Guide to Writing a Compelling Cover Letter

Writing a cover letter may sometimes feel like a daunting task; however, candidates who want to stand out and better position themselves for a career opportunity, should submit a cover letter in addition to their resume and/or application for employment.

What is a cover letter exactly? To help with understanding the need and benefits of having a cover letter, check out Andrei Kurtuy ?? 's blog How to Write a Cover Letter. Andrei provides specific steps and examples to help with drafting your best professional cover letter.

One important factor noted in the blog post is to address your cover letter to the specific individual who is hiring for the position or will be the interviewer, instead of a general address, such as "To Whom it May Concern or Dear Hiring Representative". This will take effort through research, which is possible by searching the company's website or social media profile on LinkedIn. Another option that I considered is to contact the company to ask if they are able to share with you the point of contact related to the open position so that you may address your cover letter to them directly.

Also for the heading, include more than just your first and last name. You will also want to add your current job title or profession, phone number, email address, and social media profiles, especially LinkedIn, which should be up to date outlining your portfolio for prospective employers to easily navigate and view. With the prevalence of social media today, most employers will view your social media profiles to also determine if you will be a good fit for their organization, so invest a great amount of time and effort into creating the best representation of your professional skills and qualifications.

Now that you've formatted your heading appropriately, you will want to capture the attention of the employer with an intriguing and unique opening paragraph. This is your one to two sentence sales pitch to share with the company the reason you should be considered as a top candidate to join their team. Ask yourself how do you align with the requirements and preferences for the position, and write an introduction that the company will not want to turn away from. You want to tell the company what you are able to do for them carrying out the responsibilities for the role.

Following the introduction comes the body of the cover letter. The goal is to highlight your accomplishments and accolades that you have received through education and your work experiences. Compare the details of the job description and be certain to highlight the top similarities that further outline why you are the best match for the job.

Finally, as you close out your cover letter, always express appreciation for the opportunity and request either a meeting or follow-up via phone or email to learn more about the position or to discuss next steps.

Drafting your best professional cover letter will take time, but that will be time well spent and worth the effort given to set yourself a part as a top candidate.