How to Structure An Eye Catching Cover Letter

Tim ‘Bear’ Sauers
3 min readJun 6, 2022

Unity Log, Star Date: -300572.56608320656 (June 6, 2022 Time MDT 00:19:16)

Remembering that the whole reason to write and include a cover letter is to Get the recruiter or hiring manager excited about reading your resume! So what does it take to create a cover letter that is eye catching and exciting to read?

The key elements that are required for a good cover letter are:

  1. Your Information: Name, Address, Phone Number,
  2. Date of Your Letter.
  3. Company Info: Including Company Name, Hiring/Recruiting individuals Name, Company Address where the individual is located.
  4. Greeting, Dear (Hiring Individuals Name) (To Whom it May Concern is acceptable but use it only if you are unable to find the person who will be the one to review your resume.
  5. The Letter Body: Paragraph 1 should be a summary of the position you are applying for and why you are the ideal candidate. You should always give the job title you are applying about, not a generalized name like “the software engineer position”.
  6. Paragraph 2–3 should highlight your skills, describing how you are the ideal candidate because of the skills and experience you have. Don’t copy your skills directly from your resume, but list them and show how they match up to the hiring company’s job. This is also where you can describe how thing you have done in the past make you a perfect fit for their job.
  7. Paragraph 4 is your closing. Here you want to mention the best way for you to be reached. Thank them for their time and consideration and that you look forward to hearing back from them soon.
  8. Closing: This is where your “Sincerely, Signature and Your Name” are added. Traditionally, including your signature might be old school, but it shows you took the extra time to understand classic letter writing.

When using the more stylized version of Cover Letter remember:

Less is More. Do not go font crazy, the best way to stylize is to match the format of your resumé with layout and fonts used.

Keep your letter to 1 page. White space is your friend.

Proofread! Proofread! Proofread! and after you have done so, get someone else to proofread it as well!

If you follow these simple guidelines you will end up with a cover letter certain to catch their eye.

--

--

Tim ‘Bear’ Sauers

At 62 I have been many things in my lifetime. I chose to learn Software Development in an effort to stay relevant for the 21st Century.