Eight Ways to Maximize Your Cover Letter's Power

Like peanut butter and jelly or bacon and eggs, résumés and cover letters go hand-in-hand. Although both pieces are valuable on their own, they pack the most punch when served together. But while all job seekers know the importance of a well-organized résumé, many don't understand the power of a strong cover letter. In addition to reinforcing key skills and experience, a cover letter demonstrates your desire to work for the employer and the specific ways in which your expertise can benefit the firm. More importantly, it helps differentiate you from other job seekers and provides incentive to contact you for an interview. Even if composition isn't your forte, you can still create a killer cover letter.
Here's how:

1. Know your stuff. |
Before you begin writing, learn as much as you can about the potential employer. Visit the firm's Web site and scan industry publications to familiarize yourself with recent news about the company, such as quarterly earnings, and to learn about future plans, like expansion into new markets. The more you know about an organization, the better you can tailor your cover letter to the firm's needs.

2. Personalize it.
Never begin a cover letter with "Dear Sir or Madam" or "To Whom it May Concern." Correspondence with generic salutations often signal to potential employers that you lack the initiative to locate the appropriate contact. If a job listing does not include the name of the hiring manager, call the company's receptionist and explain the position you are applying for to see if he or she can help you fill in the blank.

3. Start strong.A good cover letter begins with a powerful opening paragraph. Your goal is to briefly describe how you heard about the position and why you're interested in it. Skip cute introductions: "Teamwork is my middle name" or "I am smart as a whip," for example. A "catchy" opening can appear stilted and insincere and offers little, if any, value to the piece.

4. Offer an enticement.
The body of the letter should expand upon -- not simply repeat -- the key points in your résumé. Highlight those skills and experiences most relevant to the job opening and provide concrete examples of how you can benefit the company. For example, if you are applying for a management position, share how turnover within your department decreased by 20 percent during your tenure. Or communicate how your attention to detail and ability to adapt quickly to new environments allow you to deliver first-rate client service.

5. Be bold.
In addition to expressing gratitude for the hiring manager's time and interest, close your letter by outlining your next steps. Be proactive by stating when you will contact him or her to follow up. Doing so is a great way to reinforce your enthusiasm for the job. However, don't forget to include a phone number or e-mail address where you can be reached in case the firm wants to get in touch with you first. In addition to following best practices, you'll want to avoid common pitfalls when composing your cover letter:

6. Getting ahead of yourself.
Focusing on matters such as expected salary and title can come across as presumptuous and untimely. Wait until you have secured a meeting and become better acquainted with the hiring manager to mention these topics.

7. Goofing the proof.
Our company's research consistently shows that one or two typographical errors are enough to discourage a hiring manager from calling you back. Utilize your computer's spell-check function, but also ask friends and family to double-check your work. You don't want a small mistake to call your professionalism or attention to detail into question.

8. Forgetting the format.
If you submit your application via e-mail, make sure to prepare the file as a plain text document so it is universally compatible. Remove all formatting enhancements, such as underline or boldface, and replace bullets with asterisks or dashes. If you fail to do so, your recipient may receive a bowl of alphabet soup. Also, paste the cover letter into the body of an e-mail to save hiring managers the worry of corrupt or unreadable attachments. Some job seekers spend hours assembling a résumé and only a short amount of time on the accompanying note. Submitting a thoughtful and well-written cover letter, however, can help you outshine your competition and get you one step closer to an interview.

How to write a cover letter for a marketing position

Debra Auerbach, CareerBuilder Writer 

If you're a marketer promoting a product, you'd try to sell the customer on why the product is unique, why it meets a specific need and why it will make a short- and long-term difference in the customer's life.

If you're seeking a marketing position, you should market yourself just like you would a product. While your résumé should include all the details about your experience and successes, you can use your cover letter to sell yourself and hook the hiring manager into reading your résumé.

"In my opinion, cover letters are the 'first impression' for a potential recruit," says Tracey Gould, director of marketing at Baskervill, an architectural, engineering and interior design firm in Richmond, Va. "This is the opportunity where a candidate should wow the potential employer with a summary of who they are and what they are passionate about in terms of marketing, display their successes in terms of qualitative and quantitative results, and demonstrate the value they ... would bring to the particular role and organization for which they are applying."

Here are tips on writing a cover letter for a marketing position:

Treat the employer like your target audience
"Just as when creating marketing materials, when you create your résumé or cover letter, it should be based on a clear focus on the end user's needs, concerns and interests -- in this case, your potential employer," says Linda Pophal, marketing communication consultant at Strategic Communications LLC. "Think of them as your target audience, and consider what they might be looking for in a new employee for this position. What skills are critical both in terms of professional [or] educational experience and interpersonal experience?"

According to Pophal, hiring managers want to know that you'll make them and their department successful and that your performance will help drive the company's success. "Be clear about what it is you will be able to contribute that is valued by the organization."

Include your own marketing materials
If you're in marketing, hiring managers want to see that you're familiar with marketing and social-media tools, and that you use them not only at work but in your personal life, too. In the cover letter's contact information, include links to your online social-media profiles, such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook. Just make sure that you're comfortable with a prospective employer viewing the contents of those pages. If you're not, clean them up before they're included.

If you don't have a personal website, consider creating one and using it to market your achievements. "If you're a marketing person, build a website to market you," says Mike Schultz, president of sales training and consulting company Rain Group and author of "Rainmaking Conversations." "Position the cover letter as a marketing letter or email that directs them to your website. Then, really blow them away with your marketing video, your content, your design skills, your search-engine skills, your results and so on."

Give examples of marketing successes
No matter the position, a cover letter should include key successes that are worth highlighting beyond your résumé. Kyra Mancine, job-search strategist and résumé writer, recommends showcasing one or two examples of how you've proven yourself, as related to the specific job opening. "If the job entails [public relations], add a line about how you 'garnered your company 25 media placements in print, online and television over the past three months' or a similar success story," Mancine says. She also recommends sharing quantifiable successes whenever possible. "You need to show results -- not just vague, flowery language that does not show how you have impacted the bottom line."

Show off your writing skills
A well-written cover letter can make a difference between being passed over and being picked. This is especially true for a marketing position, because you're expected to be good at expressing yourself and articulating a message.

"Writing is a central focus and core skill set of every marketing-related position, and the cover letter is an ideal place where a marketing candidate can shine," Gould says. "Does the cover letter take a different approach than most canned or dry cover letters? Does it use impactful language? Does it want me, as the reader and hiring manager, to want to read more and learn more about this candidate?"

Don't forget about the basics
While it's important to customize the letter for the role and to highlight key examples of success, don't slack on the basics. "It should go without saying to check your spelling and grammar, above and beyond what spell-check will do for you," says Nicole Krug, owner of Social Light, a business-strategy company specializing in brand marketing and social media. Krug also suggests that your cover letter be no longer than one page, so you don't lose the employer's attention. "This goes back to giving an indication of how you will perform in your job, and you need to have the ability to make your message succinct and relevant.

"The bottom line is, you need to realize that your cover letter is a marketing campaign, and you are selling your services," Krug continues. "If you can approach [it] with the understanding that you need to target your audience, create credibility, but also make it creative and unique, you should find success."

Debra Auerbach is a writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, The Work Buzz. She researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues.

7 Ways to Improve Your Cover Letter and Get Your Application Noticed

Don't underestimate the power of a cover letter. When well-written, attractively designed and customized for the recipient, a cover letter is a powerful tool that can practically scream, "Interview this candidate immediately!"

But when they are thrown together using little to no consideration, personalization or creativity -- as cover letters often are -- letters are as ineffective in the job hunt as blank sheets of paper.

"This is a major misstep when job searching," say Wendy Enelow and Louise Kursmark, co-authors of "Cover Letter Magic." "You should take advantage of every opportunity there is to stand out from other candidates."

Enelow and Kursmark also say that writing a cover letter can be more fun than job seekers realize. "With the right perspective and a positive attitude, you'll find that it affords you great flexibility. There is no one set format in which they must be written. There is no one style in which they must be presented. In fact, there are very few rules at all, and because they are so flexible, cover letters allow you to positively present just those skills, qualifications, achievements and credentials you want to bring to the recipient's immediate attention."

There are a variety of ways job seekers can get creative with their cover letters and bring them to life in ways they never considered. In their book, Enelow and Kursmark suggest a few of these techniques:

1. Find out what your target employer's slogan, catch phrase or mission statement is and brainstorm ways to include it in your cover letter's introduction. This technique will quickly capture the reader's attention, demonstrate that you are familiar with the employer and stand out from other candidates' one-size-fits-all cover letters.

2. Add a table or two-column section that closely connects the employer's requirements to your qualifications and professional achievements. This strategy will quickly provide the employer with concrete evidence that you're a good fit for the job and worth learning more about.

3. Begin with a thought-provoking quote relevant to the position, the employer's goals or your target industry. Many people love to read, share and ponder quotes. Including one in your cover letter can be a quick and effective way to engage the reader.

4. Feature a strong headline near the beginning of the cover letter. To keep it brief, yet powerful, address one of the employer's key concerns or spotlight your expertise or an attribute that will be particularly appealing to the employer.

5. Develop your own slogan or mission statement and include it near the top of your cover letter. This technique will enhance your career brand and stand out much like a headline would. To draw even more attention to the phrase, place it inside a graphic element that is attractive and appropriate.

6. Add a "P.S." to the end of your cover letter. Often, it's the first thing a person will read.

7. Include testimonials about you in the body of your cover letter or in an attractive sidebar. Testimonials will emphasize your skills and achievements and support claims you make about your expertise and why you're the best candidate for the job.

By Selena Dehne is career writer for JIST Publishing who shares the latest occupational, career and job search information available with job seekers and career changers. She is also the author of JIST's Job Search and Career Blog (http://jistjobsearchandcareer.blogspot.com/).