Drafting a cover letter. How to write a cover letter for documents

Those who at least once encountered the job search process most likely paid attention to the “add a cover letter” item. Most often, job seekers ignore this opportunity, not realizing how much the presence of such an add-on can increase the applicant's chances of getting the desired position. But how to write a letter correctly? How to make the employer pay attention to your candidacy?

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To write or not to write

To write or not to write a cover letter is everyone's business. But before making a choice, it is better to find out more about what it is for, and whether employers pay attention to such additions.

Firstly, a cover letter is an addition to a resume that can create your image more correctly, it helps to reveal your abilities and emphasize the fact that this or that company needs an employee like you.

Unfortunately, practice shows that more than half of applicants neglect the opportunity to make a more favorable impression. Sometimes we are simply so unsure of ourselves that we cannot correctly represent our advantages, for fear of coming across as a braggart and a fabricator.

Approximately 30% of Russians actively use this option, believing that some addition to the resume will increase their chances of filling a particular position. And, it should be noted, they are absolutely right. This opinion is absolutely justified, since the data is taken from surveys of both novice recruiters and experienced headhunters.

Hiring professionals look for resumes that provide the most information before meeting the respondent. This helps them to weed out not quite right before the interview. the right people, and thereby save time, which, as everyone knows, is priceless.

Personnel officers pay attention to individuals who are able, no matter how rude it may sound, to sell themselves. They believe that a person who is able to declare himself as a professional, able to attract attention, and convince of his innocence, will be able to adequately represent the company on the market.

What’s more, among the several thousand HR officers interviewed, more than 600 responded that they don’t even look at applications without emails attached to them.

It should be noted that this trend appeared several years ago, and earlier it was present only in the Western labor market. Now, our specialists have gained experience and learned how to optimize their time and appreciate their work.

A potential employee also gets rid of the need to attend absolutely all interviews, even in those places in which he obviously does not fit.

Learn to value yourself and your time!

What do employers in Russia think about it?

As mentioned above, modern hr managers positive attitude towards cover letters. This is especially true for those positions that involve sales and direct communication with people.

Of course, there are also “old school” personnel officers who may consider a cover letter to be bragging, but, most likely, such people will not be kept in reputable companies. And why do you exchange for frivolous organizations?

Given the rampant fashion for training, coaching, and the similar species personally and professional development, it can be assumed that in a year or two, all employers will completely turn their attention to the presence of additional support.

If you plan to build a career and achieve high results, you need to learn how to write letters correctly. We will talk about how to do this next.

Choosing a writing style

The first thing to understand is compliance business style and having a sense of proportion when writing a cover letter. Praise yourself, of course, you need. But this must be done in such a way that the potential employer draws the necessary conclusions about you on their own.

Even if you have a hidden (or even obvious) writing talent, put it off until the end of the application process. You should also not use complex turns, ask rhetorical questions, and create intrigue, such as: “I know how to sell snow ... in winter ... to an Eskimo! Do you want to know my secret? No no and one more time no. No one will appreciate such humor, and it is really very easy to take it for boasting and arrogance.

Of course, having received such a letter, the recruiter may want to see you with his own eyes, but not in order to get a mysterious recipe for selling snow, but in order to put you in your place. Yes, yes, and it happens.

Cover letter structure

We figured out the main purpose of writing a cover letter - it is to attract attention and cause a desire to continue communication.

Let's figure out how to properly structure a letter so that you want to read it to the end, which will significantly increase your chances of success.

What NOT to do:

Tell jokes. Do not try to poison jokes or write comments with emoticons. This is terrible and inappropriate.
Describe the pages of your life that have nothing to do with the desired position. Even if you carry things to a shelter and take kittens from a tree, do not write this in your cover letter.
Use slang expressions and obscene language.
Offend the previous boss and the team. Phrases like: “I quit my previous job because I couldn’t work under the supervision of a boor, a tyrant, and a dumbass” will put you in an unfavorable light, but not the ex-boss.
Jump from topic to topic, destroying the logic of presentation.

So, we figured out what to avoid. It's time to consider an example of a good cover letter. It should consist of:

Greetings, for which it is better to choose the forms “good morning / afternoon / time of day”.
An indication of the person who is represented in the vacancy as a manager or person responsible for personnel. For example: "Good afternoon, Sergey Stanislavovich."
Link to the place where you found out about the vacancy: “on the site job.ru it says that you are looking for the head of the sales department.” If you send a request not by e-mail, but use the services official portals, there is no need to point out the obvious.
Let's get to the heart of the matter. In two or three sentences, we tell why we so want to work for this particular company. Attention! Not in this position, but in this company. In order to formulate everything correctly, find out something about the enterprise that you intend to become a part of. For example: “I would like (a) to become a part of your company / firm / holding, because I like your approach to making sales / attracting customers, etc. I consider it the most effective and actively used it (I want to use it) in my work.”
We describe our advantages without copying everything directly from the resume. It is better to write: "I am suitable for this position because I have a successful experience with these systems / I have ideas for business development and improvement of results."
Contrary to stereotypes, you should not describe your ambitions and "Napoleonic" plans, unless of course you are asked about it.
Eliminate excuses. If you were fired or out of work for some period of time, do not pay attention to this.
Forget about templates from the category: “I am easily trained (a), I am plasticine, sculpt anything out of me” or “I am stress-resistant (a) and punctual (a)”. It's trite and just annoying for people who have to read it every day. Have pity on them.
In the final part, express your readiness to answer any questions by phone, e-mail, or a personal meeting. After these words, indicate all contacts. But what if they are listed on the resume? It's okay, business etiquette requires contact information in the letter.

Design rules

You need to format a cover letter the same way as any business correspondence:

Let's just say that honesty is good. But count on the fact that the headhunter sheds tears from the phrase: "I have no experience, but I will do my best to learn."

Yes, you may not have the right experience, you may have just graduated from high school. This is not a reason to despair, but you should not relax either. You need to be ready for any work, at least theoretically. Research everything you can about the position and be sure to mention sources in your cover letter.

I have no formal experience in this area, but I worked remotely in order to see the scheme of work “from the inside”. Attending trainings, and, moreover, having certificates, will be a plus, so do not forget to mention them.

Give reasonable praise for the company's approach, such as: "I like that you are using the total immersion in the process of learning languages. I consider this technique one of the most effective and would be happy to test all my knowledge in practice.

Finishing touches

After the text is typed, be sure to check the spelling, no matter what position you apply for. Being illiterate is not good.
Walk through all mandatory items. Is everything in place?
Check the spelling of your email address and phone number.
Align the margins and choose the appropriate font. It is better to give preference to the classics: Times New Roman, size 12.

In the US and Europe, it is customary to send cover letters along with resumes. In Russia, this trend is only gaining momentum.

Transmittal letter intended to convey to the employer some useful information, which is inappropriate to write as part of a resume.

Not writing a cover letter at all is bad form. Imagine yourself in the place of an employer or HR- manager. Would you rather receive blank emails with a resume attached, or personalized emails? In which you are addressed by your first name and patronymic, indicate that your company is interesting ... It seems that any person would choose the second option.

Therefore, those who still write such letters win. But in order to accurately win against the background of other candidates, you need to know how to write a cover letter correctly.

Sometimes a cover letter can play a very positive role. For example, the vacancy indicates the need for work experience of at least 1 year. And you do not have this experience, but you meet the rest of the requirements. A well-written cover letter is likely to make you want to look at your candidacy.

Stick to a specific cover letter outline.

In the subject line of the email, indicate the specific position for which you are applying. For example: "Resume for the position of sales manager."
You should start with a greeting. Moreover, it should be addressed preferably to a specific person. Read the job description carefully - as a rule, the name and patronymic of the HR manager are indicated there. Example: "Good afternoon, Maria Gennadievna!". If it so happens that you cannot find out the name and patronymic of the person to whom you are sending your resume, then write in the subject line of the letter “To the HR manager of the company *** - resume for the position of sales manager”. And in the greeting, write simply "Hello!" or "Good afternoon!".
Write how you heard about the job. This can be done as follows: “I found out about the vacancy for a sales manager in your company on the site ***. I think that you will be interested in my candidacy, so I am sending you my resume.”
Next, briefly describe your experience in a similar position. If not, you should write why you think you are a good fit for the job. Example: “I have no experience as a sales manager, but I have all the necessary qualities that will allow me to quickly learn this job: attentiveness, communication skills ...”.
Let me know that you are interested in this particular company and this particular field of activity. For example: “I am very interested in getting a job in sales. Your company is in an excellent position in the market, so I would like to work in it.”
Please include your contact information, in particular your phone number. You can also specify what time you can be called.

Remember the most important thing - the letter should be individual for each company to which you send a resume. Therefore, you should be careful not to confuse the names and patronymics of HR specialists from different companies, job titles and other information. And even more so, it is unacceptable to do mass mailing to several email addresses at once.

Cover letter style

Of course, your cover letter should be written in a business style, without colloquial words, and, moreover, profanity. Since you are supposed to be referring to specific person, the word "You" and its derivatives must be written with capital letter. Grammar, spelling and punctuation errors are not allowed. Check everything once again, because few people will like an illiterate letter, and your resume may not even be opened. It is best to let another person read your letter, perhaps he will point out what can or needs to be corrected.

Do not shorten the words: this is an email, not a paper one. But the length of the letter should not be too long, half an A4 page in Word format - this will suffice.

You should not write in a "mandatory" style, such as: "You must consider my resume, I am an excellent specialist."

Content of the letter: what to write and what not to write

Absolutely you should not write about the reasons for leaving former place work and any conflicts with superiors and colleagues. An example of how not to write: “I was very interested in your company. At my last job, my boss did not appreciate my efforts, I hope I will be able to build a career in your company ... ”.

If you list your personal qualities, you do not need to do it in a stereotyped way. There are thousands of responsible, goal-oriented young professionals like you, with an active life position, focused on results. Better come up with something more original (within reason), but true. Maybe your forte is the ability to find mutual language with people, good memory, politeness.

You do not need to write about your hobbies, as well as in the resume itself. It's too much.

Never write that your dream is to fly up career ladder. You need to be humble: write that your skills will be useful to the company.

Before you provide your contact details, you can write about your desire to be interviewed and tell us more about yourself.

Cover letter example

Hello, Ksenia Sergeevna!

From the site *** I learned that your bank has a vacancy for a loan officer. I believe that my candidacy may interest you.

I have no experience as a loan officer, but I have previously worked in the banking sector as a teller. I understand the specifics of working in a bank and my ability to fast learning will allow me to cope with the work of a loan officer.

I would like to develop in the banking sector. Your bank is one of the largest and most successful banks, so I am interested in working in it.

I think that my skills can be useful to your bank. I am enclosing my resume. I am willing to be interviewed to tell more about myself.

My contact number is ***, you can call me from 9 am to 9 pm.

Video

Check out this helpful video.

A cover letter for documents performs several useful functions. Let's look at how to compose it, and also show sample cover letters for various business situations.

The main functions of a cover letter are confirmation, recommendation and explanatory.

The list given in the letter allows you to certify the sending of exactly those documents that are indicated in it. Clear instructions and recommendations will indicate what to do with each document received, for example, acknowledge receipt, stamp the signature and send back, inform, etc. Explanations will help to understand the contents of the letter, for example, in the case of sending an updated tax return to the inspectorate.

Sample cover letter download

How to write a cover letter for documents

There is no set format for a cover letter. You can use the general structure of business letters.

A cover letter form may consist of a header, title, body text, a mark with the number of attachments, and a final part with details.

Write a cover letter for letterhead organization and write the date when it was compiled and the registration number.

In the header on the left, indicate the addressee company, as well as the position, full name of the person to whom you are sending the letter.

Make a headline. Main text start with courtesy to the addressee. Observe the ethics of communication, do not allow familiarity. List the documents to be transferred and their details, give the addressee instructions with explanations on how to deal with each received document. If you give any explanations, clearly describe their essence and, if necessary, provide calculations.

If you delegated the execution of the assignment referred to in the letter to another employee, indicate his full name, position and contact details so that the addressee can easily find him for interaction.