So, do employers actually read cover letters? In a word – yes! In fact, cover letters may actually be more important and more necessary than even the attached resume.
Cover letters can move candidates to the front of the line if they are highly focused and highly objective, and they can help a recruiter or employer see why it is that you contacted their organization, and what you are looking for (not to mention how you can help the company itself!).
Cover letters, then, are important to have and make sure that you understand how and why employers read them. With that, then, it’s critical that you create the perfect cover letter than an employer will be happy and glad to read, as they make sure they are getting the most out of your contact while they try to fill out their job descriptions.
Here’s the rundown on writing a cover letter that employers will love:
They need to be tight and focused:
First and foremost, make sure your cover letters are incredibly tight and focused, to the point where they are brief and short. Highlight your experience, how you can help the company, and what you can do to get the most out of their job description – while highlighting your experience and the successes you have had in the past. In turn, make sure they are no longer than several paragraphs – and certainly no longer than a single page in length!
READ MORE: How to Make Your Cover Letter Grab the Employer’s Attention
Link them to a specific job or opportunity:
Second, link the letters to a specific job or opportunity. Never send a cover letter to a company that isn’t highly focused to a direct job opportunity, and never make your cover letters aimless and worthless. Employers only have so much time to read cover letters, so it’s critical that they are brief, to the point, and highly specific.
Make them brief and provide value:
When you make them brief, make sure you highlight how exactly you can provide value to the company, and how you have provided value to companies in the past. Experience is great to highlight, but connect it to providing overall value (and revenue!) to corporations, since the bottom line is what drives profits, hiring, and the growth of the business.
READ MORE: 5 Rules to Keeping Your Cover Letter Simple and Effective
Proofread, proofread, proofread!
Finally, don’t make any grammatical mistakes or spelling errors! Nothing will get your cover letter thrown out quicker than a dumb grammatical mistake, or a spelling error that could have easily been corrected in time. Constantly make sure that you are double checking your cover letters – even to the point of having other people around you proofread them – so that you don’t run into stupid mistakes or other dumb problems that may lose you respect and opportunities with different companies and corporations.
