Your cover letter brings your resume to life
Applying to jobs with only a resume might sound more simple, but I encourage you to send a cover letter. Don’t miss this opportunity to add life to the facts outlined in your resume.
Cover letters are not a repeat of your career to date in paragraph format – you get to describe ‘how’ you achieve results and why this matters to the specific employer you’re writing to.
Why tailor your cover letter to each role?
Applying for jobs can be a stressful process. You want to go for all the opportunities you can, but it takes so much work! It’s tempting to send the same application everywhere. Yet, getting rejections, or no reply, feels so discouraging.
You can increase the chance that your application will be warmly received by tailoring it to the role. Rather than sending out the same application everywhere, I recommend putting your energy into fewer, tailored, applications that get you further through the selection process – you can engage more effectively with employers and get closer to winning that job.
Tailoring your cover letter to each role means thinking carefully about the role requirements and highlighting how your strengths are valuable to that employer. Addressing your letter to the hiring manager and responding to the specific requirements they have listed in the ad shows them that you are paying attention to their needs.
A cover letter format for every occasion
We might use a different format of cover letter depending on the application instructions, whether it needs only a brief cover letter; a 1- or 2-page cover letter; or if asked to attach responses to Key Selection Criteria, a brief cover letter to tie everything together.
We would generally start and finish the letter in a similar way, but the amount of detail in the middle (or attached) might vary.
First impressions matter
Using business letter format ensures you start with all the important information at the top:
Your name
Phone number
Email address
Date
Hiring Manager’s name (if known)
Position/Department
Organisation
Dear Hiring Manager
…
Open with an energetic introduction paragraph confirming your suitability
Something along these lines is a great start: “I am excited to apply for the role of… My [qualifications/ years of experience/ skills/ strengths] make me an ideal candidate.”
Your personalised greeting quickly gives an employer confidence and interest to read more.
Tips:
- For consistency, use the same font/style as your resume.
- Avoid impersonal phrasing such as “To whom it may concern” or “Dear Sir/Madam”
- If you can’t find the hiring manager’s name online, it’s a good excuse to call and show your genuine interest, start building rapport.
In the middle: add context and details of results
Summarise overall relevant experience, skills, and strengths in a main paragraph.
If the job ad says send a ‘brief’ cover letter, or if it says to attach separate responses to Key Selection Criteria, then you might only need to provide:
- a summary of your capabilities (main paragraph),
- your motivations for the role, and
- a closing statement.
If providing a full response to the job requirements in your cover letter, you could prepare some additional paragraphs to expand on different skills relevant to the role.
Additional middle paragraphs: Expand on ‘how’ your skills produced [proven] results
This is where you get to describe how you’ve used your skills to get results in the past, to show the employer the kind of results you could achieve for them. You might state, “I have excellent communication skills”, but if you describe proven results with, “My strong communication skills have been demonstrated by…[example]” the employer has more context to understand how your skills could benefit them.
Look for the page limit so you know how much detail is expected. In most cases, a 1-page cover letter is recommended – that’s enough to fit a few paragraphs with brief examples of your results.
You might be familiar with the STAR format, which helps you to describe your example in an easy to follow story:
- Situation, Task, Action, Result.
If fitting some examples into a 1-page letter, be very brief to set the scene (Situation/Task), so you can focus on your Actions and Results.
Aligning your paragraphs to the list of requirements in the job ad helps the employer to assess your capabilities against their criteria.
Key Selection Criteria responses
When an employer needs more detailed examples, and particularly for government applications, you might need to attach a separate ‘statement of claims’ to address the Key Selection Criteria individually (using the STAR format). A separate statement allows plenty of space to describe how you have applied your skills to achieve results.
Preparing examples for cover letters and key selection criteria responses can be challenging. Book in for a chat if you need some help.
Share your motivations for the role
If not mentioned already, you might take a couple of lines to share why you are applying for this role, and this organisation in particular, to show your genuine interest. Consider how the organisation’s values align with your own and describe how you have demonstrated those values in your own life.
A strong closing statement reminds them of your suitability
Summarise how you are a suitable candidate and express your enthusiasm about next steps, for example, “I am keen to bring my [skills/ strengths/ experience] to this role and I am looking forward to discussing my suitability at interview” – offers a reminder of your strengths and leaves a positive impression.
When you have prepared your letter, take a look through and check that you have used the keywords from the job ad – using the same terms the employer uses ensures they see plenty of the capabilities and attributes that they are looking for.
Tailoring your cover letter starts to build rapport
Taking the extra step to personalise your cover letter and respond to the employer’s specific needs makes your letter more engaging and increases your chances of being shortlisted for the role.
What part of preparing your cover letter do you find most challenging? I’d love to hear. Perhaps I can help. Feel free to get in touch.
I’m Jenny Lindsay, a compassionate job search mentor helping people navigate career transitions to obtain meaningful work. During my 20+ year professional career, I’ve worked across public and private sector roles, studied HR Management and Marketing and established my business supporting clients to identify their unrecognised strengths and access new opportunities. I bring curiosity and empathy to help people learn what employers are looking for and to promote themselves as suitable candidates for their ideal role.