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Why your job application cover letter can be as important as your resume

he following article is written for job seekers and focuses on some common pitfalls to avoid that will help you submit an effective online job application / cover letter that captures attention and inspires interest. This article briefly covers:

  • Why you should view your cover letter or job application as being as important as your resume (or CV)
  • Pitfalls to watch out for when drafting your cover letter/ online job application
  • The cardinal rule for writing a good job application cover letter
  • How posting your resume online and linking to it in your online application can give you an advantage

Why you should view your cover letter or online job application as being as important as your resume

A lot of the time, your cover letter or online job application will typically be the first communication that the Recruiter/Job Advertiser will read, not your resume. The content of your communication and the manner of your expression in your cover letter/ job application will create an impression of you in the mind of the Recruiter. If you create a bad impression, the Recruiter most likely won’t view your resume. If you create a great impression, a Recruiter will almost certainly view your resume. Therefore, even if you have a great resume, it may never be viewed if you don’t take the necessary care in drafting you cover letter/ online job application.

Pitfalls to watch out for when drafting your cover letter/ online job application

Watch out for the following to avoid making a bad impression:

Spelling and grammatical errors  – Submitting a job application that has spelling and/or grammatical errors can be fatal to the success of your job application, because it indicates a lack of care and precision.  It is particularly easy to make spelling and grammatical errors when using an application with predictive text. Take the time to ensure that your job application is error free, because if you submit an application that contains errors, then it is possible that a busy Recruiter dealing with hundreds of applications could use this lack of care as a reason to dismiss your application.

Irrelevant information – Placing irrelevant information into your response can indicate that you have not understood the job description. This suggests that you either read the job description without comprehension, or possibly did not read the full job description. Neither of which would reflect well on you.  Include only relevant information in your job application.

Laziness – We have seen some people simply write in their application form “I need a job”. This is an extreme example of laziness but while you want to avoid writing too much, you also want to say enough to give the Recruiter a reason to want to learn more about you, instead of dismissing your application immediately without bothering to read your resume. Remember that recruiters are not desperate for applicants; they typically receive more applications than they can afford to review.

The cardinal rule for writing a good job application cover letter

Before you rush off to apply for a job that has captured your attention, first make sure that you understand the requirements of the job – the importance of this point cannot be overstated.  Having an understanding of the requirements of the job will enable you to extract the relevant skills, experience and qualities you possess that will be of interest to the Recruiter, and mark you out as a potential candidate for the job.

What if the job requirements are not explicitly stated?

If it is not immediately obvious what the requirements of the job are, then contact the Recruiter for the information. If no contact details are present, then do some research online.  If you found the job you are applying for on a jobsite, then visit the recruiters website to see if the job is listed there. You may find a more verbose description of the job on the recruiters website.

Alternatively, search similar jobs posted on various job sites by the same, or other recruiters to get a sense of what the requirements of the job are likely to be.

Always, write your cover letter / job application in terms of fulfilling the requirements of the job for which you are applying. Also, ask yourself the following question when providing information about your experience, skills, and qualities – Is the information that I am providing relevant to the requirements of the job? If the answer is no, leave it out.

How posting your resume online and linking to it can give you an advantage

Posting your resume online and linking to it in your online application makes your resume accessible with a single click of a mouse button. Making your resume quickly accessible to the Recruiter by placing a link to your resume in your job application / cover letter posted online increases the chance that the recruiter will view it, because access is instant unlike having to open an attachment. This potentially gives you a tremendous advantage if you’re a suitable qualified candidate for the job, because if the Recruiter views your resume and is persuaded that are you qualified and suitable, you may well be considered for inclusion on the short-list for the next stage of the process  – the interview. Recruiters want to fill the position with the right candidate as quickly as possible. Once they have enough suitable qualified candidates on their short-list, time is then diverted away from searching for more candidates to instead choosing the right candidate from the short-list. Being among the first to be considered for the advertised position increases your chances of reaching the interview short-list before cut-off.

Why india-job.net provides you with the best option for linking to your resume online

Many jobsites provide the option for you to add your resume to their online database for free. In most cases the display of your resume will be limited to Employers / Recruiters who pay to view it. Consequently, putting a link to your resume in you online job application will be of little value unless the Recruiter has access to the resume database of the jobsite on which your resume is listed.

Here at india-job.net we do it differently. A resume posted on india-job.net by you can be viewed by any Employer/Recruiter anytime, for free. This means that when you link your resume to your job applications, you know that the Recruiter receiving the link will always be able to view it. Posting a resume is easy and quick. There is a flexible template system that guides you through the process.  You can post your Resume on http://india-job.net/ for free. Try it Now!

Summary

The goal of writing a cover letter or completing a job application is to give Recruiters a reason to want to view your resume. Recruiters are busy people, you will probably only get one chance to make the right impression, so be sure to take the time and care to submit a brief well-drafted response that speaks to the requirements of the job. Make your Resume quickly accessible by posting it online, and pasting the link to it in your job application or cover letter submitted online.  Giving the Recruiter a quick click-option to view your Resume increases the chance that they will do so immediately, that may provided you with ‘first-in’ advantage to making the short-list. Posting your resume on this job-site ensures that anyone will be able to view it.

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