Resume Worded

Your cover letter checklist, this step by step checklist will guide you through the process of writing and optimizing your cover letter for a job., jump to a section, introduction, body paragraphs, final things, what you should know before you write your cover letter., what you should do, remember the goal of your cover letter.

Employers use cover letters to decide if you're a good fit for their company, beyond just the hard skills and experience (which is usually on your resume). Always keep this in mind as you write your cover letter - employers are looking for evidence of your soft skills, enthusiasm and personality - things they can't get out of your resume.

⭐️   Some employers care about cover letters a lot, while some ask for them but don't primarily use them for consideration. In all cases, however, a cover letter that shows enthusiasm and passion for the specific job can move an applicant from the maybe to the yes pile.

⭐️   Avoid fancy templates. A simple Word document is the standard format.

Don't just summarize your resume

Think about it. When employers ask for both a cover letter and a resume, they don't want one to just be a duplicate of the other in paragraph form!

⭐️   The number one rule of cover letters is that if you decide to send one, it needs to say something your resume doesn't. For example, you can write about how your interests/passion relate to the role - this is something that won't be on a resume.

⭐️   You can describe accomplishments you stated in your resume, as long as you use a unique angle. For example, if on your resume you wrote about running a workshop, you can use your cover letter to describe how running workshops have helped you developed specific skill sets that the job requires.

Address questions a recruiter might have about you

If you don't have the 'ideal' background for the role, your cover letter is your opportunity to explain why you're a good fit. For example, if you're underqualified, overqualified, or your experience is in a different industry (i.e. a career changer), the cover letter can be your way of showing a hiring manager that you're a good fit, although it isn't obvious just from your resume.

⭐️   If you have an usual background or you're changing careers, use the cover letter to explain how your current skills will translate into the new role.

Change your tone depending on the industry

Use a warm, conversational tone for most non-formal industries, e.g. technology companies, startups, hospitality, etc. For formal industries like banking/finance or legal, use a more formal tone.

⭐️   Personality is important when it comes to cover letters. Employers, particularly smaller companies, want to know if you're a good fit in terms of culture.

Sample Cover Letters

Professional cover letter samples that you can use as inspiration

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Here's how to start your cover letter..

If you can easily find the name of the hiring manager, address it to them directly. If you can't, 'Dear Hiring Manager," is totally fine.

⭐️   Don't assume a hiring manager's gender, so avoid using, "Dear Sir".

⭐️   Even "Dear Sir/Madam" or "To whom it may concern" are considered unnecessarily formal and outdated; stick to "Dear Hiring Manager" if you can't find a name.

Introduce who you are

In the first paragraph, quickly mention what position you're seeking. Examples: - I'm excited to apply for the X role. I'm confident that my background and expertise would serve Y well and leave a lasting impression in your ABC department. - I am excited to apply for the position of X at Y. - I've been following ABC Corp for years and recently saw that you're looking for an X to join the Y team. - It’s with great enthusiasm that I am applying to be your next X.

⭐️   Don't overthink the opening line, it doesn't need to be that creative!

⭐️   Don't say, "My name is…" - your name is already at the bottom of your resume!

⭐️   Use the job title that was used in the job posting

Mention how you found out about the opening (optional)

If you heard about the company/job in an interesting way (e. g. through a personal connection, networking event), include it here. For example: I recently attended the AcmeCorp Graduates Webinar, and I was thrilled when ABC’s CEO mentioned there was an opening for a project manager role on the Maps team. I believe this position is an excellent fit for my background and interests.

⭐️   If you found out about the posting on Indeed or while mass applying to jobs, that's fine too! You don't always have to have a creative story for applying to a company - just say you were excited to come across the opening.

⭐️   Try to show personality in your cover letter by using phrases like, "I'm excited" or "I was thrilled"

Use two to three paragraphs to discuss why you are a good fit for the role,

Why you why the industry why this company.

This is a common structure that you can optionally use when writing your cover letter. The most important is why you're a good fit for the role (why you?) while the next paragraph is

⭐️   This structure is just for guidance of areas you can cover.

⭐️   Example of how to tie in the company to your experiences: I am especially drawn by X's commitment to [something they're known for, e.g. working in small teams ] which would ensure [why it's important to you, e.g. significant responsibility and exposure to senior professionals early in my career. This commitment to ... is my central reason for applying. ]

Describe your accomplishments while weaving in your soft skills

Show, don't tell. Explain how you have demonstrated the soft skills the job/industry requires by using real examples from your experience. Avoid just saying "I have great attention to detail and exceptional communication skills." State specific examples which demonstrate this, whether that's writing up a 100 page report for the management team, presenting to key stakeholders, etc.

⭐️   Where possible, use numbers and metrics to make your accomplishments more impressive. Did you increase revenue? Decrease costs? Improve % efficiency?

⭐️   Avoid arrogant hyperboles, like "thought leader" or "expert"!

Personalize your skills to the job description

Review the job description and highlight keywords and skills that are clearly very important for the role and industry. Use them in your cover letter.

⭐️   Our Targeted Resume tool helps you identify keywords from the job description. It's built for resumes but the technology works equally well for cover letters too if you just need to enter the job description.

Your cover letter is not just about aligning your hard and soft skills to the job description. Describe also how your unique personal experiences align to the company's values and culture.

⭐️   Example: Resume Worded is a company that attains diversity at all levels – whether it is through its diverse clientele from a number of industries or through the global nature of its employees. My experiences in London, New York and Tokyo have increased my appreciation for such diversity reinforcing my belief that a career at Resume Worded will provide both the knowledge in a wide variety of fields and the opportunity to interact and work with people even more diverse than myself.

If you don't have experience, describe your transferrable skills

⭐️   Describe specific projects you worked on that require similar skill sets to the one this job requires.

Targeted Resume

Find important keywords in the job description

Here's the best way to end your cover letter.

Use a standard conclusion statement.

The conclusion is a simple one or two liner. Examples: "I'm confident that my skills and experience would be a great asset to ABC Corp, and I'd love to chat with you about the role in more detail. Thank you for your consideration, and I hope to hear from you soon." "I’d be thrilled with the opportunity to learn more about the role, and would love to talk to you about the contributions I can make at the ABC Corp. Thank you for your consideration, and I hope to hear from you soon."

⭐️   You can also briefly restate why you're a good fit for the role with an additional sentence (e.g. I'm confident that my passion for X and Y will make me a great addition to the Z team, or I'm confident my X and Y skills will allow me positively contribute to a project team at Z)

End the letter with your name and contact details

A simple signature works fine: " Sincerely, [Your name] +1 234 56789 [email protected] LinkedIn URL"

⭐️   A link to your LinkedIn profile is optional, but recommended

Before you send off your cover letter.

Keep your cover letters to around 200 - 300 words. Lengthy cover letters are less likely to be read.

⭐️   In terms of page length, keep it to 3/4 of a page to one page. Two pages is often too long (unless a longer cover letter is explicitly asked for)

No spelling or grammatical errors

Spelling errors are a strict no-no. Make sure you have triple-checked your spelling and grammar.

⭐️   Also ensure you have correctly spelled industry standard terminology.

Sufficiently personalized

We get it. Writing a unique cover letter for every single job can get pretty tedious. However, recruiters can easily tell when a cover letter isn't personalized at all, so you want to sufficiently personalize your cover letter to the position. That could be adding in a few sentences about the company's culture and how that relates to you, or highlight a few specific skills from the job description.

⭐️   Here are two tests to figure out if your cover letter is sufficiently personalized: 1) Can you swap out just the company's name for a totally different company and everything still fits? If so, it's probably too generic. And 2) Can you imagine other applicants sending the same letter? If so, it's likely not personalized enough to you.

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How to Write a Cover Letter in 2024 + Examples

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After weeks of heavy job search, you’re almost there!

You’ve perfected your resume. 

You’ve short-listed the coolest jobs you want to apply for.

You’ve even had a friend train you for every single interview question out there.

But then, before you can send your application and call it a day, you remember that the job ad requires a cover letter.

Now you’re stuck wondering how to write a cover letter ...

Don’t panic! We’ve got you covered. Writing a cover letter is a lot simpler than you might think. 

In this guide, we’re going to teach you how to write a cover letter that gets you the job you deserve.

  • What’s a cover letter & why it’s important for your job search
  • How to write a convincing cover letter that gets you the job (step-by-step!)
  • How to perfect your cover letter with the Novoresume free checklist
  • What excellent cover letter examples look like

New to cover letter writing? Give our resumes 101 video a watch before diving into the article!

So, let’s get started with the basics!

What is a Cover Letter? (and Why It’s Important)

A cover letter is a one-page document that you submit as part of your job application (alongside your CV or Resume). 

Its purpose is to introduce you and briefly summarize your professional background. On average, your cover letter should be from 250 to 400 words long .

A good cover letter can spark the HR manager’s interest and get them to read your resume. 

A bad cover letter, on the other hand, might mean that your application is going directly to the paper shredder. So, to make sure this doesn’t happen, it’s essential to know how to write a convincing cover letter.

How does a good cover letter look, you might ask. Well, here’s an example:

how to write cover letter

Keep in mind, though, that a cover letter is a supplement to your resume, not a replacement. Meaning, you don’t just repeat whatever is mentioned in your resume.

If you’re writing a cover letter for the first time, writing all this might seem pretty tough. After all, you’re probably not a professional writer.

The thing is, though, you don’t need to be creative, or even any good at writing. All you have to do is follow a tried-and-tested format:

  • Header - Input contact information
  • Greeting the hiring manager
  • Opening paragraph - Grab the reader’s attention with 2-3 of your top achievements
  • Second paragraph - Explain why you’re the perfect candidate for the job
  • Third paragraph - Explain why you’re a good match for the company
  • Formal closing

Or, here’s what this looks like in practice:

structure of a cover letter

How to Write the Perfect Cover Letter (And Get Hired!)

Now that we’ve got the basics out of the way, we’re going to guide you through the process of writing a cover letter step by step. 

Step #1 - Pick the Right Cover Letter Template

A good cover letter is all about leaving the right first impression.

So, what’s a better way to leave a good impression than a well-formatted, visual template?

cover letter templates

You can simply pick one of our hand-picked cover letter templates , and you’ll be all set in a jiffy!

As a bonus, our AI will even give you suggestions on how to improve your cover letter on the go.

Step #2 - Start the Cover Letter with a Header

As with a resume, it’s important to start your cover letter with a Contact Information section:

contact information on a cover letter

Here, you want to include all essential information, including:

  • Phone Number
  • Name of the hiring manager / their professional title
  • Name of the company you’re applying to

In certain cases, you might also consider adding:

  • Social Media Profiles - Any type of profile that’s relevant to your field. Social Profiles on websites like LinkedIn, GitHub (for developers), Medium (for writers), etc.
  • Personal Website - If you have a personal website that somehow adds value to your application, you can mention it. Let’s say you’re a professional writer. In that case, you’d want to link to your blog.

And here’s what you shouldn’t mention in your header:

  • Your Full Address 
  • Unprofessional Email - Make sure your email is presentable. It’s pretty hard for a hiring manager to take you seriously if your email address is “[email protected].” Whenever applying for jobs, stick to the “[first name] + [last name] @ email provider.com” format.

matching resume and cover letter

Step #3 - Greet the Hiring Manager

Once you’ve properly listed your contact information, you need to start writing the cover letter contents.

The first thing to do here is to address the cover letter to the hiring manager .

That’s right, the hiring manager! Not the overly popular “Dear Sir or Madam.” You want to show your future boss that you did your research and are really passionate about working with their team.

No one wants to hire a job seeker who just spams 20+ companies and hopes to get hired in any of them.

So, how do you find out who’s the hiring manager? There are several ways to do this. 

The simplest option is to look up the head of the relevant department on LinkedIn. Let’s say you’re applying for the position of a Communication Specialist at Novoresume. The hiring manager is probably Head of Communications or Chief Communications Office.

So, you do a quick lookup on LinkedIn:

linkedin search cco

And voila! You have your hiring manager.

Or let’s say you’re applying for the position of a server. In that case, you’d be looking for the “restaurant manager.”

If this doesn’t work, you can also check out the “Team” page on the company website; there’s a good chance you’ll at least find the right person there.

Here are several other greetings you could use:

  • Dear [Department] Hiring Manager
  • Dear Hiring Manager
  • To whom it may concern
  • Dear [Department] Team

Step #4 - Write an Attention-Grabbing Introduction

First impressions matter, especially when it comes to your job search.

Recruiters get hundreds, sometimes even thousands, of applications. Chances are, they’re not going to be reading every single cover letter end-to-end.

So, it’s essential to catch their attention from the very first paragraph .

The #1 problem we see with most cover letter opening paragraphs is that they’re usually extremely generic. Most of them look something like this..

  • Hey, my name is Jonathan and I’d like to work as a Sales Manager at XYZ Inc. I’ve worked as a sales manager at MadeUpCompany Inc. for 5+ years, so I believe that I’d be a good fit for the position.

See the issue here? This opening paragraph doesn’t say pretty much anything except the fact that you’ve worked the job before.

Do you know who else has similar work experience? All the other applicants you’re competing with.

Instead, you want to start off with 2-3 of your top achievements to really grab the reader’s attention. Preferably, the achievements should be as relevant as possible to the position.

So now, let’s make our previous example shine:

My name’s Michael and I’d like to help XYZ Inc. hit and exceed their sales goals as a Sales Manager. I’ve worked with Company X, a fin-tech company, for 3+ years. As a Sales Representative, I generated an average of $30,000+ in sales per month (beating the KPIs by around 40%). I believe that my previous industry experience, as well as excellence in sales, makes me the right candidate for the job.

See the difference between the two examples? If you were the hiring manager, which sales manager would you hire, Jonathan or Michael?

Now that we’ve covered the introduction, let’s talk about the body of your cover letter. This part is split into two paragraphs: the first is for explaining why you’re the perfect person for the job, and the latter is for proving that you’re a good fit for the company.

So, let’s get started...

Step #5 - Explain why you’re the perfect person for the job

This is where you show off your professional skills and convince the HR manager that you’re a better fit for the job than all the other applicants.

But first things first - before you even write anything, you need to learn what the most important requirements for the role are. So, open up the job ad and identify which of the responsibilities are the most critical.

For the sake of the example, let’s say you’re applying for the position of a Facebook Advertiser. You scan the job ad and see that the top requirements are:

  • Experience managing a Facebook ad budget of $10,000+ / month
  • Some skills in advertising on other platforms (Google Search + Twitter)
  • Excellent copywriting skills

Now, in this section, you need to discuss how you fulfill these requirements. So, here’s how that would look for our example:

In my previous role as a Facebook Marketing Expert at XYZ Inc. I handled customer acquisition through ads, managing a monthly Facebook ad budget of $20,000+ . As the sole digital marketer at the company, I managed the ad creation & management process end-to-end. Meaning, I created the ad copy , images, picked the targeting, ran optimization trials, and so on.

Other than Facebook advertising, I’ve also delved into other online PPC channels, including:

  • Google Search

Are you a student applying for your first internship? You probably don’t have a lot of work experience to show off in this section. Learn how to write an internship cover letter here.

Step #6 - Explain why you’re a good fit for the company

Once you’ve written the last paragraph, you might be thinking - I’m a shoo-in for the job! What else do I need to write? I’ll just wrap up the cover letter and hit that sweet SEND button.

Well, no. You’re not quite there yet.

The HR manager doesn’t only look at whether you’ll be good at the job or not. They’re looking for someone that’s also a good fit for the company culture.

After all, employees that don’t fit in are bound to quit, sooner or later. This ends up costing the company a ton of money, up to 50% of the employee’s annual salary . 

Meaning, you also need to convince the HR manager that you’re really passionate about working with them.

How do you do this? Well, as a start, you want to do some research about the company. You want to know things like:

  • What’s the company’s business model?
  • What’s the company product or service? Have you used it?
  • What’s the culture like? Will someone micro-manage your work, or will you have autonomy on how you get things done?

So, get to Googling. Chances are, you’ll find all the information you need either on the company website or somewhere around the web.

Then, you need to figure out what you like about the company and turn that into text.

Let’s say, for example, you’re passionate about their product and you like the culture of innovation / independent work in the organization.

You’d write something like:

I’ve personally used the XYZ Smartphone, and I believe that it’s the most innovative tech I’ve used in years. The features such as Made-Up-Feature #1 and Made-Up-Feature #2 were real game changers for the device. 

I really admire how Company XYZ thrives for excellence for all its product lines, creating market-leading tech. As someone that thrives in a self-driven environment, I truly believe that I and Company XYZ will be a great match.

What you don’t want to do here is be super generic for the sake of having something to write. Most job seekers tend to mess this one up. Let’s take a look at a very common example we tend to see (way too often):

I’d love to work for Company XYZ because of its culture of innovation. I believe that since I’m super creative, I’d be a good fit for the company. The company values of integrity and transparency really vibe with me.

See what’s wrong here? The example doesn’t really say anything about the company. “Culture of Innovation” is something most companies claim to have. 

The same goes for “values of integrity and transparency” - the writer just googled what the values for the organization are, and said that they like them.

Any hiring manager that reads this will see through the fluff.

So, make sure to do a lot of research and come up with good reasons why you're applying.

Step #7 - Wrap up with a call to action

Finally, it’s time to finish up your cover letter and write the conclusion.

In the final paragraph, you want to:

  • Wrap up any points you couldn't in the previous paragraphs. Do you have anything left to say? Any other information that could help the hiring manager make their decision? Mention it here.
  • Thank the hiring manager for their time. It never hurts to be courteous, as long as you don’t come off as too needy.
  • Finish the cover letter with a call to action. The very last sentence in your cover letter should be a call to action. You should ask the hiring manager to take some sort of action.

And now, let’s turn this into a practical example:

So to wrap it all up, thanks for looking into my application. I hope I can help Company X make the most out of their Facebook marketing initiatives. I'd love to further discuss how my previous success at XYZ Inc. can help you achieve your facebook marketing goals.

Step #8 - Use the right formal closing

Once you’re done with the final paragraph, all you have to do is write down a formal “goodbye” and you’re good to go.

Feel free to use one of the most popular conclusions to a cover letter:

  • Best Regards,
  • Kind Regards,

And we’re finally done! Before sending off the cover letter, make sure to proofread it with software like Grammarly, or maybe even get a friend to review it for you.

Does your cover letter heading include all essential information?

  • Professional email
  • Relevant Social Media Profiles

Do you address the right person? I.e. hiring manager in the company / your future direct supervisor

Does your introductory paragraph grab the reader's attention?

  • Did you mention 2-3 of your top achievements?
  • Did you use numbers and facts to back up your experience?

Do you successfully convey that you’re the right pro for the job?

  • Did you identify the core requirements?
  • Did you successfully convey how your experiences help you fit the requirements perfectly?

Do you convince the hiring manager that you’re passionate about the company you’re applying to?

  • Did you identify the top 3 things that you like about the company?
  • Did you avoid generic reasons for explaining your interest in the company?

Did you finalize the conclusion with a call to action?

Did you use the right formal closure for the cover letter?

5+ Cover Letter Examples

Need some inspiration? Read on to learn about some of the best cover letter examples we’ve seen (for different fields).

College Student Cover Letter Example

college or student cover letter example

Middle Management Cover Letter Example

Middle Management Cover Letter

Career Change Cover Letter Example

Career Change Cover Letter

Management Cover Letter Example

Management Cover Letter Example

Senior Executive Cover Letter Example

Senior Executive Cover Letter Example

Want to discover more examples AND learn what makes them stand out? Check out our guide to cover letter examples .

Next Steps in Your Job Search - Creating a Killer Resume

Your cover letter is only as good as your resume. If either one is weak, your entire application is for naught. 

After all, a cover letter is just an introduction. Imagine going through all this effort to leave an amazing first impression, but flopping at the end because of a mediocre resume.

...But don’t you worry, we’ve got you covered on that end, too.

If you want to learn more about Resumes & CVs, we have a dedicated FREE guide for that. Check out our complete guide on how to make a resume , as well as how to write a CV - our experts will teach you everything you need to know in order to land your dream job.

Or, if you’re already an expert, just pick one of our resume templates and get started.

resume examples for cover letter

Key Takeaways

Now that we’ve walked you through all the steps of writing a cover letter, let’s summarize everything we’ve learned:

  • A cover letter is a 250 - 400 word document that convinces the hiring manager of your competence
  • A cover letter goes in your job application alongside your resume
  • Your introduction to the cover letter should grab the hiring manager’s attention and keep it all the way until the conclusion
  • There are 2 main topics you need to include in your cover letter: why you’re the perfect candidate for the job & why you’re passionate about working in the company you’re applying to
  • Most of the content of your cover letter should be factual , without any fluff or generalizations

At Novorésumé, we’re committed to helping you get the job you deserve, every step of the way! Follow our blog to stay up to date with the industry-leading advice. Or, check out some of our top guides…

  • How to Write a Motivational Letter
  • How to Write a Resume with No Work Experience
  • Most Common Interview Questions and Answers

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  6. Cover Letter Template for Your Resume (Copy & Paste)">Free Cover Letter Template for Your Resume (Copy & Paste)

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    Address the hiring manager by name Here’s how the top half of your cover letter should look. After your header, include the date and the company contact information in this format: Cover Letter Address Format Name or job title of the person or team you’re writing to Company name