A client was drafting a cover letter for a particular job that had been recommended by a contact.  There was no ad, no posting, so there wasn’t much to go on for writing a cover letter.  Nevertheless he created the draft and, predictably, it was pretty ho-hum and without much detail.

Before sending the letter we decided to do some research.  We put the job title and company name into Google.  Voila!  We hit a mother-lode of matches.  We found some old postings that had a lot of detail about the job description and requirements.  Now we had the information we needed to write a great cover letter.

Our letter listed the requirements we found, using a bullet for each one.  Opposite each of these bullets we created another bullet describing his qualifications on that topic.  The left column was labeled, “Your Requirements,” and the right column was labeled, “My Qualifications.”  We added short opening and closing paragraphs putting the finishing touches on a letter that made a great case for calling him in for an interview.

If we had not hit the mark with Google, my next option was to use job boards to find postings of similar titles in competing companies.  I am confident this would have worked quite well too.

Cover letters may, or may not, get read.  But, if you are going to take the time to write one, assume it will get read and, do your best to make it a winner.

Almost every client I work with asks this question about the right way to follow up with recruiters.  They don’t want to be a pest, but they know they shouldn’t just wait by the phone for a call.

So, once a recruiter has your resume, how should you follow up?

Initial follow-up should happen immediately after you send your resume, or post it to the recruiter’s website.  Before you sent or posted the resume, you should have done your best to ID the recruiter within the firm who specializes in your area.  Now, call that person.  If you can’t figure it out on your own, call the main number and ask to be transferred to the right person.

When you reach the person, DON’T say, “I’ve sent / posted my resume.  Have you seen it?”  Recruiters bristle at that approach because it puts them on the spot.  And, immediately,  DO reference any mutual friends, clients, etc. you have in common.

Make the main thrust of the call about whether you have connected with the right recruiter and how she works with candidates.  To figure out if you are talking to the right person, you have to give your background, but keep it to a maximum of 30 seconds at this point.  Once you establish you are talking to the right person you will find out if there are any active searches going on that are a match for you.  If “yes”, you are likely to suddenly be in a full-fledged screening interview, so be ready.

If “no”, you want to start talking about how to work together over the coming weeks.  You can start the conversation with something like, “I haven’t worked with you [your firm] before.  How do you work with candidates?”  You’re trying to find out more about their processes–do they use a database, how often do they purge resumes, can you only be involved in one search at a time through their firm, do they share resumes across all company offices, how / how often would they like to hear from you, etc.?

As to the last point, some will say, “I’ll call you if we have something.”  But, most will say, “Drop me an email, or call, every [X]  weeks so we can give each other a status update.”  Once you have gotten the answer, the anguish about when to follow up is gone.

But, let’s say you have posted your resume and tried your best, but failed, to talk with a recruiter.  Here is what I suggest:

1. Put this recruiting firm’s name on a list that you will show to people in your future networking meetings and ask if anyone has a connection and will make an introduction,
2. Better yet, send an email to everybody in your network you have been in contact with during the search and ask the question [1. above], and
3. Renew you posting on the recruiter’s website at least once each 90 days.

The bottom-line goal is to establish a relationship, then let your new recruiter friend define what is the right amount of follow-up.

Cover letters should make an impact–a positive one of course. 

When sending a cover letter and resume by email, combine them into one file and attach them to the email.  The body of the email itself need only be a very short reference to the attachment.  This technique:

1. increases the chances of the cover letter being read,
2. makes it convenient for your reader [having only one document to open], and
3. ensures the resume and letter stay together.

Keep your letters short, never more than a comfortable page.  Put your purpose for writing in the very first sentence–and stick to your purpose.  If you have two or more distinct purposes in writing to your reader, you are better off writing a separate email or letter for each.

When answering an ad or Internet posting which notes several requirements, organize your cover letter so there is a crisp, concise comparison between the requirements of the job and your qualifications.  In other words, do most of the work for the recruiter.  Believe me, it will get noticed and give the recruiter a high opinion of you–before even glancing at your resume. 

You can see in illustration below how formatting the letter with the job’s requirements on the left and your qualifications immediately opposite makes it a piece of cake for the recruiter to see what a superb match you are.  He’ll be leaking water in his haste to read your resume.

Another cool touch to add to an electronic cover letter / resume combination is a series of hyperlinks internal to the document.  For example, you could make a link from a statement you make in your letter to a relevant section you have bookmarked in your resume.  Bang!  The recruiter is reading details on your experience and accomplishments regarding a subject of great interest.  Put a return-to-letter hyperlink nearby in the resume and, bang!, he’s back where he left off.  This is easy to do.  Go to Help in MS Word and look up Bookmark.

If you are going to write a letter, write with impact!

When I talk to recruiters their reaction to cover letters is luke warm at best, but that isn’t a reason for not doing one when it’s an option.  Take on the challenge and make yours stand apart from the rest.

At a minimum cover letters give you a chance to show you can put a sentence together, spell, organize your thoughts and express yourself clearly.  These are valuable skills in most jobs today.  But, cover letters can do more, much more.  They can bring up or expand on points not adequately covered in your resume.  And they give you a chance to underscore your knowledge of the hiring party’s particular industry or company

But, be careful!  A poor job on the letter will get your resume thrown in the dung heap without a glance.  So, proofread carefully.  And, if you have any doubts about how well your letter will come across, have someone else read it before you send it.