Job Search: Part 2—Cover Letters

When I wrote the post about writing a resume, I did not intend to create a series. That post has become the most popular I’ve written. Part of the popularity, of course, came about because the post was part of a group writing project and was Stumbled several times. However, there does seem to be a strong interest in job search advice, so I decided to make that post the first in a series of three about the job search process.

Today, we’ll talk about cover letters. The resume is a sales tool to get an interview; the cover letter is a sales tool to get your resume read. These tips will help ensure that your cover letter gets the right attention from the hiring manager.

• Address the letter to the right person. You may need to dig a little to find the right person, but your letter will more effective if it is addressed to a specific person—the person who will be reviewing your resume.
• Customize the letter for every job. Several commenters on the resume-writing post recommended that the resume be customized for different jobs. While this may be helpful, it is more important to customize the cover letter. After all, the cover letter is what the hiring manager sees first and what will determine whether the resume is reviewed or not. If your resume doesn’t include relevant experience and qualifications, revise your resume for this position. If your resume includes the information, highlight the most important elements (experience, skills, education, certifications) in the cover letter.
• Use letterhead stationery with your complete contact information. If you don’t have stationery, you can create it on the computer. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but it should look professional. If you sending the cover letter by e-mail, format it like a letter in the body of the message.
• Keep the cover letter to one page. Include the important information in a short, concise document.
• Capture the reader’s attention at the beginning by explaining why you are applying at this company. If you’re not familiar with the company, do some research so you can address why you are a good match for the company and/or the position.
• Emphasize how you will contribute to the company. Stating you want to work for the company because they have the best benefit package of any company won’t make a favorable impression. Telling the employer your experience in quality control will contribute to the company’s new department will impress.
• Show how your qualification match the employer’s requirements. If you’re responding to an ad or job posting, mention specific requirements (such as x number of years of experience, license, degree, knowledge of particular equipment) and demonstrate how you meet or exceed those requirements. If you not responding to a specific job listing, mention your strongest qualifications for a job in the industry or type of job.
• Conclude with a strong close. Let the employer know you are eager to meet her to discuss the needs of the company (or how you can contribute to the company’s goals). Repeat your contact information for your preferred method of contact as well as when you are available.
• Proofread carefully. If possible, ask someone else to read the letter both to catch grammar and spelling errors and to be sure the letter makes sense and flows smoothly.

You can read examples of the various elements of the cover letter at How to Avoid the Four Most Common Cover Letter Blunders.

Next, we’ll discuss interviews.

Develop Your Social Skills: Read a Novel

I recently described my love of reading that began in childhood and continues today.

The article Get Lost – In a Book talks about research done at the University of Toronto that shows:

Frequent fiction readers may thus bolster or maintain their social abilities unlike frequent readers of non-fiction.

The article also quotes from Robert McKee’s book Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting on the benefits of being a bookworm.

Long live us bookworms!

Blog-to Show

Liz Strauss at Successful-Blog is generously giving all bloggers a chance to show off their blogs this weekend at the Blog-to Show.

So this weekend is a Successful-Blog Blog-to Show. It’s a Virtual Auto Show for Blogs. Detail your blog. Polish the trim and come show it off. We’ll line them up, look them over, and get to know each other and our blogs just that much better.

I don’t have time right now to detail or polish the trim on my blog, though that’s planned (and has been for some time). But I’m going to participate even if the chrome isn’t as shiny as it could be.

Liz suggested that we write a post linking to some of our most popular content to introduce visitors from the Blog-to Show to our blogs.

The three most popular posts recently were all Stumbled – something I’m learning can make the difference between a handful of page views and 8,000+ page views.

How to Write an Interview-Winning Resume

Remembering My Parents

Thank You for Your Comments

Two of the three posts with the most comments in the last six months were directly related to this blog I find it interesting that two different thank-you-to-commenters posts are among the most popular and the most commented.

Beginning the Year with Thanks

Two Years Old Already?

What I Learned from Mashing It Up

I listed some of my favorite posts from my first year of blogging in Double Whammy: Blast from the Past Meme and Carnival of Circular Communication. Those posts haven’t been read or commented on as much because my blog had fewer readers then that it does today, but they are still among my favorites a year later.

Most months feature a series of posts on a particular subject. The Series and Related Posts page lists all the series and many related posts. Visit that page to get a good taste of my blog.

And when you read the posts, be sure to read the comments as well. You’ll find great conversations filled with inspiration and information.

Thank you for visiting and thanks to Liz for the Blog-to Showcase.

 

My Ideal Writing Weekend

Emma Bird and Joanna Young at Absorbing Writing: Writing Workshops In Italy are soliciting input in planning their next writing workshop.

Tell us about the ingredients of your ideal writing weekend. That might be a weekend you’ve already enjoyed, one that you’ve got planned, or one that you’re hoping to take part in, some day.

My ideal writing weekend is one that I’ve already spent. It actually wasn’t a weekend (but it could have been), and my time was spent editing rather than writing. I had written and revised the novel Dream or Destiny, and it was ready for the final round of editing. However, my freelance workload had increased to the point that I couldn’t seem to find time for fiction, and the manuscript had been waiting for attention for a very long time.

EPIC, the Electronically Published Internet Connection held a weekend event in Las Vegas. I traveled and shared a suite with friends – a delightful husband and wife romance writing team. Billie and Herb have been happily married for more than half a century and write under the name of Barri Bryan. We decided to stay in Vegas a few extra days.

After the conference, Billie and Herb spent the days having fun. I holed up in the hotel room and edited. My story and I were alone all day with no distractions. At night, I joined Billie and Herb for dinner and a show or a visit to the casino. Frankly, I’m not much of a gambler, and Las Vegas isn’t my favorite place in the world. Perhaps that contributed to the ideal writing experience. I wan’t tempted to spend all day in the casino – a few hours in the evenings were plenty. What made the experience ideal were the days totally focused on writing interspersed with good times with good friends. By the time we returned to San Antonio, Dream or Destiny was ready to submit to a publisher.

Of course, when the novel was accepted by GASLight Publishing, LLC, there were several more rounds of editing. Publication has been delayed because of the publisher’s health issues, and it wasn’t released in June as anticipated. However, things are back on track now, and I hope to announce a release date soon.

25 Words of Work/Life Wisdom

Look at me …
Listen to me …
Give to me …
Help me …
How did it become about loving yourself instead of loving your neighbor as yourself?
 

This was intended to be an entry in Liz Strauss’ 25 Words of Work / Life Wisdom Writing Project but I got tied up on a project and lost track of time. I decided to post it even though it’s late.

Added 7/21: Liz included my late entry. Take a look at a slide show of all the amazing entries in 25 Words of Wisdom.

Job Search: Part 1—How to Write an Interview-Winning Resume

Job-seekers often think they need a resume that will get them the job. However, the purpose of the resume isn’t to get you the job. The purpose of the resume is to get you the interview.

For most positions, hiring managers are faced with a formidable stack of resumes. Just like editors reviewing writers’ query letters, they look for any excuse NOT to consider a resume. Often they glance at each one for only a few seconds before deciding to reject it or to put it aside for review in more depth.

Your first goal, then, is for your resume to make the cut so the hiring manager takes a closer look at it. Your second goal is for you to be called for an interview after the review of your resume.

Following these tips will give you a much better chance that both of those goals will be achieved. 

• Assemble all your information. Review old job descriptions and performance evaluations, school transcripts, awards and compliments you have received, and other documents related to your work history, education, and community activities.
• Don’t give the hiring manager any reason to reject your resume out of hand. Provide the information the employer needs and make it simple to find. Be sure your complete contact information is at the top of the first page and your name and phone number and/or e-mail address are in a header on the second page.
• Format the resume so it is easy to read. Use a clean, simple font, preferably in 12 pt but no smaller than 11 pt, on plain white or cream-colored paper. Make margins at least .5 inch all around; 1 inch is better. Reduce the line spacing between paragraphs rather than the margins or font size. Use bold, italics, and underlining to make headings stand out. Ensure that the formatting is consistent throughout the document, and present information in bulleted lists so the resume is scannable. Keep the document to no more than two pages.
• Begin with a profile or summary of qualifications. ”Objective” is passe - emphasize what you have to offer an employer, not what you want. Many people don’t like to toot their own horn, but if you don’t tell the hiring manager what you will contribute to the company, your resume will land in the Rejected pile. If you’re too modest to brag on yourself, review evaluations from previous employers, recall compliments you’ve received from customers and coworkers, and ask associates what they think your strongest attributes are.
• Include keywords. Often employers are looking for specific attributes and experience and will scan the resume for those words. If your job title (such as Vice President for Southern Region) did not readily identify what you did, include a more descriptive noun (Regional Sales Manager) in the profile or job description.
• Focus on your accomplishments, not job descriptions. Use short sentence fragments beginning with a strong action verb. Describe what you did (without using “I”) and what the results were: “Handled customer service calls, resolving complaints and building customer loyalty.” Quantify your accomplishments and results whenever possible: “Administered $2 million construction budget and brought project in under budget” or “Increased sales by 31% in a 2-year period.”
• Be completely honest but position yourself in the best way possible. If you normally supervised 12 employees but supervised 30 people for six months during a special project, say “Supervised up to 30 people.” If you have related volunteer or hobby experience, include it as well as paid work experience: “Managed 3 fundraisers for Local Charity, raising over $500,000″ or “Coordinated summer reading program for Children’s Club; 75 children read 10 or more books during the summer.” List continuing education and seminars, if applicable to the job you seek, as well as formal education.
• Consider a functional resume if your work history is less than stable. Employers generally prefer chronological resumes, in which jobs are listed in reverse chronological order. However, if your experience is limited or if you have gaps in employment, a functional resume, in which accomplishments are broken down by function rather than by employer, may be more effective. However, a blended resume may be better yet – list your accomplishments by function, then list your employers and dates of employment. The hiring manager isn’t left wondering where you worked and when, but your accomplishments may capture her attention before she reads far enough to see the gaps in your work history.
• Proofread thoroughly and have another person review the resume. If you can, get input from a coworker or someone who knows your accomplishments. Another person may recall something you’ve overlooked or point out the significance of an accomplishment that you took from granted.
• Create a text-only resume. When you apply for jobs online, you will often be asked to submit a text-only resume. Many employers want a scannable resume so they can search for keywords without taking the time of a live person. Be prepared by saving your resume as a text document and removing all formatting. Left-align everything; use capital letters instead of bold, italics, and underlining for emphasis; and add terminal punctuation at the end of every bullet point and statement. Otherwise, everything might run together.
• Remember: it’s all about what you can do for the employer. Ask yourself if you would want to interview the person who submitted your resume. If not … start revising.

For more information about what to include in a resume and how to gather the information, see my Information for Resume Clients.

This post is an entry in An Island Life’s How-To Group Writing Contest.

Note (added 7/15/08): Be sure to read the comments for some great advice from our community.

Note (added 7/29/08): This post has been so popular that I decided to expand on job search advice and create a series of three posts, of which this is the first.

Thank You for Your Comments

The second quarter of the year brought almost 300 comments from 192 commenters – about the same number of comments from more commenters than the first quarter of the year. The number of comments continues to amaze me since this blog doesn’t get a lot of traffic.

The comments have encouraged and educated my readers and me. I invite you to read the comments and add your own. You’ll find the conversation much more interesting and informative than just reading the posts.

While I appreciate every comment, I prefer to respond to “John, the Philadelphia Lawyer” rather than to “Philadelphia Lawyer” or to “Susie Smith, Beauty Consultant” rather than to “Chicago Beauty.” Replying to “Best Cooking School” just doesn’t feel like I’m talking to a real person. I will reply, but I won’t address you by “name” when your “name” is a keyword phrase.

As the About page says, first time commenters are moderated. Once a comment has been approved, future comments are not moderated as long as you use the same e-mail address and name. (Added 7/13/08: Also you must use the same URL; if you linked to your homepage on one comment and to a specific post on another, the second comment will be moderated.) I use moderation to try to avoid spam. Akismet has caught more than 78,000 spam comments, but several questionable comments appear in the moderation queue every day. If the comment relates in any way to the post, I approve it. If the comment is so generic that it looks like spam (“Nice post. Thanks.”), I delete it rather than mark it spam so if it’s a legimate comment, the person’s next comment will appear in moderation rather than go to spam. Of course, if it’s porn or other obvious spam, I mark it spam. I do NOT review all the comments in spam before deleting them. If you’ve left a comment and it didn’t appear, comment again or e-mail me. If you’re a real person leaving a real comment, I want to be sure your comment is posted.  

I hope this list is accurate, but there is lots of room for errors in gathering this information and transferring it to a post. Please let me know about any errors or omissions.

Now … thanks to all commenters, especially to those who left many comments.

Top Contributor (21 comments)

Renae Brumbaugh Morning Coffee

Major Contributor (11 comments)

Jeanne Dininni Writers’ Notes

Outstanding Contributors (8 Comments) 

Diane Brunner Her SCA Blog

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Significant Contributors (2 to 7 comments):

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Cristian Nouveau Riche University   

Dana Prince The Writer’s Blog       

Deb Punctuality Rules

Faraz Ahmed Ram Valley    

isabella mori change therapy         

Jackie Cameron  Consult Cameron     

Jacob Share Job Mob and Group Writing Projects

Jasia Creative Gene

Joanna Young Confident Writing     

JuLia This Heart of Mine      

Karen Putz A Deaf Mom Shares Her World

Karen Swim Words for Hire 

Kerrie The Writing Bug       

Laura Spencer Writing Thoughts     

Lisa Vella Getting It Write for You   

Lori Widmer  Words on the Page    

Marc Klein Rate Surfer       

Matt Keegan The Article Writer      

Mihaela (Mig) Lica Online Public Relations   

Mobile Blog Varalogic

Monavie On the Move Monavievo and Monavie Mall        

Monika Mundell Writer’s Manifesto  

Paul Raven Futurismic        

Raise Capital  Tiber Creek Corporation      

Robert Hruzek Middle Zone Musings

Ronny7        

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Steve Bannister Mind the Gap        

Thomma Lynn Tennessee Text Wrestling   

Tiger Tom Tiger Tom Insurance Tips         

Travelinoma  TravelinOma’s Library

Uptake in OH Uptake

Writing Content Nice, Smile 

Important Contributors:

Abaculus

akshay Silicon Web Solutions

Alex Alex Wise Photography

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Application Development Net Prophets Global

Asia’h Epperson Asia’h Epperson

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BrandName.com

Brandon Satrom Words of Redemption

Buy Roseville Pottery

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Chi Hair Straightener

Christie Harper        

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Chris All Fishing Books

Chris Foolish Mumbles

Cohnsey Repo Lift

Copywriter Profit Convergence Inc

Cosmetic Dentist London Sparkle Dental

Craig UK Holiday Trips Blog

Dan ACS Calibration

Daniel Jones Student News and Events

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David Bowman Precise Edit

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Ernesto Live and Learn Online

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Georganna Hancock A Writer’s Edge

Gillian Plastic Surgery

Graham US Movie Guide

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Greg Roy Only Knives

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Holly Self-Employed Insurance

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Jak Doberman’s Den

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Lighting Fixtures The Lot Is On

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Lisa  Big Food Web Marketing

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Mark Real Deal Docs

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Mary My Shiny Things

Matt (Project Management)  Projen

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Matthew  Blog About Your Blog

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Michele Tune Writing the Cyber Highway

Mike Guitar Lesson Reviews

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moneysmart  Personal Finance Growth

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Natasha Kaufhelfer

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Okinawa HDR Japan

Patrick My U Search

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Reverse Mergers Tiber Creek Corporation

Riese Last Minute Reiseangebote

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Roberto  Third Law Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Ronni 

RT Cunningham Untwisted Vortex

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Schufafrei

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Unsecured Credit

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website design Ask Graphics

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Work at Home Jobs Day Job Nuker

wuyi tea Tea and Weight Loss

Thank you again to everyone who has commented. If you haven’t commented before, I invite you to join the conversation. I think you’ll enjoy and benefit from your participation, and I know we’ll enjoy and benefit.

Guest Post Follow-Up

At the beginning of June, I let you know that I had written a guest post at John Hewitt’s Poewar: Writer’s Resource Center.

Today, I learned I had won the prize in John’s guest post contest.

 In his announcement at  John wrote:

 … we had a very clear winner for the contest. The average article received about 500 direct page views in the seven days that followed publication. Almost every article stayed within 100 hits of that figure, one way or the other. Lillie Ammann’s article, however, received almost 14,000 hits the first week. That same article went on to rack up 29,000 hits after 30 days.

How did that happen? StumbleUpon. The article was well-reviewed by the people on StumbleUpon, and good reviews translate into page views. That is the power of social media.

There were many excellent guest posts during the month of June, and I’m amazed and thrilled that my post got so much traffic. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the article on StumbleUpon (even the negative reviews!), to everyone who commented, and to everyone who read the post.

Now if I can just figure out how to get that many page views on this blog!

In Honor of Our Military Troops on Independence Day

Independence Day: God Bless the USA

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