Here Are The Do’s And Dont’s Of A Cover Letter
Dos and Donts of a cover letter
Recruiting offers always fall for the first impression which is, in this case, provided by the cover letter of one’s resume. Do’s and Dont’s of a cover letter should be known by the job hunters. The cover letter should be so attractive to the recruiting offers that it will give u the upper hand to the vacant.
More often than not, most HR officers are very keen on what one writes on the cover letter for it gives an insight into what kind of an employee one would be.
However when cooking a cover letter for a resume, one should not dive into the paper or software and hope for the best thus there are certain things that should be done which in this article, I have termed the “Dos” as well as things which are not supposed to be included or done on the cover letter, the “Don’ts”.
Therefore, you should always take cover. Written below are some of the dos and don’ts one should take hid off.
Cover Letter Dos
Personalize Your Letter: If possible find out the name of the recruiting officer or the interviewer and address them by name in your cover letter. Always write a new cover letter for each job that you intend to apply for.
Do Mention the Job Position: Research on the job you intend to apply for and mention a few duties let’s say 1 or 2 duties that are aligned to the job you are applying for. Mention the job title in your cover letter and focus your writing around that specific job position. If the advertised job position has a code or a reference number, include it as well to remove any kind of confusion on the hiring manager’s part.
Do Make it Succinct: A cover letter has to be short and sweet it should be like a min skit “Cover the essentials and leave the recruiting offers eager for more. Make sure you use simple language and tone and include only the real stuff.
Do Focus on the Audience: For each advertised job position, there are some specific skills that the employer is looking for. Find out what those key skills are and write your cover letter around the same. In short, put yourself in the hiring manager’s or the employer’s shoes while writing.
Do Proofread: The recruiting officer does not use a cover letter to evaluate how skilled and qualified a job applicant you are only, but they also use it to assess one’s communication skills. While writing the cover letter, make sure you communicate in a way that is both unique and impressive. After you have finished writing the cover letter for a specific job position, reread it at least more than twice so that it is free from any kind of grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, typos g for they say measure twice and cut once.
Cover Letter Don’ts
Don’t Make it Too Long: Don’t write a novel of a cover letter. It must not be longer than one page. Three or four paragraphs (300-400 words) are enough to create a cover letter that immediately attracts the attention of the employer or the hiring manager. Longer cover letters turn off most employers.
Don’t Boast: No matter how qualified or skilled you are, don’t be arrogant. Instead, focus on the key accomplishments and tell the story behind them as briefly as you can.
Don’t Use Cliches: Too-obvious cliches make your cover letter look like a general one and that’s what most job applicants do. Avoid them at all cost.
Don’t Make False Claims: Organisation is looking for honest employees. If you don’t have the skills the employer is looking for, it’s probably the wrong job for you. Don’t make false claims or pretend you have the required skills. The truth will come out sooner or later.
Don’t Be Negative: Your past job experiences may have been bad. But you should never talk negatively or sound negative in your cover letter. Employers want to hire candidates with a strong positive mindset.
What is your cover letter like, is it attractive? Take a closer look at it in the light of these dos and don’ts. If you think you lack the skills for writing an effective cover letter, hire an expert to do the job for you. There are multiple online service providers as well that you can use for cover letter writing. Always remember that a cover letter is a powerful tool that can earn you a job. You can use it to gain an extra edge over the competition.
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