Just like everything else in life, the more time you invest toward writing a cover letter, the more likely it will be to reward you in the future. Of course, you can follow the basic guidelines of how to format a cover letter and what to include in a cover letter, but there is more to it than that.

To write a cover letter that truly leaves an impact on your employer takes time, effort, and creativity.

This article will outline some of the most helpful tips and resources for writing a cover letter than can make the process easier and help you stand out from the competition.

 

Research what matters

We are often told to listen before we speak, and that age-old principle can be applied here as well.

As contradictory as it might sound, the process of writing a cover letter begins with no writing whatsoever.

Rather, it includes thorough research that will later convince the employer that you understand and value the company.

In your research, you will want to be sure and identify these three factors:

 

Core values

Begin by identifying the core values of the company. Some companies outline values for you on their website, but copying and pasting these values into your cover letter will not impress a prospective employer. Rather, try and identify core values and principles that are not explicitly communicated to the audience, but instead, stand out to you through the services provided, content produced, or customers that are attracted to the company’s brand.

A fun way to identify some key words that can point you toward core values is to create a word cloud. This is an image with words of various sizes that are found within a paragraph of text. You can take a meaningful page of text from the company’s website and paste it into WordItOut. Choosing a couple of words from the word cloud can help you start with finding key concepts regarding the business. Using this resource can serve as a guide on what kind of values and keywords to include in your cover letter.

 

Areas of weakness

We all have weaknesses, and believe it or not, so does the company that you hope will hire you. We invest a lot of time into getting to know a company’s strengths and what makes it so valuable, but we should spend an equal amount of time understanding where the company falls short. In doing so, we can strategically place ourselves as the solution to these shortcomings when writing the cover letter.

 

Points of contact

Since it is a letter, it has to be addressed to someone or something. Tempting as it may be to write, “To whom it may concern,” this does not have the same impact as addressing an employer directly by his or her name. Finding the hiring manager is your best bet. If the name of the hiring manager is not listed on the website or on the job description, LinkedIn can be a great asset. The website allows you to search for the company and view people who work there. Oftentimes, you can find someone with the description “hiring manager”. However, if you are unsure, you can always message someone who appears to be in a peer-level role and ask them if they know who the best contact would be. If all of this falls through, you can always call the company and ask for the name. It may seem tedious, but at the end of the day, it will make a huge difference for the reader if he or she feels addressed directly.

 

Write the cover letter with intention

Now that you have done all the research, it is time to pull it all together into a cover letter that shows you are genuinely interested and qualified for the position. Of course, we have to assume that so is everyone else that is applying for the position. So, how do you make yourself stand out?

Here a couple of tips to keep in mind when writing your cover letter.

 

Avoid robotic statements

Hiring managers read multiple cover letters a day, so they can tell when you are copying and pasting formalities into your cover letter. For this reason, you want to avoid common phrases such as, “I would be a great fit because…”, “I have experience in…”, “The position interests me because….”. These are all too common in cover letters, and hiring managers will be more likely to skim over the letter if they see wording that is identical to the fifty other cover letters they have waiting to be read.

Instead, use the cover letter as an opportunity to showcase your personality through your writing. Don’t be afraid to tell a story through your cover letter and to branch out from the typical writing style. As always, however, make sure to stay on topic and keep the cover letter focused on your assets and how they can benefit the company.

 

Write around skills rather than experience

It can be tempting to summarize your resume by using each paragraph to describe previous positions. However, this does not help you paint yourself as the perfect candidate for the position. Instead, try dedicating each paragraph to a specific skill set.

For example, if you are applying to be a legal assistant, you will want to first take a look at the job description and identify two to three skills that seem especially important in order to be successful. Imagine that you want to include attention to detail, time management, and reliability as your three skills. For each supporting paragraph, describe to the hiring manager how you developed these skills in previous positions. In this way, you can include multiple positions in the one paragraph as long as they all relate to the skill that you are highlighting.

This article is helpful because it provides a list of transferable skills that you can choose from when planning your cover letter.

 

End with a call to value

You have probably heard the phrase “call to action”, but have you heard of a “call to value”?  Rather than just stating an action, a “call to value” invites the reader to take the next step because of a specific value that it will bring to them. Here are some examples of calls to value:

Call to action: “I’d welcome the opportunity to speak with you more about my qualifications. Thank you for your time!”

Call to value: “I’d welcome the opportunity to speak with you more about how I can apply my abilities to manage conflict and promote change as a new team leader. Thank you for your time!”

Ending with a call to value reminds the reader one last time about how you can be of value to them and why they should reach out to you. It is your final chance to leave an impression, so you want to make it clear, strong, and memorable.

 

Share your experience

How do you write your cover letters? If you have any hints or ideas on how to write cover letters, feel free to share them! Or, if you try any of these techniques, let us know how it goes!