Cover Letter Magic Trade Secrets of Professional Resume
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FM 11/5/03 4:58 PM Page i Cover Letter Second Magic Edition Trade Secrets of Professional Resume Writers Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark FM 11/5/03 4:58 PM Page ii Cover Letter Magic, Second Edition © 2004 by Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark Published by JIST Works, an imprint of JIST Publishing, Inc. 8902 Otis Avenue Indianapolis, IN 46216-1033 Phone: 1-800-648-JIST Fax: 1-800-JIST-FAX E-mail: [email protected] Visit our Web site at www.jist.com for information on JIST, free job search tips, book chap- ters, and how to order our many products! Quantity discounts are available for JIST books. Please call our Sales Department at 1-800-648-5478 for a free catalog and more information. Acquisitions and Development Editor: Lori Cates Hand Series Editor: Susan Britton Whitcomb Cover Designer: Aleata Howard Interior Designer: designLab, Seattle Page Layout: Trudy Coler Proofreaders: Gayle Johnson, Jeanne Clark Indexer: Tina Trettin Printed in the United States of America 07 06 05 04 03 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Enelow, Wendy S. Cover letter magic / Wendy S. Enelow and Louise M. Kursmark.-- 2nd ed. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 1-56370-986-4 1. Cover letters. I. Kursmark, Louise. II. Title. HF5383.E4787 2004 650.14'2--dc22 2003023186 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in articles or reviews. Making copies of any part of this book for any purpose other than your own personal use is a violation of United States copyright laws. We have been careful to provide accurate information in this book, but it is possible that errors and omissions have been introduced. Please consider this in making any career plans or other important decisions. Trust your own judgment above all else and in all things. Trademarks: All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks, or registered trademarks of their respective owners. ISBN 1-56370-986-4 FM 11/5/03 4:58 PM Page iii Contents Introduction . .vii The Cover Letter Is How It All Starts . .vii How This Book Is Organized . .ix A Short History of Cover Letters and Their Evolution . .xi The Purpose and Objectives of a Cover Letter . .xii The Importance of Cover Letters in Your Winning Job Search Campaign . .xv The Rules: There Aren’t Any! . .xvi Part I: Creating and Distributing Your Cover Letter...........................................1 Chapter 1 Cover Letter Formats and Types for Every Situation . .3 Cover Letter Formats . .5 The 10 Types of Cover Letters . .9 Chapter 2 Preparing to Write . .43 Six Steps to Better Cover Letters . .43 Step 1: Identify Your Key Selling Points . .44 Chapter 3 Writing Your Cover Letters . .67 Step 2: Pre-Plan . .68 Step 3: Write the Opening Paragraph . .71 Step 4: Write the Body . .94 Step 5: Write the Closing . .97 Step 6: Polish, Proofread, and Finalize . .110 Chapter 4 The Anatomy of a Winning Electronic Cover Letter (Plus Electronic Resume Tips) . .117 Electronic Cover Letters . .118 Electronic and Scannable Resumes . .122 Chapter 5 Cover Letter Presentation . .125 Developing Winning Visual Presentations . .125 Design Considerations . .126 FM 11/5/03 4:58 PM Page iv iv Cover Letter Magic Chapter 6 Answers to Common Cover Letter Questions— and Tips to Help You Beat the Odds . .135 Frequently Asked Cover Letter and Resume Questions . .136 Using Your PC in Your Job Search . .145 Distributing Your Resumes and Cover Letters . .150 Managing the Paperwork and the Job Search Process . .154 Part II: Sample Cover Letters.........................................159 Chapter 7 Before-and-After Cover Letter Transformations . .161 How to Use the Samples . .162 Chapter 8 Winning Cover Letters for Blue-Collar and Trades Positions . .179 The Top 5 Cover Letter–Writing Tips for Blue-Collar and Trades Positions . .179 Chapter 9 Winning Cover Letters for Young Professionals/ New Graduates . .189 The Top 5 Cover Letter–Writing Tips for Young Professionals/New Graduates . .189 Chapter 10 Winning Cover Letters for Mid-Career Professionals . .213 Top 5 Cover Letter–Writing Tips for Mid-Career Professionals . .213 Chapter 11 Winning Cover Letters for Senior Managers and Executives . .241 Top 5 Cover Letter–Writing Tips for Senior Managers and Executives . .241 Chapter 12 Winning Cover Letters for Technical and Scientific Professionals . .267 Top 5 Cover Letter–Writing Tips for Technical and Scientific Professionals . .267 FM 11/5/03 4:58 PM Page v Contents v Chapter 13 Winning Cover Letters for Career Changers . .281 Top 5 Cover Letter–Writing Tips for Career Changers . .281 Part III: The Total Job Search: Thank-You Letters, Recruiters, and Resumes..........................................................295 Chapter 14 Winning Thank-You Letters . .297 How Thank-You Letters Can Help You Land a Job . .299 Frequently Asked Questions About Thank-You Letters . .302 Thank-You Letter Checklist . .303 One Final Recommendation . .304 Sample Thank-You Letters . .305 Chapter 15 Cover Letter Tips and Techniques from Recruiters . .311 Advice from the Recruiters . .311 Key Points to Remember . .323 Chapter 16 Winning Resume Strategies . .325 Resume Strategy . .326 Resume Writing . .330 Resume Presentation . .338 Recommended Resume Formats . .340 Magical Tips on Resume Writing . .358 Part IV: Appendixes....................................................363 Appendix A Using Keywords to Win in Your Job Search . .365 What Are Keywords, and Where Did They Come From? . .366 What Is All This Talk About Keywords and Scanning? . .367 FM 11/5/03 4:58 PM Page vi vi Cover Letter Magic How Do I Use Keywords in My Cover Letters? . .368 Which Keywords Are Right for Me, My Profession, and My Industry? . .370 Appendix B Action Verbs for Cover Letters . .387 Appendix C Recommended Job Search and Career Web Sites . .389 Job Search Sites . .390 Company Information . .397 Dictionaries and Glossaries . .398 Interviewing Tips and Techniques . .399 Salary and Compensation Information . .400 Appendix D Index of Contributors . .401 Index . .409 Intro 11/5/03 4:59 PM Page vii Introduction vii Introduction The Cover Letter Is How It All Starts Whether you’re selling yourself for a new position or proposing a new book, product, service, or advertising campaign, you begin with a cover let- ter. You write a letter in an attempt to generate interest, enthusiasm, and action from your reader. That is precisely what we did to interest JIST in publishing this book. And, see, it worked! Q rvqr 8h rr Hhr Dvr Q rvqr 7r D rv 8h rr Tr vpr Dp ( Pyq Thiyr Shq Gpui t W6 !#$" ('#& 8hhyh Xq 8 8vpvhv PC #$!#! Qur) '#"'%" Ah) '#"'%"! Qur) $ "&(!" Ah) $ "&(!(% rqrry5pvvrp GF5 irv rvp ! "#$ %$&% ' () * &+ ! ,! !++ !- -!( R- / - +! !--!!0 ! ,!0M2/! !!-2 ! ! !! (R 0- +! % ! + -/++ !2 3 !!2!! !- !++ +- ! !! ! +!/+/( 4+2/ 52 !4!! ) * !- +! !6!!0- - %7( * ! 2 !!! !! !,! !( 8! !2 + ! 2+!! !-/' "! ( * ! !39*:32!2!9+*; 33 :!<3!3! ; 33 :33 ; ! /+! - !!2!/( 3!+ - +! 7/ +- ! - ,! ! +0( = !!!2!!! ! !- +0 2!+!( ! /!- !!!! !!>- 0 - !! /!2!&! !(R2!!- - /!-!-0( / */(=!- 39* 33 33 = ! vii Intro 11/5/03 4:59 PM Page viii viii Cover Letter Magic Your job search is no different. You have a commodity to sell—yourself—and you must approach your search campaign just as you would any other sales or marketing campaign. You begin by identifying the key features and ben- efits of that product (you!) and then work to develop a resume and cover letter that clearly communicate those specific points. It’s that easy, yet that complex. In this book, we focus almost exclusively on cover letter writing, although we do include a brief, yet solid introduction to resume writing in chapter 16, “Winning Resume Strategies.” Although you might think that writing job search materials is all the same, the difference between writing resumes and writing cover letters is dramatic. They are two entirely different docu- ments, each with its own structure, strategy, and agenda. Tip If you have not yet written your resume, are having trouble with one section, are questioning the wording that you used, or are uncertain about its overall effectiveness, we recommend that you pick up Résumé Magic, the companion to this book, by Susan Britton Whitcomb, CCMC, CCM, NCRW, CPRW. Susan’s book is one of the most comprehensive resources we’ve ever seen. It covers virtually every topic imaginable related to resume development, strategy, writing, and production. No matter how obscure your questions are, you will find the answers in Résumé Magic. Consider the following. When you’re writing your resume, you’re writing a document that you hope to use over and over, for almost every job search opportunity, advertisement, or referral. Of course, at times you might have to modify your resume a bit, and in some situations you might have two or three different versions (depending on your objectives). The bottom line, however, is that you are writing a single document that gives a broad-based overview of your entire career. The cover letter process is entirely different from resume writing. Almost every time you write a cover letter, you are writing a unique letter to a specific person for a particular reason and with a unique message. That process, in and of itself, requires that you tailor your letters to each individ- ual situation. Intro 11/5/03 4:59 PM Page ix Introduction ix Tip To optimize the impact of your cover letters and the response that they generate, you must be willing to invest the time and energy to create customized letters that sell you for a specific opportunity. Anything less will reduce your chances of capturing your reader’s attention and being offered the opportunity for an interview.