Ooh la la! Here are some of the nuts and bolts about how to re-target that fancy new resume and cover letter of yours.
You made it! Squee! Congratulations on a job well done.
You’re equipped with your hot new resume and/or cover letter. Now what?
We’d like to help you understand what to do and how to best leverage these documents. Here are some tips and tricks based on common questions we get from our clients.
Note: Anything on your cover letter or resume that are highlighted by a colored background or are in brackets (example: {job title}) are placeholders ONLY. You’ll need to replace that language and omit the brackets or highlight formatting.
How to Address the Cover Letter
Unless you have provided us with a job description that specifically details to whom to send the cover letter and resume, you’ll need to do some research.
We encourage you to give the target organization a call and ask them to whom you need to address the cover letter.
If you can’t reach anyone, then address the cover letter to the hiring manager. But this is a less effective alternative. It’s always better to have the name of the person making the decisions on your cover letter.
The Cover Letter Job Target Line
At the top of the cover letter, it might be a good idea to include your target job role using the specific language from the primary job description. Anything in brackets (example: {job title}) is to be replaced by language you fill in. The brackets should be erased as well. Example: Job Target: Retail Store Manager. Or, if the title you’re applying for already fits, you could simply use it. You might use the same title line as in your resume. Example: Sales & Marketing Director.
Throughout the letter, we include bracketed or highlighted sections. Again, these are for you to fill in the appropriate job role and organization.
All brackets should be erased before sending to a job target. All highlighting (colored background) should be omitted, as well.
Re-target Resume and Cover Letter for Each Job Description
Throughout the cover letter and resume, we infused the language with your primary job description’s keywords. We also highlighted your best wins. As you navigate the job market, we encourage you to make changes to the word selections to tailor your letter to each new target.
What we’ve done with your original docs and encourage you to do with subsequent versions is to distill the job descriptions and everything you can learn about what’s important and relevant to your target employer. What experience, skills, and, characteristics are most important to the employer? Based on this awareness, identify the main points you want them to know about you that speak to their key values and need? Edit your language and the information you include to address each target’s priorities. If you’re short on room, be sure to omit details that might not be relevant to the new employer.
If the new job target is a different title or industry, or the job description is quite different than your original, you might want to include different wins or achievements that are more relevant to your new audience.
Keywords are important, too, especially if your target employer uses an applicant tracking system to screen applicants. For instance, if by their job description it’s clear they value leadership as a primary trait in their ideal candidate, include that word in your documents, near the top, if you can. We go through the job description and highlight keywords, then pepper those keywords throughout, where they’re accurate within the context of your resume. We encourage you to do the same.
As you make changes, it can be easy to make little errors here and there. Run your documents through another proof reading to catch them.
If you’re having formatting issues, please let us know. We are with you every step of the way and want to make sure you’re putting your best foot forward—that means delivering a shiny and error-free copy to your job target. We can help!
We encourage you to save different drafts for each new job target so that you can track them all. You can select “File” then “Save As” and rename the document with the target category included in the file name for example, “Resume Food and Beverage.docx”
We’re Game to Take on Your 2nd Target Resume and Cover Letter
If you find a 2nd target that just calls to you but don’t have the time or inclination to re-target your cover letter and resume, please contact us. We generally offer a hefty discount if you purchase a second version of your resume and cover letter within two months of the first project.
If you’ve already purchased an additional package, now’s a good time to get started on that. Let your writer know you’re ready or ping Jennifer. We’ll cover next steps in more detail in another email, coming soon.
Wishing you continued success in your career and beyond!
Kindest regards,
Jennifer & The Rainmaker Team
For the OVERVIEW of the entire Rainmaker project process, click here.
If you get stuck or have questions, please feel free to contact Jennifer at any time at 406.546.8244 or Jennifer@rainmakerresume.com