The cover
letter / email

The question of sending a cover letter is truly at your discretion as some companies pay more attention to this than others. It really depends on the nature of the business and how CVs are screened internally.

Today a cover letter often comes in the form of an introduction email, and in our opinion one should never underestimate the strength of this as a sales tool. Cover letters / emails are often deemed old-fashioned. Nevertheless, it can be of particular importance if you do not necessarily fit entirely with the open vacancy; it is an opportunity to show your motivation and explain why you would be a good match, especially if this may not be immediately apparent from the CV.

It’s so easy to send CVs today, that you can even send them from your phone while doing your shopping and often people apply for a job without entirely realising to what they have applied, so sending an introduction cover letter / email that is written well can show just how motivated you are to get this job.

Creating your sales tool

• The cover letter / email should be clear and to the point.
• The actual letter / email should consist of three or four paragraphs. It should not be too long.
• It should not be a copy of what is in your CV, it should be more personal.
• Introduce yourself and make reference to the position you’re interested in; personalise it.
• Make sure that there are no grammatical or spelling errors on the letter / email.
• If a company requests a handwritten cover letter, ensure that it is handwritten (believe it or not, they can still ask for one).
• Give a brief description of and tailor your experience, adapting it to the job requirements.
• Make sure that it is clear to the employer why you would be a good match for the job, even if it is not apparent on the CV.
• It looks good to show that you have done research into the company; it’s important to show that you made the effort and this can be shown by indicating a particular person’s name.
• Ensure that your contact information can be easily found for the person to contact you.
• If you are applying to a job advertised on social media, ensure that you too apply online.

Would you like additional information on this subject? We would be delighted to give you a copy of our brochure “HELPING YOU GET THAT JOB”. We have compiled a guide of tips and advice to help our candidates through the recruitment process. This is available in both hard and soft copies. Please feel free to contact us at contact@dorecruit.com

PEOPLE DO MATTER