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Find out What is a Cover Letter With Examples

Find out What is a Cover Letter and how to Write one

What is a cover letter?

The first step to writing a great cover letter is learning what is a cover letter. Basically, a cover letter refers to an introduction letter that often accompanies or is attached to another document for instance, a curriculum vitae or resume. It helps provide additional details regarding your experience and skills. Cover letters should be written in accordance to how they are going to be used.

Cover letters for employment

Oftentimes, job seekers will send cover letters along with their applications or CV for employment. These letters are a way of introducing themselves to prospective employers and they help in explaining why they are suitable candidates for the positions advertised.

Employers are always on the lookout for well thought out, individualized letters as the ideal technique of screening applicants who lack the desired skills to work in the available positions. Cover letters for purposes of job employment are broken down into 3 categories:

  • The invited or application cover letter which is a response to a job opening that is known
  • The uninvited or prospecting cover letter which inquires about the positions available
  • Networking letter which requests assistance or information in a sender’s job search

Other uses

CV cover letters can also act as marketing tools for prospective seekers of jobs. Cover letters are as well used with numerous business documents like loan applications, proposals, contract drafts and other executed documents.

Cover letters as well serve the purpose of catching the interest of the reader or persuading them of something or they can act as a summary or inventory of documents that are included in a discussion of future actions intended by the recipient or sender in future in regard to the documents.

What is a cover letter-The details to include?

As part of learning what is a cover letter, you also need to learn the basics of what needs to be included in such a letter. Ideally, while writing this letter:

  • Try to limit it to a single page. This means you have to be succinct.
  • It should assess the needs of the employer and your skills. In the letter, match the employers’ needs to your skills in order to appeal to their self-interest.
  • Every cover letter should be tailored to suit the job opportunity available. The writer should demonstrate they know something about the organization they are sending their application
  • The letter should be written in a style that proves maturity and is clear. It is advisable to avoid intricate and long paragraphs and sentences. The writer should avoid jargon, use the active voice and action verbs, portray confidence, enthusiasm, optimism and confidence coupled with professionalism and respect
  • The writer should also showcase some level of personality an avoid writing letters that are unorthodox, gimmicky or even hard to sell.
  • The points in the letter should be arranged in a manner that is logical with each paragraph build around main points.

At career-advice.monster.com, you will find a suitable example of employment cover letter.

The letter is written in line with an advertised position and in it, the job applicant clearly states what they intend to bring to the company. It is such kind of cover letter that captures the attention of the employer and raises the possibility of employment.

General cover letter types

It is essential to know the different types of cover letters as this helps you better understand what is a cover letter.

  • Application letter-This is written as a response to specific job openings
  • Referral letter-This mentions the individual that referred you to a job
  • Letter of interest-This letter is also referred to as prospecting letter and makes inquiries about any job openings in a company
  • Networking letter-These serve the purpose of requesting job search assistance and advise
  • Value proposition-This is often a brief statement that explains what makes a candidate unique.

Cover letters should specifically cover jobs a candidate is applying for and hence, different letters should be used when for instance, you are asking for a meeting, making an application for one than a single job or sending the cover letter to companies that are yet to advertise job openings.

At quintcareers.com, you will find a good example of a cover letter for a student requesting internship. The writer starts by stating why they make an ideal internship candidate, followed by the experience they have and how an internship will be beneficial to him and the company. Therefore, it is essential to note when learning what is a cover letter, there are different letters depending on the situation at hand or what the writer is looking for.

Styles of writing a cover letter

Another aspect you need to learn as well about what is a cover letter is the different kinds of styles used to write them. Ideally, there are 3 basic styles and they include:

  • Conservation, standard style-This kind of style is ideal when writing cover letters for accountancy, retail, business and law. For sectors that are more creative, such a letter can work against the writer and appear to be less appealing. See the example below:

Dear Mr. Clerk

Kindly find attached my curriculum vitae in application for a post advertised on 30, November in the Guardian.

I am prepared for the position due to the nature of my training. It involved a lot self-motivation, independent research, requiring initiative and a range of different skills.

I am an accurate and fast writer, with keen eye for details and I will be grateful given the opportunity to progress my marketing reporting skills. I am in a position to assume the responsibility of the position immediately and have the determination and enthusiasm to ensure I become a success.

Thank you for considering this application and I am looking forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours sincerely

  • Standard speculative cover letter-This varies in accordance to the nature and type of organization you are writing to.

Dear Mr. Green,

My purpose for writing is to inquire whether you have vacancies in your company. Find enclosed my CV for more information.

As indicated, I have extensive vacation work experience in service industries, retail sector and office environments. This gives me the capability to work with different kinds of people. I firmly believe I will fit into your team easily.

I am a thorough person who pays close attention to details and works hard. I am flexible, quick in picking up new skills and keen to learn new things. Also, I have lot of enthusiasm and ideas. I am keen in working for a company that has high profile and reputation like (insert the name of the company).

In the event you lack suitable openings presently, I will be grateful if you keep my CV in your files for future possibilities.

Yours sincerely

  • Creative jobs letter–When writing this kind of letter, you must strike balance which is quite essential. This means you should not be very wacky as this has the ability of turning the writer off. Bear in mind the purpose of a creative letter is to show the reader that you are original and you possesses imagination and at the same time, understand what your job entails.

Dears Mr. Tom,

  • Muddled by commas?
  • Perplexed by parenthesis?
  • Bewildered by spelling?
  • Disturbed by punctuation?
  • Exasperated at apostrophe?

Well, you are not alone. It appears that few and fewer people are able to write. Unfortunately, there is a large number of people who have the ability to read. So they have the ability to spot a mistake a mile off which means your chances are slim unless you are 100 percent certain of the material you write.

To have perfectly written copy materials is when you consider the entire publishing materials process and the kind of impact you wish to make. By being sloppy, you lose clients.

There however is an answer. Me. Quotes are available for free. You can review what I deliver at my website (insert address). If you like, I can deliver samples within 24 hours. If you make the decision to use me, you will have the guarantee of sleeping soundly as those essential copies will keep rolling off the press in high quality.

You should not gamble with luck!

With kind regards,

These 3 examples stated above are a clear example of what is a cover letter. By reviewing each, you should be able to tell the kind of cover letter you want to write.

Also, you can find additional cover letter samples here.

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References

http://jobsearch.about.com/od/coverletters/a/types-of-cover-letters.htm

http://www.theguardian.com/careers/covering-letter-examples

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cover_letter

https://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/CovLetter_content.html

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