Do You Need to Write a Cover Letter for Your Resume?


by Carla Vaughan - Date: 2007-03-18 - Word Count: 393 Share This!

Yes, yes and yes!

Cover letters are an introduction to the resume. They start the selling of YOU before the employer even gets to read your actual qualifications on the resume. They build up your credentials so that the prospective employer is already interested in getting to know you better. They are also for explaining parts of the resume that might need clarification, such as taking time off to care for an elderly parent or raise children.

Some resume "experts" do not believe that writing cover letters for resumes is important. Other resume "experts" say that it is essential. The truth is that it doesn't matter what the experts think. Writing a cover letter satisfies the employers who like to read them and it doesn't hurt in cases where the employer is ambivalent.

A cover letter is a perfect opportunity to do several things. Here are three things for which a cover letter is recommended. Number One: It can prepare and excite the employer about what they will find in the resume. Don't recite what is in the resume, but highlight certain elements of your qualifications and your accomplishments so that the employer starts to develop an interest in knowing more about you.

Number Two: A cover letter can target the job and the employer much better than by simply using a resume alone. Speak to the employer's needs by specifically matching your skills to those the employer is seeking.

Number Three: When writing your cover letter, point out specific areas of the position that interest you. Explain why being employed by that particular company is of importance to you. Personalize the letter by sending it to a particular person in the company. When you add these elements into your cover letters, they will be read more thoroughly and you will be more likely to receive a phone call for a job interview.

Writing cover letters for resumes is what differentiates the best job candidates from the rest of the crowd. Yours should convince the employer to grant you an interview.

You can be the success you want to be by working hard and making the extra effort. If an employer likes to read cover letters before reading resumes, then you are ahead of the other candidates for the position. If the employer does not care one way or the other, then you have lost nothing by including one.


Related Tags: cover letter, job interview, qualifications, accomplishments, resume cover letter, job candidates

Carla Vaughan, Owner/Webmaster Professional-Resume-Example.com

Carla is the owner of Professional-Resume-Example.com, a web site devoted to assisting candidates in the job-search process. She holds a B.S. in Business from Southern Illinois University and has authored several books.

For more information about writing outstanding cover letters, follow this link to: Cover Letter Guideline

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