You might choose to write cold-call letters to companies to express your interest in employment opportunities, without knowledge of specific advertisements or opportunities. Your challenge in writing this type of cover letter is to give your reader a broad introduction to your skills, qualifications, employment experience, achievements, credentials, and other notable traits that you anticipate will trigger their interest in you and make them offer you the opportunity for an interview.
When writing this type of letter, it is critical that you clearly identify who you are. Are you a sales professional, an accountant, a retail manager, a production operations manager, or a chemical engineer? A Java programmer, a health-care administrator, a management executive, an advertising director, or a graphic designer? Who are you, and how do you want to be perceived?
Just as important, you must communicate what type of position you are seeking. No one is going to take the time to figure this out. Do you want to continue to work as a purchasing agent, or is your objective a purchasing management position? If you’re a technology project leader, are you looking to make a lateral move, or are you interested in an IT management position, perhaps as CIO or CTO?
| Tip.- When writing a cold-call letter, it is critical to quickly identify who you are, what value you bring to the company, and what type of positions you are interested in. No one is going to take the time to read between the lines and make assumptions. Spell it out! |
Characteristics
Cold-call letters to companies are characterized by the following:
- Clarity. Focus on creating a clear picture of yourself and your most notable attributes, skills, experiences, and qualifications. It is essential to quickly communicate this information, particularly when the company has not advertised for the type of position you are seeking.
- Impact. Again, because these letters are not in response to a specific opportunity, it is critical that they immediately and powerfully connect with the reader and move him to action to pick up the phone and call you. An effective way to motivate a response is to identify yourself as the solution to the company’s problems or needs.
Cold Call Cover Letters
Cold-call letters to recruiters are strategically identical to cold-call letters to companies. In essence, you are writing to the recruiting firm to introduce yourself (the who and the value) and explore your potential fit for current search assignments (the type of position).
Two features distinguish recruiter cold-call letters from company cold-call letters. First and foremost, it is important to disclose information about your job preferences—specifically, your preferences for type of position, type of company, and geographic location. If you are willing to consider only management opportunities, share that information with the recruiter.
If you are interested in opportunities with only high-growth technology companies or medical device R&D; firms, state that in your letter. If you know that you are not willing to relocate, say so.
The other unique feature of a recruiter cold-call letter is the straightforwardness with which you present information about your salary and compensation objectives. We recommend that you provide some information to give the recruiter an idea of the level of salary or type of compensation you are seeking. You can do this in several different ways, generally in the last paragraph of your cover letter.
The most common strategies for disclosing this information without giving away too much information include the following:
- Most recently, my salary has averaged $50,000 annually.
- My current salary objectives are in the $100,000 to $150,000 range.
- My salary requirements are negotiable and can be discussed at the time of an interview.
- My salary history can be discussed at the time of an interview.
Note that you can use these same types of statements when writing in response to a company or recruiter advertisement that asks for your salary history or current salary requirements.
Mentioning salary in cover letters is a controversial topic. In fact, discussing compensation at this point in the job search process with any recruiter or company is an issue of constant debate.
Characteristics
Cold-call letters to recruiters are uniquely characterized by the following:
- Disclosure of job, company, and geographic preferences. Lay your cards on the table, and be specific about your job preferences.
- Disclosure of salary and compensation information. Unlike cold-call letters to companies, where you should never discuss compensation, it is a good policy to at least “define the ballpark” when writing to a recruiter.