Covering letters give employers a good indication of the applicants' level of written communication skills. We at Lloyd Harrington realise how important, yet time consuming it is to write a separate cover letter for each application, and have devised a few helpful tips to make the task a little easier for you.

Outline for Cover Letter

• In the first paragraph it would be advantageous to make reference to the position and your interest. 
• The second paragraph should outline the answers to the advertisement and why you feel you would be a suitable candidate. 
• The third paragraph should expand on your specific achievements that highlight your suitability. 
• The final paragraph should confidently request a response with your contact details. 

Do :

• Write a personalised cover letter for each resume that you send out. 
• Make sure that the letter is concise and factual, keeping it to one side of an A4 page. 
• Detail what you can bring to the organisation you are applying to. 
• Refer to the job you are applying for, and address any key points that may have been highlighted in the job specification. 
• Show the research that you have done on the company that you are applying to. 
• Make sure that you are addressing the letter to the appropriate person, and that you have used the correct title and spelt the name correctly. 
• Get to the point! 

Don't :

• Send a standard letter to all companies that you are applying to. 
• Make any spelling errors or grammatical mistakes - this is a sure fire way for your letter and resume to end up in the garbage. 
• Assume that the covering letter is a waste of time. 
• Do not waffle - get to the point why you are worth interviewing 

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