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15/03/2009Writing a cover letter

Some tips on writing a cover letter as part of the application process to get jobs in advertising

Covering Letter courtesy of FeverBlueSome agencies (particularly smaller advertising agencies and most media agencies) recruit on an adhoc basis throughout the year, dependent on business needs. If you therefore decide to apply for a job on a speculative basis then you will need to write a cover letter to send along with your CV. There are no hard and fast rules regarding cover letters but some tips you may like to bear in mind are:

1.  Keep it to one page.
2.  Get the name of the person right (it's worth ringing to check the name of the right person to contact; you will also get a chance to hear how the agency comes across on the phone.
3.  Make sure there are NO spelling mistakes!
4.  Allow your personality to come through - get a friend to read your cover letter and ask if it reflects how you come across in real life; it is easier to do this in prose, compared to the CV which is much more formal. Agencies are looking to hire people rather than just skills.
5.  Try and find out a little about the agency before writing. Take a look at our list of member agencies where you will find a profile on each agency, and a link to their website; it may prompt you to pull out something from your CV which could be particularly relevant to them.
6. Take a look at some of their creative work. You can check our member agencies' creative work by going to the allourbestwork site. It is a good idea to highlight why you thought a particular advertising campaign from the agency you are targeting, worked, or what you liked about it. You need to ensure that you have personalised the letter to that particular agency. No agency likes to feel as though they are part of a mail merge.

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