Today's Article is An Excerpt From The Weekly Edition's
Weekly Ask the Editor Column.
 Need Results? Advertise With Us!
We Offer Subscribers Articles, Info, Free
Weekly Ads, & Bonus Items With Subscription.
Click Thru for Subscription Details!
Title: Covering Cover Letters...
Written By: Traci Pederson
Web Site: http://www.JillOfTrades.com
© 2006 Traci Pederson
The cover letter is an often overlooked part of the resume package when actually it is a valuable piece of advertising for the job seeker. People tend to see a cover letter as a generic greeting, a summary of the job that they are applying for, and an invitation for the hiring manager to contact them. Hiring managers, a lot of times, look at the cover letter and if nothing catches their jaded eye, they put the whole resume in another pile and it is never seen again.
With a little research on the job seeker's part, your cover letter will get you noticed and in this job market that can make all the difference. Thanks to the Internet it is easier than ever to look into a company who you think you would like to work for. Find their website, if they have one, and read over their information. Companies just don't create and maintain a website for fun, they publish facts and news about their company, where they are headed, and where they came from. Read the articles that are published about them to see what others think of their product or service and the potential they have for growing their business and making a profit. You can use resources at a library for companies that don't have a website or research business newspapers.
Now you have the information you need to write a fantastic cover letter. It doesn't take repeating all of the information you found, just a couple of highlights. This will show the hiring manager that you really are interested in their company and aren't just blindly sending out resumes. In turn, they may pay a little extra attention and look over your resume. Even better would be to take some of their information and quickly note how your experience blends into and enhances their services. Now you are marketing yourself effectively.
Another area to make note of when writing your cover letter is to take into account where the job advertisement was found, is there a name to address the letter to or do you have a referral from a current employee. Also use it as a chance to explain a "red flag", your experience that is most useful and who you are. That is a lot of information in something you want to keep to no more than one page so be prepared for some rewrites.
Who knows, you might find that this company is an even better fit for you than you thought, or that something about the culture or mission statements doesn't sit well with you and think that maybe you wouldn't be happy there after all. That is a valuable insight because now you won't waste the time and effort of having to quit and find another job and need a reason for your short employment time.
About the Author
Authored by Traci Pederson of Jill of Trades, (c) 2006 mailto:traci@jilloftrades.com http://www.jilloftrades.com
Today's article was originally received for publication in January 2004. The author has given full permission to publish it either electronically or in print, free of charge in your ezines, newsletters or on your websites, as long as the article content remains unchanged as is published here today and that the authors copyright with resource box is included.
|
Privacy/Guarantee Policy
© 2000 - 2006 DocumentsCentral.com All Rights Reserved
|
|
