There are a lot of opportunities just waiting to be seized in the market; however, it is a sad fact that many people are still unemployed. Every year, different universities and colleges produce fresh graduates, and therefore the competition is quite high. You might be wondering how you are going to compete with other applicants, but did you know that you can start by writing a good cover letter?

In applying for a particular job together with hundreds of applicants, this might be your first and last chance to ’sell yourself’ to the employer. In order to ensure success, your presentation should be excellent and attention-grabbing.

The whole package revolves around the idea of properly presenting yourself to the employer. You have to communicate your skills and working experiences with concrete results. Almost every employer value first impressions, so if you are able to make a significant first impression, you might have a chance to get hired.

Your resume will have no value without a cover letter. So in order for the employer to even take time to read your resume, make sure that you wrote a very professional cover letter.

How do you do it? Employers will not take time to get to know each applicant personally; they are more interested of what the applicants can do for their company. You have to have an effective introduction to catch your employer’s attention, and you should keep the employer’s interest while reading the entire letter.

Making a cover letter is just the first stage in applying for a job; it is a valuable tool to be able to get to the second stage, which is the interview. Through a professional letter, you are able to present and highlight your different skills that make you a viable job candidate. It gives you the opportunity to capture the employer’s attention in order to achieve competitive edge over other applicants.

Professional letters usually have a formal introduction; it is an effective tool to progressively influence your standing among other applicants. Make an excellent first impression by making your letter powerful and dynamic.

Since the job market is becoming more and more competitive, your experience and qualifications are not enough. If you want to land a job, you must learn how to market yourself effectively.

Achieving a competitive edge over other applicants is what you want best, and if you have a good cover letter, it is already one way of portraying yourself to the employer.

You have to keep these five elements in mind in writing a cover letter:

1. Keep your cover letter as simple as possible. Make it concise, clear, and direct. Short sentences will do, with a clear structure, bullet points, and is reader friendly.

2. Personalize your letter, avoid using generalized salutations.

3. The first paragraph must readily capture the employer’s interest, and maintain that interest by promoting yourself confidently.

4. Tangible benefits that you might be able to contribute to the company are important; this is a solid proof of your achievements.

5. After effectively selling yourself, finish it off by wanting to take a specific act, like making a call after 2 or 3 days to follow up, or wanting to meet in person.

Don’t be afraid of writing your own cover letter. It is natural to be fearful and uncertain about things you want to say in the letter, but remember, practice makes perfect. As long as you’re confident about yourself, you can make a very good cover letter.

Jimmy Sweeney is the President of CareerJimmy and author of “Amazing Cover Letter Creator.” Visit him at: http://www.amazing-cover-letters.com for your “instant” cover letters today.

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Don’t know how to write a cover letter? A cover letter template can guide you in writing that perfect cover letter to get that much desired job interview.

A cover letter is one of the most important things you have to make in order to catch the attention of your potential employer. This means that the cover letter is the first actual contact you have to make with your potential employer. This is why impressing them with your cover letter is very important in order to earn that job interview you are waiting for.

However, what if you don’t have any idea on how to write a cover letter? What if you don’t know the correct format on writing it or what to mention in a cover letter? One great way to assist you in writing a cover letter is by downloading a cover letter template. A template can greatly assist you in writing your cover letter. It will include instructions on where to put what on the cover letter.

When you download the template you will see that there is a prewritten instruction in a form of a letter that you should follow.

The first thing you should consider in a cover letter is the heading. The head of the letter is located on top of your cover letter which will contain your name, address and contact numbers or emails.

The next thing you will see in a cover letter sample below the heading is the date. Obviously, you will put the date here on when you sent the letter. Below the date, about three spaces of the document, you will put the name of the person in charge in receiving the letter, or the human resources. Below that you will then put in the name of the company and below that, you will put in the address.

The next thing you have to do is write the body of the cover letter. A template will usually include a prewritten cover letter body to help you write your cover letter. It will usually mention what position you are interested in, where you saw the job description and that you are interested in applying for the job.

On the next paragraph, you will put in why the company should consider hiring you. Here, you will include your qualifications, one or two of your accomplishments in your previous career and a few of your experience. In this part of the letter, you will convince your potential employer on why you should be considered to work for their company.

The last part of the cover letter template will state that you want an interview. It is written in a polite way and it will also require you to put in your contact details such as your home phone number, your mobile phone number and/or your email address.

In the last part of the letter, you will put in your name, your signature and your current position in your current company.

Writing a cover letter is much simpler if you have a guide. A cover letter template will allow you to get a better idea on what to put in a cover letter. You can download these templates from the Internet and all you have to do is change some of the information in the cover letter template.

With a cover letter template, it will give you a much better idea on what to write and where to write it.

Jimmy Sweeney is the President of CareerJimmy and author of “Amazing Cover Letter Creator.” Visit him at: http://www.amazing-cover-letters.com for your “instant” cover letters today.

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When you’ve created a great resume, you need to have an excellent cover letter to send out with it. You may only have a few seconds of your reader’s attention to convince her that you’re a strong contender for the job you want and that it’s worth her time and trouble to read your application. You can impress a prospective employer by sending a letter that focusses on key information and makes it clear that you have the skills and experience that the position requires.

An effective cover letter is usually no longer than a page. A useful technique to help you write a tightly focussed letter is to draft a longer version and then pare it down to essentials:

• Your opening paragraph should state why you’re writing and refer to the specific position you wish to apply for.
• The body of the letter should identify how your skills and work history make you a great fit for the position. You also need to give evidence to substantiate your claims.
• The closing paragraph allows you to relate your letter to the resume that accompanies it and take the initiative to follow up.

Here are seven favorite tips for writing a succinct but attention grabbing letter:

1. Personalize it: address the letter to a specific person who has hiring responsibility. A generic salutation such as ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ conveys the impression of a mass mailing. If you don’t know the name of the hiring manager, why not call the company and make some discreet enquiries?
2. Put your compelling content first: as with your resume, it’s the section near the beginning of the letter that’s best placed to catch the eye. Don’t expect your reader to trawl through a series of paragraphs before reaching your most persuasive material. Excite interest by saying why you’re a good fit for the position, what value you can add to the company and giving appropriate evidence.
3. Make sure your letter passes the ’scan’ test: a busy HR department may have to deal with hundreds or even thousands of applications for a vacancy. Don’t hide your strongest qualifications and experience in densely worded paragraphs. Bullet points will help the reader absorb key information quickly.
4. Take the initiative to contact the employer after she’s received your resume and letter: give yourself the opportunity to remind the reader of your application later on — don’t allow a more proactive candidate to pip you to the post! Mention that you will call the office on a specific day and time to follow up.
5. Project a professional image: Use the same high grade paper and print quality for the letter as you used for the resume. Unless you’re applying in a field or industry where creativity is expected, choose a conservative style and layout. Black ink on white paper will photocopy well.
6. Check your spelling: even the most careful writers can sometimes slip up. Don’t torpedo your chances by letting spelling mistakes stay in your letter. Print your letter and check the hard copy — mistakes can be harder to spot on the computer monitor.
7. Proofread for style: a fluent and carefully composed letter showcases your professionalism. Check each paragraph for typos, errors of punctuation and wrongly used words. Even if your English is top-notch, a second pair of eyes can sometimes detect mistakes that you have missed.

Busy hiring managers are looking for quick ways to screen out applicants who don’t match their needs. You have a single but powerful chance to overcome this ’skepticism factor’ by instantly showing your potential value to the employer. Your cover letter delivers the first punch — the resume provides the knock-out!

Nigel Patterson is a business writer and publisher of http://1stClassResume.com

Visit his website for more tips and advice on writing an effective resume, working from sample cover letters, and preparing for a job interview.

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