Customer Service Cover Letter

Your cover letter is the first port of call for any employer looking for new employees, so it needs to be brilliant. Did you know that if your cover letter isn’t good enough, employers won’t even look at your resume? You could have all the experience in the world, but without a good cover letter, you won’t even get a look in.

I’ve identified five of the most common reasons why your cover letter isn’t getting you a job interview, and I’ll tell you what they are and how to fix them now.

1. Your letter looks unprofessional. Resist the temptation to use funky fonts, pretty colours or, god forbid, pictures. While these will get you noticed, it won’t be in the way that you were hoping. Your cover letter (and job prospects) will be on a one way trip to the bin. Use a simple font like Times New Roman or Arial, in 10 or 12. Only use black ink. Let your experience sell you, not your artistic efforts.

2. While we’re on the appearance of your letter, one of the most common mistakes people make is spelling, grammar and presentation. Make sure you know how to spell the words you’re using (or use a spellchecker) and make sure you know what they mean. It’s all well and good to use long, impressive words – but you’ll look stupid if it comes out that you have no idea what they mean. Get someone else to read over your final product before you send it off to help pick up any mistakes you may have missed.

3. Another common mistake people make with cover letters is that they just regurgitate their resume. Pick and choose one or two key roles that you have had in the past that you think will make you stand out, and stick to those. If your employer wants to know more, they will go to your resume for the details. A cover letter needs to be succinct and to the point, not a rambling diary of all the jobs you’ve had over the past ten years.

4. Don’t be too generic. Surprise the employer with a bit of knowledge about their company – Google is your friend here. Make it known why you want to work for them – even if this is just a stop-gap job for you, don’t let them know that. Treat every job and cover letter as though it’s the career path you’ve been shooting for your whole life, and make them believe it.

5. Finally, the last mistake that people commonly make is being too modest. The job market is no place for modesty, it’s highly competitive and if you don’t sing your praises, no one else will do it for you. Make your strengths known – you know what they are. Make your personality shine through in the letter and be confident in your abilities