Crafting your communications.
Cover letters and thank you notes are great ways to show respect and appreciation toward the interviewer and their company. They also raise you a step above applicants who simply submit a resume and part with a handshake. We’ve provided a sample cover letter and thank you note to assist you in writing your own during your job search. You’ll also find some helpful advice on crafting your own correspondence.
Sample Cover Letter (pdf file)
Sample Thank-You Note (pdf file)

Steps in Writing Cover Letters
Use a standard business letter format. That means your name/address/phone(s) and e-mail address appear at the top, followed by the date of the letter, the recipient’s name and address, and finally the body of the letter. Separate each of these with an extra hard return.

Consider avoiding the salutation "Dear…" Although this is still widely accepted, some find it a bit awkward to be addressed as "Dear" by a complete stranger. It is not inappropriate to simply put "Ms. Jamison:" or "Mr. Franklin:" before the main body.

State the position you’re submitting a resume for right away. Recruiters receive hundreds of resumes daily. This saves time and ensures that the right person sees your qualifications. After identifying the position, use a strong single-sentence statement that communicates that you have exactly what they seek. If the ad requires five years of experience and you have only three, then use a generality such as "highly experienced." Finish the opening paragraph with a brief statement that states why you’re applying for this job. This isn’t a time to communicate that you’re unhappy in your current position or would like to increase your salary. Your statement should show what attracts you to their organization or what specifically about the ad caught your attention.

Highlight your experience. Next you should note your most recent experience that qualifies you for this position. If your experience isn’t a direct parallel, you’ll want to connect your experience to the job requirements. For example, if you haven’t coordinated and planned corporate trips, but you’ve done event planning you could say, "coordinated corporate events including locating and booking hotel/meeting rooms, catering, and logistics." Although this isn’t exactly the same as planning and arranging corporate travel, you’ll certainly establish yourself as someone who has the skills.
Include at least one specific example of a particular project or responsibility you had, along with the measurable results of your work. This gives you credibility in your assertions that you’re qualified and provides the employer with a better idea of what value you can bring to the table. Be sure that you have numerical statistics for this, i.e. "reduced travel expenses by 15% and $34,000," or "increased sales revenue in the Southeast Division by 28% in 6 months."

Summarize your skills. Use high-impact, descriptive adjectives that accurately tell an employer the strengths you bring to the table: "polished, detail-oriented, self-motivated, creative, intuitive," etc. Be sure to communicate what’s in it for them should they hire you.

Sum it all up. Conclude the letter with a statement that reiterates your interest, as well as how to best reach you.

Add your signature. If you’re snail mailing the letter, be sure to sign it.

General Tips for Writing Cover Letters
Limit the letter to one full page. The trick in writing a cover letter is finding a balance between being genuinely informative, yet courteously concise. Remember that the object here is to catch an employer’s attention by illustrating parallels between your experience and the job requirements.

Spotlight your strengths. If you’re responding to an ad that has few clues about what the employer wants, then illustrate those strengths that are most typical to that position. If it’s a sales position, focus on your previous sales experience. If you don’t have previous sales experience, focus on skills you have that would make you successful in a sales role, (i.e. communication skills, self-motivated, energetic, customer-service oriented.)

Hold back. There’s NO appropriate time to tell your sad story about your mean boss or current hostile work environment. Leave out your current employer’s failure to fulfill on promises or promote you to CEO. Although they may truthfully explain why you’re job hunting, they’re best shared only with your close friends. In your cover letter, focus instead on what specifically attracted you to this opportunity.

Double-check for spelling and grammar errors. Don’t rely solely on your word processing software to do this. Often these programs bypass errors that in another context would be correct.

Advice for Writing Thank You Letters
Send a thank you letter to any one who interviewed you. In addition to thanking the interviewer for their time, there’s an opportunity for you to reiterate your interest, summarize your qualifications and communicate specific aspects of the position that most appeal to you.

Hand-write your thank you note. If you choose to pen the letter, be sure to use a high quality and professional paper stock, preferably blank white or ivory folded note cards with matching envelopes. Crane’s is a well-recognized firm that makes classic stationery. You can find their products in stationery stores or on their web site at http://www.crane.com. Be sure to write carefully and legibly with black ink.

Type your note. If you’re not comfortable sending a handwritten note, then a business note written in the same format as your cover letter is acceptable. Realize, however, that it lacks the personal sincerity of a hand-penned note.

E-mail your note. If you know that the employer is looking to make a hiring decision within the next few days then you should probably rely on e-mail. If you don’t have the interviewer’s e-mail address on a business card, call the company’s main number and ask the receptionist for it. Send the communication immediately.

Keep the note brief. Reiterate your interest and qualifications and how you will be able to contribute to the company. Say something like “I just wanted to reiterate my interest in ABC Company’s opportunity. I feel my background and experience could really make a contribution to launching your marketing plan in Los Angeles.”

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