8 Cover Letter Tips Make Your Job Application Stand Out

How to write a cover letter

Are you looking for a job?

Well, a skillfully and beautifully written resume and cover letter can help you get your dream job.

Writing a resume is relatively easier but on the other hand a cover letter which is even more important can be more complex.

If you are one of those who find it difficult to draft a letter, this article is going to be a big help for you because you can learn the basic rules necessary to be able to draft an excellent cover letter.

Attention Grabbing Opening

In every type of writing, writer has to engage readers in the first paragraph or starting lines and the same rule is applied to the cover letter.

In the case of a job letter, it becomes even more important because if you fail to catch your potential employer’s attention in the first few lines, you will miss the opportunity to get hired.

Therefore, you must spend some good time on the opening lines to make it an impressive piece of writing.

Write Important Details Precisely

The most important target is to get your reader go through your application, however, if you overstuff your paper, it might cause viewers to lose attention and therefore, it is quite essential to stay as brief as possible.

Research has shown that most job posting receives more than 100 job applications which means sorting staff will be going through hundreds of letters.

In first 10-50 letters, they might be able to read everything in detail but then, it will become boring process and they will prefer to read only precisely written letters.

Focus on Company’s Requirements

According to a survey, more than 90% of employers decide to give an interview call to the applicant if her/his cover letter gives a clear picture of qualification and experience suitable for vacated position in company.

However, most of the applicants make one common mistake which often deprives them of a great job opportunity.

They usually include generic information that can be used to apply for various companies.

Instead if they include information related to the posted job requirement, the chances of getting employers attention will be much higher.

Avoid Repeating Resume in Letter

One more very common mistake made by applicants is that they usually recycle information that they have already used into their resume.

Therefore, you should only choose the most important accomplishments from your resume and include it in your letter but you must be sure that the information is not repeated in the same way.

Use unique and better words to describe your biggest achievements.

Address Specific Person

Most of the applicants prefer to address unspecified audience but you don’t need to do this.

Instead, you should do some research and try to know the name of your potential employer/HR manager or whoever proceeds with resumes and letters.

When you address specific persons, it gives you an advantage over other applicants and it shows your professionalism and attentiveness.

Using this strategy can make you stand out of the crowd and the chances of your success will be higher than others.

Show Your Confidence in Yourself

While writing a cover letter, you should be self-confident, firm and emphatic.

Describe the things which you have gained with greater authority.

In fact, you don’t have to be so humble because in large companies, employers normally look for the candidates who have the capability to take full charge of the activities and have the potential to make certain things happen as per their requirement.

You should be confident enough to describe your abilities, capabilities and personality traits that can help you get your place in the company.

Have Evidence to Support Your Claims

Like many other applicants, you can also list only generic attributes in your cover letter but you must provide evidence to support your claims or else employers will not give them importance.

For example, you can claim to be a perfect candidate for the position but if you don’t give examples from previous jobs to support your claim, they will simply ignore you.

Don’t hesitate to proclaim whatever you achieved in your current and previous jobs as these will get you an edge over others.

Stay Honest with Your Qualities

You must realize that there is a big difference between being confident and overconfident, honest and dishonest, talented and cheater.

You must stay honest with every positive and negative quality and personality trait you have.

You don’t have to be worried if you are pointing out some of the positive traits but once you have included them in your letter, you must be ready to give answer, explanation and evidence because the interviewer might ask you about some or all of them.

Final Words

Following above discussed tips will definitely give an edge to your job application and the chances of your successful interview call will be much higher.

Therefore, you must try to follow these tips to take maximum advantage of a job opportunity.

What other tips would you add about writing a winning cover letter?