Most cover letters take a one size fits all approach. I’ve heard it said that in order to know when you see a great piece of art you’ve had to look at 1,000 bad ones and I’ve seen the worst of the worst cover letters.

The ones that stick out were ones that were customized and you had a sense that the person sat down and actually put some thought to it.

I’m a big fan of customizing cover letters and resumes depending on the opportunity because there are relevant experiences in your background that are applicable to one position and not another. The goal is to pull the relevant experience out and bring it to the forefront.

A few things to consider when writing a cover letter:

• Most Cover Letters and Resumes are “scanned” by the hiring manager.  They’ll spend less than 15 seconds on it so time and efficiency are key
  • Please keep white space and avoid long paragraphs. Bullet points are shown to be read more than a paragraph style.  The shorter and more to the point the better

• The goal of a cover letter is to bring out your most relevant experience and how it pertains to the position you’re applying for.
  • The BEST way to make an impact is to cut and paste the key points of the description and requirements then add bullet points on how you meet those.
  • Add specific, quantifiable achievements.
    •  How much did you increase sales?
    • What percentage did you save the company?

Remember the S’s!   Short, Sweet, Specific