With less face-to-face contact at the moment, Recruiters love a well written cover letter even more –  tailored to the role and partnering with the resume to tell the full story.  If you stick to the 3 Cs you won’t go too far wrong – they must be clear, they must be concise and they must be customised.

What to think about:

• Use a business format for your letter or email, spell check and proof read.
• Address it to the recruiter managing the assignment. Make sure you get their name right (I’ve had hundreds with the wrong name over 25 years) and that they can easily identify the role you’re applying for.
• Be realistic and accurate. A great first impression will be completely undone if it’s found to be untrue.
• Let the recruiter know why you are interested in the role.
• Customise to the position and outline how your strengths match the requirements.
• Be consistent with your resume. An obvious link to your resume consolidates the recruiter’s views, provides some validation and demonstrates clear thinking.
• Review the letter when you’ve finished and try to put yourself in the recruiter’s place – would you be impressed if you received it.

Some recruiters start with your resume, some with your cover letter so take the same care with both.

Good luck!