Keeping Your Resume Out Of File 13

Contributed by Jay Schroyer

Have you ever been to a restaurant where they served filet mignon with caramelized onions on a paper plate with plastic utensils? Or have you ever ordered a twenty-year-old scotch and have it brought to you in a cracked, dirty glass? Then why on earth would you send a prospective employer your sparkling resume with a tarnished, worn out cover letter?

Too many well-qualified resume submissions have ended up in the garbage because of poorly written or inappropriate cover letters. Your cover letter is your introduction, your handshake, and bait for a potential employer. Without ever meeting you and completely unaware of your physical presence or personality, an employer will judge your character and potential worth to his or her business by what you have, or have not, included in your cover letter.

Keeping a few key points in mind when creating your cover letter may give you the edge over your competition. The employment process is time-consuming for not only yourself, but employers as well, so the less time they have to spend fishing through a stack of resumes the better. Do them, and yourself, a favor by keeping these suggestions close at hand.

Don't Recycle
Recycling is great…for bottles and cans, but not for cover letters! Just because one letter got you an interview at some point doesn't mean that it will always be an effective means of receiving a favorable first impression. It may seem like you're reinventing the wheel, but time changes everything. What was appropriate in a cover letter from six months ago may not be applicable any longer. Perhaps you've taken a few classes since then or maybe your outlook has changed on certain views. Always start fresh and in the moment.

Cater & Tailor
Make your cover letter specific for the company or job position you are applying for. If they're looking for an "energetic self-starter with vast experience in Microsoft and Adobe® software applications" you had better make sure that your cover letter states that you are not only an energetic self-starter, but a computer genius with experience in every platform and application known to the business world. Include personal and work experience that aids to legitimize your claim that you are indeed the best person for the job. "But I already included all of that information in my resume," you say. Make it easy for the employer to hire you. Give them a summary of your resume in the cover letter with the specific points that apply to the job description. Remember, you are possibly one of fifty resumes that they are currently looking at. Make your cover letter shout that you're the chosen one.

Bullets
They're not just for guns anymore! Feel free to use easy-to-read bulleted lists to draw out very specific skills that apply to the job position. For example, if it's a graphic design position and calls for Photoshop® and Illustrator® knowledge, make it obvious with a list:

• 5 years Adobe Photoshop experience
• 4 years Adobe Illustrator experience
• Did I mention I have Adobe experience? Well, you get the idea.

Feel free to include this list right in the body of the letter. Follow the tenets of basic business writing: be brief, always concise, and error-free.

Mind Your Manners
As always, be courteous and research your addressee. One phone call or a simple look at a company web site will help you avoid gender address errors and any other sources of embarrassment. Please and thank you are always a good idea. Follow standard business letter writing format with return address, date, salutation, and closing. Also, don't forget to note at the end of the letter that there is an enclosure such as a resume or list of references. Sometimes even the most codependent documents get separated.

Brush Up
It's becoming harder and harder to find a business office that doesn't utilize all or parts of the Microsoft Office suite. Outlook® is generally used for e-mail communication, Word and Publisher for document processing, PowerPoint® for presentations, and Excel® for financials and other mathematical applications. It never hurts to brush up on your skills using Microsoft Office software training or the online version. You don't want your cover letter to say that you can do one thing, but when it comes time to deliver, you can't. A little fib is always a big lie. Don't make promises you can't keep.

E-mail or Snail Mail
I was always convinced that when I e-mailed a cover letter and resume to an open job position, it landed into the inbox of an overworked human resources supervisor never to be opened or read and simply dragged to the virtual recycle bin. So, I tried snail mail thinking that my document would have a little more longevity. Then I realized that my manila envelope was simply landing on the cluttered desk next to the computer of the overworked human resources supervisor who would then simply place it into the real recycling bin. So what's my point? The point is that I don't believe that either form of communication is better or worse for resume submission. It's always a crapshoot. The only thing that you do have control over is whether or not your cover letter is worth reading once it is accessed electronically or through hard copy.

Jobs are scarce and employees are picky. Hiring can be a touchy, time-consuming process and the less a business has to do, the better. If you can't sell yourself in the cover letter by highlighting your experience and aligning your skills with the requirements of the vacancy, the odds of your resume being viewed are slim to none.

Adobe, Illustrator and Photoshop are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated. Microsoft, Outlook, PowerPoint and Excel are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

About the Author:
Jay Schroyer has worked in the client and customer service end of business for over five years in retail, advertising, and printing. He holds a bachelor's and master's degree in English writing and communication.