How to write a job application letter

How to write an application letter

Writing an application letter may seem a milestone to most job seekers as it is your selling point. The issue of selecting the best words to sell your experience and skills to the employer so that you stand out is sometimes very hectic and stressful.

Besides the curriculum vitae present, the application letter summarizes the contents of the curriculum vitae in an official language. The language used should be official and the letter should be brief,not exceeding one page,this is because once the employer sees a very lengthy letter they might not read since they do not have much time to waste.

Therefore,writing a brief letter if advantageous because the employer will only use a few minutes of his/her time to peruse through the entire letter and chances of being invited foe an interview are high.

Things to note

• An application is a an official letter,therefore, the language used should be official. It is not a friendly letter since you are writing to your soon to be employer.
• The job application letter should be short and clear,it should not exceed one page, a long and lengthy letter is boring and time consuming, therefore chances of it being trashed into the dustbin are very high.
• Official letters must have two addresses that is the sender’s and the receiver’s addresses. the sender address is written on top -right of the letter whereas the receiver address is written on top-left below the sender address.
• Do not begin the letter with salutation/greetings. This is because it is an official letter not a friendly one.

Before you start to draft your application letter; first your have to brainstorm what skills and qualifications you will include in order to be seen as the best candidate suited for the position. jot down all the information that you want to include in the letter.

Remember that you do not have to include every single skill and qualification from your job experience since the letter has to be brief.Hence, choose the most relevant and significant achievements and skills relevant for the position being applied for.

Analyze the job vacancy and know what the employer is looking for so that you tailor your letter in that direction. If it is a salesperson needed,describe instances you have portrayed salesperson skills.

Example of a written job application letter

Erick smith

P.o Box……..

Nairobi.

Human resource manager

xxxx company.

P.o Box…….

Dear sir/Madam

Re:Marketing manager

I am thrilled and highly interested in the position of a marketing manager that was advertised on….(name the source of your job vacancy advertisement). The description of the job responsibilities,skills and qualifications matches my experience and aspiration, therefore, am obliged to send my CV for your approval.

I have 2 years experience in the same position at (write the name of the company you have worked for or currently working for). I used to design and implement the marketing strategy plans and that increased our market base hence tremendous increase in the company sales by 40 percent. I have also built strong and long-lasting customer relationships.I used to work with a team and I was their manager and we worked together smoothly to be productive, hence i am a good team player and a good leader. I am hardworking and dedicated and deliver within the set deadlines. I used to make sales,revenue and expenses reports and forecast for the management team.

I have also attached my curriculum vitae for more information on my qualifications and skills. If you have any question about my job experience and skills ,I will be glad to provide the needed information face to face in an interview.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Thank you for your time.

Yours faithfully,

(Your Name)

Before handing in your application letter ensure you edit,edit and edit for any spelling errors and mistakes. With the above example;I believe writing an excellent application letter is not that hard any more. If it is still stressing you, don’t worry you can find more template examples on the internet.

If the letter is typed then remember that an official letter should be single-spaced with a space between each paragraph. Align your text to the left.

Use a traditional font such as Times New Roman or Calibri and the font size should be between 10 and 12 points.

#Focus on selling yourself; focus on how you would benefit the company and remember to use keywords.

Do you have any views o how to write an application letter? Let us know in the comment section below. Thank you.