As the economy turns sour, job seekers are putting on their thinking caps and coming up with ever creative ways to get noticed in the job market. From renting billboards, to making themselves a walking resume, getting their potential bosses tipsy and even offering cash incentives, the game of employment has forever changed.
The real question is, are all these stunts and extreme job hunting strategies effective in getting the ultimate reward – The Job! Or will it damage your credibility in a way that you can never recover from even if you do get an initial interview?
Here are two simple tactics that will make your cover letter sing:
1. Don’t underestimate the value of typographic effects. Typographic elements are another feature often overlooked by cover letter writers. You can make your cover letter “read faster” by including all kinds of elements on the page – bullets, numbering, underlining, boldface, lines made of asterisks (Great for Johnson boxes. If you don’t know they are, look it up.), screens (boxes with light shading). Of course, you don’t over do it on one page. But strategic use of one or two devices can draw your reader in.
When you write a resume cover letter, there are several tips that you should keep in mind in order to make a great first impression. First, always make sure that you have reviewed the cover letter before mailing it to ensure that there are no spelling or grammar mistakes present. One of the worst things that you can do is send in a cover letter with typos, spelling errors or grammar mistakes.
In addition, you should always make sure that you greet the person to whom you are addressing the cover letter correctly. Never make the mistake of addressing the cover letter as ‘to whom it may concern’ or ‘dear sir or madam.’ Either of these salutations is a dead giveaway that you have not taken the time to do your research and most employers are looking for someone who will take initiative. So, help yourself stand out from the crowd by making sure that you take the time to research how you should address the cover letter.
The one thing that ties the extreme hunter winners from the losers is still holding true to traditional methods…..one of the most important of these is the Resume Cover Letter – how would you feel if I told you it might even be more important than the resume itself
Sinji Mikami presents the following posts
you may be able to access the difference in the form of a home equity loan or Home Equity Line of Credit.
Fixed Rate Home Equity Line of Credit – What are the Pros and Cons?
Home Equity Line of Credit vs. Second Mortgages