Always send a cover letter whenever you send your resume in application for a job. This is your opportunity to introduce yourself and explain why you are perfect for the job.

When writing a cover letter, do everything possible to find out the name of the person hiring for the position. This way you can address the cover letter to them personally instead of just “Dear Hiring Manager”. It will also score you extra points for going out of your way to find their name out if it is not listed in the help wanted ad.

Keep your cover letter short and sweet. The long story of your professional background should be left to the interview. Plus, most cover letters are just glanced over as the person hiring often gets hundreds of resumes at a time.

Keywords! There are often keywords placed in a help wanted ad that the interviewer is looking for you to say in your cover letter, for example specific skills that pertain to the position. Use these words and your chances for an interview are greater.

Spelling and grammar count! Before mailing your cover letter and resume do a spelling check and grammar check in Word. Also have at least one, if not two, other people look it over for spelling and grammar errors before you mail it off.

Never use a generic cover letter! Make sure that each cover letter you write is written specifically for the position that you are hiring for. Sometimes you could be applying for two positions within a huge company and it’s the same human resources department that will be reading the cover letters.

Be yourself. While its good to be as professional as you can be, don't make your cover letter too contrived. Give them what they want but do it in a natural way. If you BS them, they might see through it.

Close a cover letter with a statement of future contact. For example state that you are going to call in a specific number of days to make sure that they have received your resume and to set up a time to come in for an interview. Of course you have to follow through with this statement as well! If you don’t you can kiss that opportunity goodbye.

Have a positive attitude. A cover letter is not the time to complain about how you hate your current job. You never know…the person who reads your cover letter might be friends, or even related to, the person you currently work for/with.

If you are having trouble writing cover letters, get in touch with a professional cover letter writing service to have them help you write your cover letters. Most of the time, these services are not too expensive.

Avoid clichés as if your life depends on it. And given that you’re looking for a job, your life does depend on it. Stay away from phrases such as "excellent written and verbal communication skills" and "think outside the box".