A cold call cover letter
How to ask for a job

Write a cold call cover letter. Are you kidding me?

This is a typical response when I suggest to my clients that they should try this approach in their job search strategy.

Yet......making a direct approach to an employer with a cold call cover letter, or making a cold call phone call to ask if there is a job available sometimes produces amazingly good results.

Making cold call contact is a highly proactive way to conduct your jobsearch strategy. Remember......only a small percentage of the available work, somewhere around 20-40%, is advertised.

Creating your own jobsearch momentum by initiating contact with employers on your target list with a cold call letter is a much better option than waiting for job ads to appear.

There are some simple guidelines to follow for making cold contacts, but first, before we look at how to write a cold call letter.......

Why don't people write cold call cover letters?

Simple answer.....people don't like rejection! They are afraid of getting a "No", or perhaps worse, no response at all from the person they have written to.

And.....it's true, this might actually happen. You might get "No Thanks", or no response whatever.

For other people, they won't write a cold call cover letter because they don't want to be thought of as being "pushy".

If these types of things are holding you back from implementing this legitimate, and sometimes successful jobsearch strategy, please look at the ideas below for overcoming fear of rejection.

Overcoming fear of rejection

No one likes getting a "No" - having their approach rejected. As previously mentioned, some people think it is being pushy to make uninvited contact with a letter. Fear of being thought of as pushy is just another expression of the fear of rejection.

Using the principle - it's not what happens to you in life, it's how you respond to what happens that makes the difference. Here are some techniques for handling rejection that some people find helps them - simply click on a link below to jump to the section you need:

• Develop your self confidence
• Make a features/benefit list of your capabilities
• Manage your self talk - don't take it personally, it's just business
• Offer solutions to problems

Develop your self confidence

Develop a healthy self confidence in your product - the product that is "you", and what you have to offer an employer.

If you're unsure about what you have to offer, do a career review, and a career self assessment.

By doing this thoroughly you will come to the realisation that you have made valuable contributions in the past, and are capable of doing so in the future.

Develop a genuine self confidence based on the evidence you gather about your career from doing a career review.

Write your cold call cover letter knowing that you have what it takes!

Develop a features/benefits list of your capabilities

One outcome from a career review will be that you have a concise understanding of what your most employable skills and knowledge are. Sales people would refer to these attributes as being product "features".

It's one thing to know what your employable features are, but the next step is to sell them to an employer.

How? For each skill or component of technical or specialist knowledge you have (your features) write a statement of benefit, or benefits to the employer that you will be cold contacting.

For example:

Feature: - I have well developed interpersonal communication skills.

Benefits:

• This means I'm able to relate well with customers which in turn helps them to form a favourable impression of the organisation.
• I am able to quickly form effective working relationships with both my clients and co-workers.
• I find that I am able to easily win the trust, confidence and respect of people that I deal with.

Manage your self talk - it's just business!

Don't take "No" personally. Think of it as something that just happens sometimes.....it's just business.

Remind yourself that it is your sales pitch, not you the individual that is being rejected.

There are also many other reasons why your approach might be rejected, reasons that have nothing to do with your approach. For example:

• There might be a hiring freeze in the organisation
• There isn't a budget at present to take on a new staff member
• There's an internal organisation re-structure that is taking place and new staffing needs are not yet clear enough to make hiring decisions

You can probably think of dozens more quite valid reasons for an organisation saying no to your approach.

So.......when you get a "No", remind yourself......it's just business!

Also......"No" doesn't always mean "No forever" - it means "not now".

Offer solutions to problems

In keeping with the idea that your letter is a type of 'sales pitch', remember that what is likely to get people interested is if you provide solutions to their problems.

If the client can see that the proposed solution will actually solve their problem, then it is quite likely they will make the purchase. Or, in this case......hire you!

Consider the perspective of the person reading your cold call letter. If someone had written to you, for example, clearly showing that they understand your business, problem etc......and they are also proposing a solution......would you be interested?

The answer almost certainly is going to be yes.....of course you'd be interested.

By approaching an employer with a possible solution to a problem that they have, you're at least giving them something to think about.

Writing your cold call cover letter
Before you start.....

When you send a cold call cover letter to an employer they won't know who you are, or why you are writing to them.

This means, to maximise the chances of getting your letter read.....you need to first:

• attract the reader's attention, and then
• create their interest in what you are writing about.

How do you do this?

Do your research first

You must start your letter with a hook......something that will attract the attention and interest of the reader.

To achieve this you will have to do research into the organisation that you are writing to, such as:

• Research the industry in which the organisation operates so that you understand the bigger picture of the area in which it operates.
• What issues are having an impact on the industry, and as a consequence on the organisation at local, state, federal and international levels.
• Who are the main competitors of the organisation, and what are they doing that might be having an impact on the organisation you are approaching
• Has the organisation been featured in local or business media, and if so why?

Armed with this type of information you can then pitch the content of your letter around an issue, or issues that are relevant to the organisation.

Cold call cover letter format

Set out the content of your cold call letter into four paragraphs as follows:

• First paragraph - this is your attention grabber describing a relevant problem or opportunity for the reader
• Second paragraph - this is your proposal - what you are able to offer in terms of solving the problem, or taking advantage of the opportunity that you have described
• Third paragraph - provide supporting evidence that you can do what you are proposing; usually a summary of your relevant skills, experience, specialised knowledge etc.
• Fourth paragraph and final paragraph - if you want to enclose your resume, explain that it is attached. Then explain your suggested next steps, for example...."I'll call you on......"

Keep your letter to just one page in length.

You'll find that this cover letter format will make it easy for the reader to follow your ideas and to identify the key points you are making in your letter.

Opening paragraph for a cold call cover letter

This is the most important part of your cold call cover letter. If the opening paragraph isn't read, then it is unlikely the rest of the letter will be read.

Here are some suggestions for attention grabbing opening paragraphs:

• Explain something that you've done in your career that is relevant. For example "In my current (or last) position I....(outline a quantifiable, or important result that you produced). It occurred to me that you might be interested in speaking with a person who could produce a similar result for your organisation."
• Begin with a positive or upbeat statement relating to something you know about the organisation - "As a professional in the X industry I have been a long time admirer of the exceptional quality of service and advice X organisation delivers to its clients."
• Describe a problem you have identified that might be having an impact on the organisation's business, and that you have some suggestions, and/or some past experience to offer for resolving this type of issue.
• Alternatively, indicate that you have identified an opportunity that might potentially benefit the organisation, and that you have some ideas, and/or related experience that will help the organisation to take advantage of this.

Cold call cover letter - who to contact

This is very important. Write to a decision maker - usually the line manager of the area in the organisation in which you'd like to work.

Avoid sending your cold call cover letter to a support department such as Human Resources.

A letter to HR almost always gets one of two responses - your letter is either ignored, or you get a standard letter response "Thank you for your interest, there are no jobs at present, we'll keep your details on our files."

Follow up your letter

The whole idea for writing a cold call cover letter is to be proactive in your jobsearch.

This means it will be up to you to initiate the next steps and get a response to your letter. You should not rely on the organisation getting back to you.

This is why you explain in the last paragraph of your letter the action you intend to take. The best follow up is for you to make contact a few days after sending your letter - perhaps allow 3-4 days before following up.

How to follow up your cold call letter

Prepare for your telephone follow up so that you maintain the professional image you created in your letter, and your resume if you have attached this to your letter.

Remember, it will be up to you to take responsibility for the direction of the conversation with the person that you have written to. A possible script for the follow up phone call could be as follows:

• Say hello and then introduce yourself.
• Explain the purpose of your call - "I'm contacting you about a letter I recently wrote to you about......in which I proposed......."
• Find out if your letter has been received, and also read by the person to whom you are speaking. Ask specifically "Have you received my letter?" and if the answer is "Yes", then ask "Have you had the opportunity to read it yet?"
• If your letter has been read, determine the response to your proposal - for example "What thoughts have you had about my proposal?", or "How relevant is the problem I outlined to your organisation?"
• If there is interest in your proposal, or agreement that the problem you've identified is relevant, ask for a meeting to further discuss the situation, and in particular to explain how you can help with the issue.
• If there is no interest, clarify if this means there is no interest at the present time. It could be that your proposal might be of interest later on. If so, ask if you can stay in touch.
• If you feel as though you have developed a good rapport with the person you've called indicate that you have enjoyed speaking with them, and ask if you can keep in contact with them from time to time in future.

Asking to maintain occasional contact with people that you've sent a cold call cover letter to is an excellent way of expanding your network of professional contacts.

It's also good practice. You've done the hard work in establishing contact, it makes sense to continue to build the relationship. You have no way of knowing who your contact might speak to, about you, within their own network in future.

Summary

Making unsolicited contact, in other words a cold call, with organisations and people that you would like to work for is a valid jobsearch strategy.

Many people have created all sorts of exciting opportunities for themselves because they took the initiative to make cold call contacts.

Here are some other links that will assist you in your jobsearch:

• tips for writing a cover letter
• additional cover letter tips
• tips for writing an email cover letter