The cover letter is a much-feared part of the job application process, particularly in the communications industry. When you are applying for jobs that focus on timely, professional communication, you must position yourself as a strong, capable candidate. By giving an appropriate amount of time and attention to your resume letter, you can ensure that it is an accurate representation of your skills.
In the communications and media industry, a cover letter is more than a personal introduction; it also serves as a professional writing sample. As such, your letter should be the best possible example of the way you communicate in a professional environment.
Conventional job-hunting wisdom states that you should rewrite your cover letter for each job you apply for. In a tough economy, however, a job search may include more than 20 applications. According to a recent story from Yahoo News, consumer confidence is up regarding the job outlook, but the economy has a long way to go before it reaches pre-recession levels. To avoid spending an undue amount of time on rewrites, you can use organizational strategies that minimize wasted time.
In many cases, the amount of rewriting you do will depend on the types of companies and jobs you are applying for. The easiest way to reduce rewrites is to group your target job descriptions into categories. Each category should contain jobs that have similar responsibilities, corporate cultures, communication styles, and levels of formality. Pay special attention to the communication style of each company; when you are applying for a media or communication job, it can be helpful to use a similar tone in your cover letter to create a sense of familiarity.
Write a cover letter for one company in each group, being careful to use the appropriate tone and style. Then, use that letter as a template for each of the other jobs in the same group. A category-specific template is particularly effective when it comes to writing descriptions of your media experience. Because your relevant experience will likely be the same for each job in a category, you can make small changes to the template instead of rewriting the section.
Even when you have basic letters for each category, it can be difficult to gauge the appropriate amount of rewriting that is necessary for each resume letter. In many cases, media and communications jobs are highly dependent on trends in the media, changes in consumer behavior, and other current events. Each letter should demonstrate that you have a solid understanding of the current media climate and how it affects your target company. A rewrite is not complete until the letter is personalized to show how you meet the needs of the company in question.
In most cases, each cover letter will take at least an hour to rewrite, not including the time it takes to create templates and research companies. By taking the time to craft individual, focused letters for each company, you can position yourself as a knowledgeable, desirable candidate.
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