A strong cover letter can mean the difference between landing an interview for the perfect job and getting passed over.
Even though many job applicants believe that it’s not really necessary to write a cover letter because employers have all the information they need in the resume, writing an impressive cover letter is an excellent opportunity to tell your prospective employer while you are the best candidate for the job.
Think about your cover letter as a sales pitch where you advertise your skills and the way the company would benefit by hiring you.
Here are some essential tips that can help you write a killer cover letter that will land you an interview as a remote worker.
Keep it short
No cover letter should be longer than one page. Even if you have lots of ideas that you would want to bring to the attention of your prospective employer, you should resist the temptation to lay out a complete rationale for hiring.
Keep in mind that the cover letter should eventually lend you an interview, so you can save many details for the interview, which is where the hiring decision is made. The goal of a cover letter is not to land you a job but an interview.
Format the page with comfortably wide margins on all sides and use short paragraphs because this will make the letter more readable.
Use good grammar and punctuation
Grammar and punctuation mistakes in a cover letter showed that a candidate is simply careless. This would not bode well for your chances of landing an interview. Proofread your letter a couple of times and have another pair of eyes proofread as well.
Grammatical mistakes and typos are a very quick way to kill your chances right from the start, but the good news is that it’s an entirely avoidable mistake. If you don’t have someone else who can proofread your letter for you, make sure you use Grammarly or something similar to spot careless typos and grammar errors.
Do your research
Many applicants start writing their cover letters by rehashing stuff they have already included in letters they used for other job applications. This is never a good idea, because employers are looking for cover letter that are written with intent.
This means that you need to personalize your cover letter for every job you apply to, to make sure you use the right approach and tone. Take some time to understand the tone of the company, what the company does, and what are the key characteristics of the job you are eyeing.
You might need to adjust your tone according to the company. For example, if you’re applying for a job at a Fortune 100 company, you may want your cover letter to sound more formal. On the other hand, a start-up may appreciate a casual and down to earth tone.
Lose the fluff
After you write your cover letter, giving another read and lose all the fluff words and phrases that could make it difficult for a hiring manager or recruiter to understand how your skills match those listed in the job description.
Many job applicants use words such as “seasoned,” “dynamic” or “inspirational” to convey their skills, but these buzzwords don’t actually mean a lot. Make sure you get the point because if you fall into the trap of using fluffy words, you might not get a call back simply because recruiters can’t decide whether you have the skills required for the job.
End it right
So you’ve written an amazing cover letter that highlights your achievements perfectly, and now it’s time to come up a killer closing paragraph. If you truly want your cover letter to result in an interview, the last paragraph should be one of his strongest elements. That’s because it would be the last impression you leave in the recruiters mind.
There are multiple ways in which to end a cover letter, and you should be the best one that suits the type of job you’re applying for. You could end your letter enthusiastically by letting the reader know that you are very excited to learn more about the opportunity.
It’s also important to highlight that you are prepared for the position and easy to train because this is what employers are looking for in a candidate. You should also make sure that your letter has a call to action statement, because, as you remember, its purpose is to help you land an interview.
Follow the instructions
Many companies include special instructions regarding the resume and cover letter in the job posting to stop people from spamming them with generic cover letters. One of the most common tactics used by employers is to tell potential applicants to use a particular phrase in the cover letter.
Make sure you scoured the job posting carefully for such phrases and includes them exactly somewhere in the cover letter, preferably at the beginning.
Sometimes job postings especially state not to include a cover letter. If that is the case, don’t submit one, because including an unwanted cover letter will certainly give the impression that you feel you’re above following directions or that you didn’t read the instructions carefully.
Creating a cover letter that lands you an interview is a craft that gets better with practice. While avoiding mistakes can be challenging, by following the tips above you can be on your way to writing the perfect cover letter in no time.
