Do you have a career, or are you one of those great number of people looking for a job? Your ‘job search’ will soon end if you only know the basics to a good application. When you apply for any job, you would need to submit a resume along with a cover letter. The cover letter serves as an introduction to the resume.

Upon submission of your resume and cover letter, your first interaction with the prospective employer takes place. Your cover letter will be your sure-fire ticket to an interview or a telephone call.

Professionalism is the fundamental factor to success. You have to make sure that you got all things right, from the name of the company, the employer, to the letters structure, design and copy.

How you actually present your credentials will determine your competitive edge; the letter itself will outline all your skills/experiences that will set your separately from other job applicants. You have to establish what your abilities are; and as to how these abilities will benefit the company.

You need to capture the employer’s attention starting on the first paragraph. Tell how you learned about the opening, and you can even name drop to make your letter more personalized. Write as if you’re having a conversation with the employer.

To further understand how to write a good cover letter, here are the do’s and don’ts:

Do’s

- address a specified employer on the letter salutation
- know the position you are applying and the company
- sell yourself in the right manner
- use action verbs and marketing words to make an impact
- seek help from a professional when writing your letter
- use a professional and formal format
- consider the use of bullets, bold highlights
- check for typos and misspelled words
- thank the employer for reading your letter
- double check names, titles, company address
- write a letter that is original
- use quantifiable examples

Don’ts

- assume any detail regarding the employer’s gender
- start with a dull introduction
- re-use resume information
- use clich

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Free cover letter samples are the secret weapon that many savvy job-seekers use to help them give their resume an extra boost and steal a march on the competition. If you’re getting ready to apply for a new position, you may have used resume examples for ideas in preparing your own application. But did you know that many professional resume writers also publish sample cover letters?

What’s So Important About A Cover Letter?

First impressions count for a lot when you’re competing for a vacancy that’s attracted a lot of popular attention. When you’ve created a powerful resume, you’ll want to ensure that it has the best chance of being noticed by your targeted employers. Your resume’s job is to land you the interview — but the purpose of the cover letter is to attract the right attention that gets your resume read in the first place!

Imagine for a moment what it must be like to be a HR staff member whose job is to screen a large batch of applications. You have to produce a long list of suitably qualified candidates out of whom interviewees will be selected. Not only will you have to deal quickly and efficiently with the sheer bulk of the paperwork — you’ll also probably be looking for applicants who match specific criteria.

An effective cover letter must therefore:

• address the criteria the employer sets to meet particular needs
• communicate this essential information quickly and persuasively

How To Use Cover Letter Samples

One of the biggest secrets to success in your job application is to put yourself in the employer’s position. By considering the requirements of the hiring company, you’ll have a much better idea of how to target your skills to their needs. Cover letter samples show you how focus on key information such as:

• why you are writing and what position you wish to apply for
• whether you’ve been referred by a friend or professional acquaintance known to the hirer
• the reasons you are a great fit for the job
• what aspects of your experience and skills best match the job criteria
• what you will do to follow up on your application

You can see these tactics in action in a good cover letter from almost any industry of profession, not just your own. The psychology of appealing to the needs of any prospective employer doesn’t usually change.

Free cover letter samples allow you to ‘pick the brains’ of other successful writers to see how they make an employer’s job easier by anticipating their needs and problems. They’re a great way to discover the self-marketing secrets essential to your job hunting strategy.

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

Visit his site for more tips on writing cover letters, information on building a great resume and preparing for a job interview.

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Looking for a job is not that easy especially if competition for the spot is heavy. However, if your chances to be interviewed would be increased then it could help you to get the job. The question is what would be the best thing to do to get an interview. Well, the best advice would be to write a good cover letter.

Cover letters is the summary of your education, skills, accomplishments, and trainings which matches the job that you are applying for at a certain company. It serves as a direct guide to the employer in knowing your credentials that matches the qualifications that was given. There are different examples of cover letters written for different reasons and purposes.

1. Cover letters that states your career objectives, relevant trainings, and it replies to the company’s research. It must contain excellent explanations regarding your accomplishments that can immediately catch your employer’s attention. Skills must be bulleted to help your employer in reading your cover letter faster.

2. Cover letter which answers an advertisement. This must excellently present your work experiences related to the position that you are applying for.

3. Cover letter using the name dropping technique. Your application can easily get your employer’s attention by using the name of an important person respected and liked by your employer. This is a nice proactive method to be selected for an interview, however always makes follow-ups especially if you have stated it in your cover letter.

4. Cover letter that asks a question. This is an effective format if you can combine it well with the name dropping technique, and enthusiastic, alive discussions of your experience and skills.

5. Cover letter that presents a market letter or canvassing. This will attract your employer’s interest since your skills are well presented, in a manner which focuses on teamwork, positive work attitudes, and good customer service.

These cover letter examples are rated good if it is composed of three to five paragraphs written as a short essay telling about your good qualifications that matches directly to the job. Remember that the first paragraph talks about the position and reasons why you are applying and it catches the attention of the employer. The body contains the theme or objectives that are supported by definite examples regarding your qualifications. The end summarizes your cover letter by requesting for an interview and giving your contact information. General rules should be followed to write any examples of the cover letters effectively.

- Make use of either a block or a standard format of writing. But block format is more preferred since all the texts starts from the left margin which is easier to remember.

- Don’t forget that the letter is single space while spaces between paragraphs are double space.

- It is important that the contents are relevant and brief and it must be laser printed on a bond paper with good quality as much as possible.

- Make sure that the letter is patterned on the company and the position you have applied for. It shows how you are going to be an asset on achieving the goals of the company.

- Above all, carefully proofread your cover letter and check for misspelled words and errors on grammars. Any mistakes will greatly affect your application.

Learning about effective cover letter writing will guarantee you to get an interview and later on the job that you have applied for.

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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