Cover letters are now on the back – most companies no longer require them. However, if it is otherwise, a well-prepared letter can be a ticket to the recruitment meeting for you. How to do it?
Each company has its own unique organizational culture. You work a little differently in different industries, just like you do in companies of different size, character or tradition. International corporations will be looking for other people, and native startups will be looking for others. Matching the letter to the expectations and needs of the company will increase your chances of an interview.
1. Understand the organizational culture of the company you are applying to
The first and most important step (which can also help you decide whether to send a CV at all) is to find out which company you apply for. What is its character, what are its values and goals, which people can such organization look for. Remember that there are fundamental differences between an international corporation and a small company that is just growing. Even such:
2. Corporation
The ability and willingness to work in accordance with procedures, ease of finding oneself in foreign cultures, openness and tolerance, resistance to monotonous tasks, but at the same time showing initiative. What matters is the ability to learn and acquire new competences, as well as openness to work after hours. People who are able to adapt to the rules are sought, having their own opinion, but not too rebellious.
3. A small family business
Loyalty, the ability to be in many positions, ambitions at a moderate level (senior positions will be taken by the family). Ability to think and make decisions independently.
4. Start-up
The price and willingness to act, the ability to perform several tasks at the same time, work with great commitment and “feeling of business”, initiative are included in the price. People with wide interests who are willing to devote themselves to work are welcome. Learning to learn is important.
The specificity of each company is visible on the website or in social media. If you see that the company focuses on creativity, you can afford a little bit of madness in the cover letter. If the company emphasizes that it focuses on tasks and results, underline how much you will be useful (e.g. over the past year I have increased my own productivity by about 10% by using online task management tools). If the company counts on openness to different cultures, emphasize the passion for travel. If the content is humorous, keep the letter similar.
5. Use keywords that are important to the business
Pay attention to what words the company uses – both in the recruitment announcement and on your company website and use them in the cover letter. This will create the impression that you speak with “one voice.”
6. Refer to the information on the company website
The company website is a mine of knowledge. You can find information about the company’s value, organizational culture, recent projects, achievements and plans. Use this knowledge to show that you know what your business is doing.
7. Highlight company values as important to you
Almost every company, and certainly a corporation, specifies such values on its website, implying that employees also profess them. Including them in your cover letter is straightforward. It is enough to emphasize that you follow them as part of your professional work. Do it in a way “in passing”. For example, if a company emphasizes that customer satisfaction is important to it, write clearly that when working for Customer Service you focus primarily on high quality service. Of course, this should be true, so it’s better to read the company’s values before applying. It may turn out that the company is not for you.
8. Use brand awareness
Are you looking for a job at a company that you have been a loyal consumer for years? Do you want to work for them because you value their products? Don’t write about it, just show it. Remember that modern technologies give you a lot of possibilities – you can place photos of several of your shirts with a visible label, take a photo in the kitchen, when you prepare a dish based on the ingredients of a given company, against the background of the store where you want to work or make a collage of all comments you posted on the company’s fanpage over the past year. You have plenty of possibilities – only your imagination limits you. Remember that everything that shows your commitment to the brand, especially in large corporations, is of great importance.
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