Pongo Resume

I'm always suspicious when I hear recruiters or career experts say the cover letter is dead. I'm sure there are some companies that don't want cover letters, but most still do. If you're looking for excuses not to write a cover letter, you can find plenty:

• Nobody reads cover letters anymore;
• Electronic scanners strip them out;
• Letter-writing ability has no relevance to the job; and
• They didn't specifically ask for a cover letter.

Fair enough. But what if nobody reads cover letters … except your would-be boss? Our CEO (who has hired a lot of people in the past few years) says he won't even consider a job candidate who hasn't bothered to write a cover letter. "To me, that says they don't care enough about the job to put the time and effort into it."

Letter-writing may not be relevant to all jobs, but willingness to go the extra mile and attention to detail are. The presence of a cover letter helps prove you possess those qualities; the absence implies you don't.

I suspect the biggest reason people try to get out of writing a cover letter is that they don't know what to write. "I already put everything in my resume! What else can I say?"

Well, here are four tips for writing a standout cover letter that will invite hiring managers to read your resume, but won't rehash every detail:

Drop the name of someone who referred you:

Your former colleague Tim Williams suggested I send you my resume. He and I were discussing how easily my background in ____ could transfer to your ….

Spotlight a particular part of your resume:

I would especially like to direct your attention, as you read my resume, to my four years as the ____ at XYZ Construction, a role that required many of the same skills as this opportunity ….

Point out how your past experience prepared you for the new job:

My three years producing ____ at Smith Company and two years of ___ at Jones Corporation have given me the multi-faceted expertise to successfully implement your ...

Express your interest, enthusiasm, and gratitude:

Your firm's reputation for ____ and my longstanding interest in ____ make this opportunity extremely attractive to me. I appreciate the time you've taken to consider my candidacy, and am eager to take the next step….

So, cover all the bases and write the cover letter (but don't screw it up.) And while you're at it, think about what you'll say in the thank-you notes you send after the interview!

If you're a job seeker, do you use cover letters? If you're a hiring manager, do you read them? Are there certain industries or fields where they are never used? Please share your thoughts with us.

Where to I send a cover letter when the resume is to be submitted on-line?

Hi Trudi, Many online applications include a field where you can paste in the text or upload the Word document of your cover letter, along with your resume.

If no such field exists, make sure the Summary of Qualifications in your resume includes the most important points you would have put in a cover letter. When there's no cover letter option in the online application, that's a good indication that the company scans their resume submissions for keywords, so make sure you also use exact language from the job description to match the keywords they're likely to be looking for.

Finally, I would also consider following up your online submission with a traditional e-mail or printed resume and cover letter, if you can determine from the job ad or the company web site whom to send it to.

Hope that helps -- best of luck!

Julie

Whom do you address the cover letter to when it's for an online job posting and a third party is receiving the cover letters and resumes for the company? I called the company directly to try to ascertain a name to address it to, however, they stated "just address it to the HR Dept.". Is there a good way to address it besides Dear Sir or Madame or To Whom It May Concern? (I really hate the look and sound of that) :)

Thank you for taking the time to read and answer our posts!

@Vickie B.

I commend you for trying to get the hiring manager's name, and I share your frustration over the fact that there are no good alternatives for addressing an "anonymous" person.

One important point: If you use "Dear Sir or Madam:" be sure to spell Madam without the "e." That's the standard in English.

However, in my personal opinion, Dear Sir or Madam is not the way to go. It sounds old fashioned and formal, and has the added issue of "Why does the man's name go first?"

You're probably better off using To Whom It May Concern. Other options include: Dear Hiring Manager, Greetings, or Good Day.

Hold your nose and choose one!

Julie

I'm a nurse and have been filling out online applications. when I cut and copy a cover letter or resume into the small space provided on the application it changes the spacing and margins. will it continue to look like that when the reciever opens it? What am I doing wrong?

Thanks!

@Joan K

You're not doing anything wrong, Joan. That's the nature of the beast (the beast being online application programs). They strip out all the formatting and change it all to plain text.

We have a blog post called "Plain Text Resumes: How to Make Them a Little Less Ugly" which might help. Here's the web address:

http://www.pongoresume.com/blogPosts/187/plain-text-resumes-how-to-make-them-a-little-less-ugly.cfm

Be sure to bring hard copies of your "beautiful" formatted resume and cover letter to the interviews, and give a copy to your interviewer(s), so they can see it as it's meant to look!

Best of luck!

Julie

I am applying for a job that has a gender-neutral first name. I have been researching the company and have found his/her profile on several sites, but no confimation on male or female. Having a name makes me a little leary of using "Sir or Madam" and I don't want to guess the most likely and have that mis-step be my first impression.

Any suggestions?

@Jane B

Great job finding the name! You're a step ahead fo the competition already. Now you have a couple options.

1) If the company phone number is listed, just call and ask! Explain that you're applying for a position in his/her department,and wanted to address the cover letter appropriately. If it's a smallish company, this can be a good way to get your name floating around, and show that you're someone who's willing to make a little extra effort to do the job right!

2) If that doesn't work, write Dear Mr. or Ms. Lastname. People with gender-neutral names know they have gender-neutral names, and will appreciate that you didn't just guess or assume, but left both options open.

Good luck with the application!

--Julie

For the past 5 years I have always held several positions, sometimes for different organizations, at the same time. This makes it impossible for me to include them all in a resume that is only one page long. I often tailor it to include only the positions I think will be best for the specific position for which I am applying. I have been told several times that since I am only 27 and not too far in to a career that it is unreasonable for my resume to be longer. What is the protocol for including things in the cover letter that are not in the resume or vice versa? Should I just forget it and make my resume longer?!

@Dalia

The 1-page-only rule is outdated, so you can stop worrying about that. (Just don't go over 2 pages.)

And the fact that you tailor your resume to the specific position is excellent.

One option might be to include two categories of experience on your resume, one called Relevant Experience, and one called Other Experience.

In the Relevant section, you can include the jobs, with bulleted skills and accomplishments that support your qualifications for that specific job.

Unrelated jobs go into the Other category, and don't require details beyond Company, Job Title, and Dates of Employment.

That way, hiring managers can see and be impressed by the fact that you've held down multiple jobs concurrently, but they don't have to wade through job details that have no relation to their business needs.

In your cover letter, you can explain your situation and talk about your enthusiasm and qualifications for the specific job. Be honest, authentic, and personable (as opposed to stiff and formal).

Good luck!! It sounds like you have a great work ethic and the willingness to put time and effort into your career documents, and that puts you way ahead of most of the competition!

Hope this helps...

Julie

Hi Julie,

I've run into this problem several times with online applications. I tend to save my resume as a pdf because I use a Mac and am always worried about formatting/software differences. For one application I also turned my cover letter into a pdf and inserted it into the pdf document of my resume. Is this okay to do or that is a big no-no?

Thanks! Lisa

Hi Lisa,

Most online job applications do not allow for the uploading of PDFs, just because the file format is large when you upload. If the application allows you to upload the PDF, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that format.

If you run into a situation where you cannot upload the PDF, you always have the option to use Text to copy and paste onto the job applications.

We actually have another post about PDFs that I think may benefit from.

http://www.pongoresume.com/blogPosts/658/sending-your-resume-make-it-a-pdf.cfm

Good luck!

Cassi