Here’s a tip for cover letters to get more interviews. Use a bulleted
format cover letter rather than a standard letter in paragraphs. The
bulleted format is more eye catching, and is more likely to be glanced
at by the hiring manager or other person assigned to sort through
resumes. This format will help you get your resume seen by more people
and as a result get more interviews and more job offers.
If you follow this advice and decide to use the bulleted format,
make sure that each bullet point specifies a reason for the hiring
manager to talk with you. This reason can be your number of years
experience, your education, a personality trait that you have, or
an accomplishment.
Examples of bulleted points would be:
• Over 20 years experience in Human Resource Management.
Or…
• Outstanding work ethic. Lead by example.
Or…
• Master of Science in Education. Currently enrolled in Doctorate
program.
Or…
• Saved last employer $30,000 in revenue through modernization of
accounting system.
Or…
• Increased sales by 25% last quarter.
This bulleted format allows you to toot your own horn, but in a way
that does not seem egotistical because it is obviously part of a resume
package.
Another tip that will increase the readability of your cover letter
is to use bold faced fonts on occasion to emphasize points you want
read. Bold face catches the eye, and is a common device used by graphic
designers in advertising copy. Your resume and cover letter are marketing
tools for you, just as a print media advertising piece is a marketing
tool for a business. Consider using bold face as tip from the Fortune
500 ad agencies that you can use without charge.
The next piece of advice to consider concerns the final paragraph
of the letter, and will help you in your follow up efforts. When following
up often times the hardest thing to do is to get past the gatekeeper.
The secretary or administrative assistant that screens calls for his
or her boss has an important job to do, but so do you, and reaching
the decision maker will make you look good. The gatekeeper will try
to stop you if the decision maker is busy—after all, he has better
things to do with his time than speak with job seekers. So, in the
final paragraph of your letter, before the “sincerely” and your name,
simply state “I will call you next week to check on a convenient time
to speak with you in person.” You’ve told the hiring manager you will
be calling. Logically he should be expecting your call. For this reason
you may tell the gatekeeper that ” Mr. HR Manager is expecting my
call this week.” This will increase your chances of getting through,
and of getting the interview. This tip is a variation on techniques
that good business-to-business sales people use, and will work for
you as well, bringing you more interviews and more job offers.
This article was posted on December 08, 2005
