You must have a cover letter. More than 80% of recruiters surveyed by the Society for Human Resources say cover letters are a necessity. A bad one is worse than none. A good one can set you apart from the crowd.
But can a letter based on only free cover letter samples deliver that for you? Are you willing to depend on it?
Read on for a couple of quick tactics that will mark you as a find:
1. The envelope matters for two reasons. It’s well known in direct marketing circles that postal carriers sometimes throw away letters to lighten their load, especially if they think the letter is junk mail. I know it’s outrageous, but it happens and not just rarely. You can track how it impacts delivery rates. Second, you don’t want the hiring manager to get a letter from you that looks like one of 200 you’ve just mailed, even if it is.
A gummed white label is a give away for a mass mailing. Direct mailers have found that increased open rates for individually hand-addressed envelopes justifies the expense of hiring people to address envelopes. If you want the recipient to believe your resume and cover letter are specifically for her, hand address the envelope.
Always use live stamps instead of post office indicia – the ink stamps post offices use with time, date, and cost. Postal workers are less likely to throw away your hard written job application as junk mail. And it won’t look like a mass mailing to the hiring manager.
Change up the envelope size. Try a 9×13 envelope so you can mail your cover letter flat and unfolded. Take advantage of the extra “real estate” on the front cover to write a compelling message such as “The information you requested is enclosed…” Of course, hand-write the message.
2. Study ad copy. Free cover letter samples are often written by English majors but not professional copywriters. Professional copywriters are some of the highest paid people in the writing profession. Why? Because their words must move people to action. Their clients aren’t looking for poetic descriptions of products, they want words that sell. Copywriters aren’t afraid to use emotional language, strong imagery, bold claims, and hot-button phrases like easy, fast, and now.
The next time you’re at the grocery pick up the tabloids, the Globe or the Enquirer. Skip the story about Brad Pitt’s alien love child and go straight to the ads. Pay attention to how few words they use to get right to what interests you. Now take a look at your cover letter. You are the product. Is it worthy of a hot property like you? Look, everyone applying for the job you want is copying the SAME free cover letter samples you’re searching for. Don’t do it.
