TYPES OF COVER LETTERS

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

TYPES OF COVER LETTERS

Outlines types of cover letters needed to cover your resume and job search.
Teena Rose operates a prominent and professional resume writing service, Resume to Referral. She’s authored several career books, including "20-Minute Cover Letter Fixer" "How to Design, Write, and Compile a Quality Brag Book" and "Cracking the Code to Pharmaceutical Sales."

Throughout the years, cover letter writers have used different terminology for the types of cover letters. The names coined oftentimes mimic the purpose of the letter; i.e. cold-contact letter and follow-up letter.

No doubt, your job search will require separate letters that utilize different wordage depending upon the overall intent of the letter and in accordance with the recipient. It’s about pushing the right buttons that will provoke action — almost pressuring the reader to pick up the phone and make a call to you.

Here are select cover letters you may need throughout your job-search campaign:

COLD-CONTACT COVER LETTER
A letter sent to a company, which may not have publicly advertised open positions is called a cold-contact letter. You’re introducing yourself to the company with the hopes that your resume will arrive at an opportunistic time. With that, it may spark enough interest to result in a job interview. For obvious reasons, a cold-contact letter will generate the fewest leads. Your correspondence will be faced with too many obstacles, such as a strained hiring department, the potential that a position doesn’t exist for you, and possibly, your skill set doesn’t match their needs even if they’re hiring. A cold-contact letter is also known as an introductory or broadcast letter.

JOB-SPECIFIC COVER LETTER
The most promising cover letter to send is the one sent for an open position. The company is seeking a new recruit and you’re perfect for the position; therefore, you shoot off a letter that highlights the key mentionables of your career in relation to the company’s needs. A job-specific letter is also known as an ad-response letter.

REFERRAL COVER LETTER
Probably one of the best producers, a referral letter means that you’ve been referred to the company through a mutual acquaintance. It’s best to mention your referrer within the body of your letter, and preferably, place their name as prominently towards the top of the content as possible (first sentence would be great!). A referral letter is also known as a networking or sponsor letter. Since networking is still king when locating prime employment opportunities, a referral letter represents your best chances.

FOLLOW-UP COVER LETTER
A follow-up letter seems like a last ditch effort on the part of a jobseeker, but it can actually “make” your candidacy. Companies don’t always make hiring decisions when expected, so sending a follow-up letter a couple weeks after the submission of your original resume and cover letter or a few days after an interview can actually reflect your ambition and dedication to employers. In some cases making you a more viable option to employers. When sending a follow-up letter, list new and unique content whenever possible. Try not to regurgitate details contained in your original cover letter. Instead, expand upon details that put new angles or views on your work history. A follow-up letter could be referred to as a reintroduction or thank-you letter — although a thank-you letter is oftentimes only a few sentences, you could take a different approach by including 2-3 paragraphs instead.

The terminology may throw you, but their meanings aren’t a mystery. Be sure to utilize unique content regardless of which letter type you use. The one complaint that hiring managers have with jobseekers is that they oftentimes receive letters that are obviously, and sometimes blatantly, canned. When sending a letter, whether the content is canned or unique to the specific company and recipient, be sure that the reader is left with the impression that the letter was written specifically for him … no exceptions.