘Concerned’ users did. That just put your information on the top of the Look Closer pile.

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Failing to address properly

One of the biggest mistakes while making a motivational letter is that candidates do not address the hiring authorities properly. They start the letter by writing “Dear Sir” which doesn’t cut it for them. A candidate should try to find out the name of the authority that is going to receive the CV and hire the individual. Candidate can do this by contacting the company and ask them the name of the hiring authority.

Trying to be humorous

Most of the candidates try to show that they are over smart by showing wittiness in cover letter. Trying to be a little humorous as they think that the hiring manager or authority will like it, this is not so. This act is discouraged by the hiring authorities and they think the candidate does not take the job seriously. A motivational letter should be a serious one like a business letter.

Rephrasing the resume

Most of the people have a misconception about the motivational letters, they write the same details which they have already mentioned in the CV. This gives a feeling that they have rephrased the resume again and the hiring authorities consider it a foolish act. A cover letter should elaborate on your resume while explaining the skill set you’ll be brining to the table related to the new company.

Making it too short or too long

Candidates make a motivational letter too short or too long which goes against them. Too short cover letters are considered to be just fulfilling the formality whereas the motivational letters which are too long give an impression as if they are a preface of a novel, hiring managers do not even read it properly. The length and the content of the cover letter both should be appropriate.

Using same cover letter of every job

The job seekers who apply for a lot of jobs daily attach the same cover letter. Most of the generic cover letters do not speak about the job and they do not touch the corners of the organization. That gives the hiring authority an impression that you are not interested in this job and that is only a generic cover letter.