Just What Should an Effective Cover Letter Say?

Feb. 2022
By NTI

If you are sending out the same cover letter over, and over again and not getting any job interviews, the problem could be the approach you are using.

“You need to be tailoring your cover letter to the job you are applying for,” said Alan Hubbard, NTI’s Chief Operating Officer. “The cover letter is a way for you to stand out. You want to make sure you are addressing the cover letter to a person at the company you are applying to.”

NTI helps Americans with disabilities and their family caregivers with free job training and job placement services by registering at www.nticentral.org.

If you know someone at the company, you might want to mention that in the cover letter, especially if they referred you. On the other hand, if it is going to a general address, you want to focus on the company you are applying to and the job description.

In the letter, you want to make sure the first paragraph is strong and makes the hiring manager want to learn more about you.

“It’s important to get the hiring manager’s attention right way,” said Hubbard. “You want to be sure you are telling them your skills. Make sure you aren’t just repeating your resume over again.”

You also want to make sure your cover letter is free of errors and mistakes. Those things can cause the hiring manager to bypass you and go on to the next candidate. You also want to make sure you are getting to the point and the cover letter isn’t too lengthy.

“The hiring manager is looking at a lot of resumes at one time,” said Hubbard. “You want to stand out for the right reasons and not the bad ones.”

After your first cover letter is done, it’s on to the next ones. The main thing you want to avoid is just reusing the first one. Remember, every cover letter should be different and unique.

“You want to re-edit and re-write everything,” said Hubbard. “The jobs and companies are different, and you need to have different cover letters. You want to highlight why your talents are especially a great fit for their company.”

Americans with disabilities and their family caregivers can receive job training and job placement services for free by registering at www.nticentral.org.