Some job notices only ask for your résumé, without specifically requesting a cover letter.

It’s a trap. Don’t fall for it.

Because if you do just send in the résumé, cold with no introduction, somebody else will send a cover letter with theirs. That somebody else will show more interest in the job than you are. That somebody else will get called first.

It’s easy to send one copy of your résumé all over town; throw a bunch of fishhooks into the water and see if anyone bites. It’s this ease that makes it a bad idea; this approach says a number of things to your audience, none of which reflect well on your dedication to doing a job right, your seriousness about that particular job, or your respect for the reader’s time. Include a well-written (or even a mediocre) cover letter, however, and you show that you’ve taken the time to apply for that job specifically.

When you show the reader personalized attention, it gives the reader incentive to return the favor.

If the prospective employer and your résumé were strangers at a party, your cover letter would be the mutual friend who pulls the résumé over to the employer and says, “I have someone I’d like you to meet; I think you two would have plenty to talk about.” The cover letter is your chance to make a clear connection between your résumé and the job ad. Instead of making the reader figure it out on his/her own, here's your chance to point out why certain experiences make you uniquely qualified for the job you seek.

The résumé’s job is to get you the interview. But the cover letter is the bridge between your reader and the cover letter.

A good résumé can get you the interview, but a good cover letter will get the résumé looked at.

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