Lesson 20 — Activity 1: Business Letter Format
Completion requirements
Lesson 20 — Activity 1: Business Letter
Format
After you have prepared a résumé, you are almost ready to go out and market yourself to employers everywhere. However, an employer may wonder why your résumé is on his desk if you do not include a cover letter when you submit it.
To meet an employer in person and hand in your résumé may be a great way to get a job, but many times that is not possible or practical. That is why cover letters work. A cover letter is a way of introducing yourself and your résumé to an employer when we cannot meet in person. It also lets the employer know that he or she should read your résumé and seriously consider hiring you for the job!
A cover letter is a type of business letter, so we need to know what a business letter should look like. We can use business letters for other purposes than writing a cover letter too. We can thank someone for something, complain about something, ask for something, and so on.
A typical business letter should look like this:
To meet an employer in person and hand in your résumé may be a great way to get a job, but many times that is not possible or practical. That is why cover letters work. A cover letter is a way of introducing yourself and your résumé to an employer when we cannot meet in person. It also lets the employer know that he or she should read your résumé and seriously consider hiring you for the job!
A cover letter is a type of business letter, so we need to know what a business letter should look like. We can use business letters for other purposes than writing a cover letter too. We can thank someone for something, complain about something, ask for something, and so on.
A typical business letter should look like this:
| Your Mailing Address (Do NOT place your name here on any business letter!)
Your Community, Your Province Your Postal Code The Date You Are Writing the Letter The Employer's Name — Find out exactly who you should send the letter to. The Employer's Position or Job Title The Name of the Business or Company The Street Address or Box Number The Community, The Province The Postal Code Dear Mr. <Employer's Last Name>: or Dear Ms. <Employer's Last Name>: Tell why you are writing the letter in the first paragraph. Indicate your purpose in writing the letter — you want to apply for a job, or you may want to order something, or you are requesting that some product be repaired, for example. In the second paragraph, explain the reasons the person you are writing to should consider your request. (In a cover letter, this is a summary of your strong qualities. In a letter of complaint, you may include the details about why your widget no longer performs satisfactorily.) In the third paragraph, include any other related information. (You may not need this paragraph). In your closing paragraph, thank the person for listening to what you have written and tell precisely what action you expect. You might indicate that you can be reached at a certain phone number in the case of a job application, or you might request a replacement of that widget in a letter of complaint, for example. Sincerely, Leave a space for your signature. (Hit your enter key four times.) Your Name |