13 Feb Why You Need a Cover Letter, Even if You Are Told You Don’t

I am currently hiring at MobileCause, so I’m reviewing lots of resumes. But that’s it. I’m only seeing a resume. Nothing else.

And I can’t help but wonder, “Where are the cover letters?”

It used to be unheard of to send a resume without a cover letter. Now, many professionals look at the cover letter as an optional tool when applying for a job.

I was perplexed by the lack of cover letters and said so to our HR Director who, thankfully, has been conducting the initial review of candidates. She responded that many recruiters don’t look at cover letters, so they recommend not including them.

Why you need a cover letter

Well, I can tell you, as a hiring manager, I LOVE me a good cover letter.

Why?

I can learn a lot about a candidate from their cover letter. And, without one, I’m often left with unanswered questions. What happens if I have unanswered questions? I drop the candidate from consideration. I simply don’t have time to find the answers to my questions, so I move on to the next candidate.

In my current search, I received resumes from candidates in North Carolina and San Diego for a position that clearly stated it was in Los Angeles. Were these candidates hoping to work remotely? Were they already planning a move to Los Angeles and job hunting proactively? Or maybe they are unable to properly read a map. I don’t know the answers to these questions, because they didn’t include a cover letter explaining it.

Another candidate submitted a resume that showed he hadn’t been employed in almost a year. This seemed like a red flag. I wondered if he was unemployable. Maybe he is selective in where/who he works for? Perhaps he had a major health crisis? As it turns out, there was a reasonable explanation for the employment gap. He took a year off to travel the world.

Now, I can certainly get behind a travel sabbatical, but without a cover letter letting me know, I would have moved on to the next resume because it was a big unanswered question (in this case our HR Director did the digging to find the answer.)

A good cover letter lets me know the candidate better. A good cover letter enables me to learn why a candidate is a good fit for the role, what experience they have that makes them qualified, what results they’ve previously achieved to know they can be successful in the role, and how they understand my challenges better than any other candidate.

Think a cover letter won’t have an impact on getting an interview? Think again! I once went to a networking event where the Founder and CEO of a high-profile company I had interviewed with was the guest speaker. At the end of the event I introduced myself and reminded her I had interviewed with her company. She remembered me by my cover letter. How do I know? She said, “You had the best cover letter I’ve ever read.” Based on that comment, I’m confident my cover letter was the primary reason I got the interview.

Why a Cover Letter is So Important

Cover letters can play a key role in the hiring process in several important ways:

• Showcases Why You are Perfect for the Job: a good cover letter connects the dots between the key points of a job description and your resume. Don’t make the recruiter or hiring manager work to connect the dots. Spell it out for them! Take the time to highlight a few key aspects of the job description and then provide examples of what you’ve done that is exactly in line with the responsibilities of the position.
• Demonstrates Results: just as your resume shouldn’t be a list of job responsibilities, neither should your cover letter. Include in your cover letter results or key metrics that demonstrate your successes. The hiring manager wants to know that you will produce results if she hires you. Give her what she’s looking for in your cover letter. If the job description says you’ll be responsible for SEO, include in your resume how you increased your employer’s site rankings and drove traffic to their website. Applying for a sales position? Include your results and their impact on your organization. Bonus points if the success metrics in your cover letter are not also on your resume.
• Conveys You Understand the Challenges: the hiring manager has a problem he needs to solve. He has objectives to achieve and he’s short on resources. Convince him you are going to help solve his problem and you’ll get the job! A cover letter can often hammer this point better than a resume because you can write a narrative about it, rather simply supplying a summary of your experience. Let him know you understand the challenges of his industry, company, or department and why you understand them. Want to get my attention? Include in your cover letter something like, “Having been a volunteer fundraiser the last several years, I understand the challenges nonprofits face trying to gain and retain donors.”
• Answers Head-Scratcher Questions: if, at first glance, there is something about your resume that doesn’t seem like a fit with the job description, use the cover letter to explain why you are submitting your resume anyway. As mentioned above, use the cover letter to explain why you are applying for a position outside the city in which you live. Or why you have been out of work for an extended period. Or why, perhaps, none of the titles on your resume are even remotely close to what they are looking for, but as a volunteer you’ve performed the responsibilities.
• Demonstrates You are Serious About the Job: anyone can click “apply” and attach their resume or LinkedIn profile. To me, that’s the equivalent of a spam application. I can apply for 60 jobs in an hour by clicking “apply” and attaching my resume or a link to it. On the other hand, it might take those same 60 minutes to write a good cover letter, so I only do it for jobs I am really interested in and qualified for. And you know what? It tells the hiring manager just that, you are really interested. If you “spam” me with an application, I’m not sure where you land on your interest level. With just a resume submitted, I can’t tell the difference between, “that’s my dream job” and “ah, whatever, I’ll give it a shot.” A cover letter makes it clear where you stand on the position and company.

The cover letter is a great opportunity to demonstrate your interest in the position, sell yourself and show how you are going to shine in the roll if hired. If someone tells you you don’t need to include one, don’t listen to them. Even if not every recruiter and hiring manager looks at it, it will make a difference to the ones who do. Take the time to craft a strong cover letter and stand out from the other applicants. It could be the difference from getting placed in the “pass on this candidate” pile and getting the job!

For more assistance on writing a great cover letter, check out my posts “How To Write a Cover Letter That Grabs Attention” and “5 Creative Cover Letter Openings with Example Sentences” and download a copy of my free ebook Your Complete Guide to Cover Letters.