Give Me Cover!

You had an epiphany. You need more challenge. You just need to buy groceries. Whatever reason, you are job hunting. You should start any job search with some introspection, ask yourself these questions, and be ready to answer them:

• why am I looking for a new job?
• what am I missing in my current job? 
• what are the qualifications of the job you want?
• what are your skills?
• what kind of company do you want to work for?

I had received approximately 130 resumes, and seven cover letters at the time I wrote the post about getting noticed. Three of which were from the same candidate applying for multiple openings. Let me pause here to give you some basic tips:

• Be conscious of the name of your file. You may upload your resume to a job site, but some of those sites retain the original file names. You should probably utilize your name. If you are going to use a date or year, please make sure it is current. Not 2009. And, please don't just call it "resume."

• If you utilize page headers and footers in Word, make sure they are updated, especially if they utilize a date. Like 2009.

• Please only upload an all-text (.txt) file if it is explicitly requested. Better is a .doc or, even better, an Adobe .pdf. Reading text resumes is mind numbing and doesn't let me see anything about you. I have decided you are boring, uncreative, maybe even lazy.

• We talked about this one before, but you may only get to upload one file. Google "section breaks" and figure out how to include your cover letter in advance of your resume, all in one document. 

But, I digress.

After getting all those cover letter-less resumes, I did what anyone would do...I entered all the applicants' names, emails and the job titles into a spreadsheet and created an email merge. I addressed them by their first name; then said something similar to, "I understand you applied for the position of 'whichever.' Could you please send a cover letter describing your experience and your qualifications for the position." I also utilized the merge fields to tell them what to name it (title_first-last) - this was just a test in direction following.  I removed my phone numbers from my email signature as well as the link to my profile, but I left name, title, address and email (please note, my name was in 3 places). Right now you are wondering why I explained what I wanted to read in the letter. Clearly, assuming that people would include a cover letter was a mistake; I didn't want to leave anything to chance!

Okay, back to why you are reading...you found a position you want. You need to write a cover letter. Here are some tips:

• Don't use the greeting "Dear Hiring Manager" unless you have exhausted all resources. Search the company's web site. Search LinkedIn. Try.
• Don't spell the person's name wrong. Seriously. Someone actually copied my signature into the letter then proceeded to address me Amy, or Hiring Manager, or HR Manager, or Amiee or - my favorite - To Whom it May Concern.
• Don't quote the job description. You can reference it, but listing back requirements only tells me you can copy and paste.
• Don't fill your letter with corporate jargon. Don't use vocabulary for the sake of it. You're not fooling anyone.
• Do write in your voice.
• Do use spell check. Have someone else proof it. Dot your i's and cross your t's.
• Do utilize the company's name.
• Don't forget to update the company name when you re-use your cover letter. Nothing puts you in the circular file quicker than sending me someone else's cover letter.
• Don't forget to update your personal information, and for Pete's sake, include an email and phone number.
• If you live in another state, it would be wise to proactively address that. If I am looking at 2 qualified resumes and one is someone out of state - ie, not available to meet in person you get trumped, by at least one, and you can bet that you have less of a shot than someone with a thoughtful cover letter who tells me why they are looking to relocate.

Rather than keeping a canned letter and using it on all of your applications, you should instead, keep a document of sentences or blurbs. Categorize them. Use them together to create a custom letter for each application. Highlight your skills. Tell me why I need you on my team. Please.

In the same way that I won't date someone who date spams me - my term - it's when someone sends a form email to introduce themselves to pretty much anyone showing up in the "online now" list. I automatically think I wasn't worth your thought or effort. The world is built on relationships, certainly the business world. This cover letter is your first opportunity to connect to me.

If you did your homework you can find out a lot of opportunities to relate to your potential boss and make them need to at least meet you in person to talk further. It's practically a formula, and the internet hands you the solution.

Good luck!