How to write a cover letter that is actually read

1. The hook. Name the role and the one fact that makes you a credible candidate. “I am applying for the warehouse planner role. I have spent four years planning shifts for a 90-person distribution site.”
2. The proof. One concrete story with a result. Choose the achievement closest to the advert’s main requirement.
3. The fit. Something specific about the employer — a product, a market, a way of working — and why it matches what you want next. One sentence of genuine research beats a paragraph of flattery.
4. The close. Availability and a plain invitation to talk.

• “I am writing to express my keen interest” — start with substance instead.
• Retelling your whole CV in prose.
• Adjectives about yourself with no evidence behind them.
• Apologies about missing requirements. Show the closest equivalent instead.

The letter is the right place for context the CV cannot carry. Explain a change of field in one forward-looking sentence: what transfers, and what you have already done to close the gap — a course, a side project, a volunteer role. For a career break, state the period plainly and move on. Employers care far more about what you can do now than about an uninterrupted timeline.

Keep paragraphs one and three variable and paragraphs two and four stable. That way each application takes ten minutes instead of an hour, and no employer receives a letter written for someone else. Always check the company name, the role title and the hiring manager’s name before sending.

Match the letter’s typeface to your CV, keep it to one page, and export as PDF. If you apply by email, put a two-line version in the message body and attach both files. If the advert names a reference number, include it in the subject line.