Creating a Standout Cover Letter for Remote Jobs

Publié le 17 May 2024 Par Roy Emmerson

Finding your next WFH opportunity starts with creating a standout cover letter for remote jobs.

Are you wondering how to get a remote job? The answer to this question includes multiple points. One part is having the required skills and knowledge for a specific job position. Another part is knowing the best way to represent yourself to hiring managers. That is the reason why you should carefully prepare a standout cover letter.

According to the study on application document preferences, 56% of employers are interested in cover letters. As few factors that employers take into consideration include:

Writing style

Personalized approach

Cover letter format

Provided information

By ensuring that your cover letter succeeds at meeting several of these points, you can increase your chances of hiring for a work-from-home position. Keep reading this article as we’ll cover crucial details of the writing process, document peculiarities, helpful tips, and more you should know when creating a standout cover letter for remote jobs.

What is a Cover Letter?

Whenever applying for office or remote jobs, you must prepare various documents:

Introductory message: Applicants can proactively contact companies to express interest in employment.

Resume: Contains information on experiences, skills, and abilities.

Cover letter: This is an application letter where you express personal interest in a position and explain reasons why you are suitable for a job.

Each of them may contain similar information. Nevertheless, they serve different purposes, and that is what you need to remember during the writing process. By following the proper cover letter structure and providing valuable information within flawless text, you can attract an employer’s attention.

Important Steps for Creating a Standout Cover Letter

The process of developing an eye-catching cover letter includes multiple stages. Each of them requires attention and effort for both minor and major details that can play a crucial role when applying for work-from-home jobs.

Investigating Remote Work Requirements & Expectations

When you want to search for remote job consists of finding corresponding positions. You need to have corresponding experience and qualifications to proceed. Then, start preparing for cover letter writing.

Companies often post lists of requirements, with some being optional and other being absolute requirements. When creating a standout cover letter, applicants should prioritize describing their major experiences that align with the job responsibilities presented in the description.

Nevertheless, if you match any of the minor requirements or have some additional hard and soft skills that are useful for remote work duties, mention them as well. That will highlight your candidature as a suitable one for the job.

Personalization of Cover Letter

It is crucial to understand that cover letters must be original. You can’t send the same document for multiple remote jobs. Personalization increases the content quality and chances for employment. You can achieve high customization with the following points:

Research the company – take time to visit the company website and learn more about it. Pay attention to values and goals, so you can address them later.

Address the manager – make sure to address politely to the hiring manager. Unlike in the introductory letter, avoid generic greetings whenever possible.

Tailor the content – personalization is about covering relevant information for the position. Each job description becomes a cover letter guideline of what you should write about.

Cover Letter Structure

The cover letter structure greatly follows any other letter. Introduction, main section, and closing. The key factor here is the information you provide. It must be logically organized, so the reader can easily understand your message.

Introduction

The first impression can be a deal breaker of your application letter. According to a 2023 survey among hiring managers, 43% of them receive the biggest impression of a candidate from the introduction. Therefore, you shouldn’t rashly drop words here.

Express enthusiasm. After greetings express your excitement about the position and why it has interested you.

Mention the source of job discovery. Consider mentioning the way you have found the job. That helps the hiring manager to better understand the context and if it is through a job-hunting service, it is easier to check your profile there.

State the position. Companies can have multiple openings with different arrangements. Specifying that you are after a particular remote job will help the HR department evaluate you correspondingly.

Body paragraphs

The main part of a cover letter is about you and your strengths. It should describe your qualifications and what makes you suitable for the position.

Relevant experience. If you have any experience that is suitable for the position, make sure to mention it. That also includes participation in community projects and volunteering.

Skills and abilities. Every position has challenges. Your relevant skills and abilities help to deal with them, and that is what a recruiter what to learn more about from your cover letter

Education. Whether it is high school, specialization courses, or college degrees, you should describe your education in your cover letter briefly. It helps to understand your major and what array of knowledge you may have.

After describing these points, sum up the body part of the letter with reasons why you are interested in the position.

Closing

The last part of your letter may seem of low value as you provided the major information before. However, it allows you to highlight your passion for the remote job and excitement for future cooperation.

Express gratitude. The closing should begin with gratitude for considering your application. That shows your understanding of time value and respectful behavior.

Call to action. With a call to action, you can encourage the HR manager to make contact for further discussion. However, make sure not to write in an imperative style.

Closing salutation. The ending should contain a professional salutation followed by your name. After that, you may include contact information if it hasn’t been mentioned before.

Cover Letter Writing Style

While aiming for the proper cover letter format, writing style requires your attention. It is important to write politely and professionally. However, it may depend on the company’s communication style. That is what you can understand from the remote job description.

Some vacancies use a friendly tone of voice depicting a positive atmosphere between colleagues and managers. They can even include jokes. That provides some freedom in the way you can present yourself.

Meanwhile, some descriptions are emotionless. That is why it is important to properly comprehend what is expected from a candidate. Always read the entire vacancy information as it provides ideas for a reply.

For instance, our team is gearing up for a soft launch in 2024, which will involve roles requiring innovative and proactive engagement. During these, we’re seeking candidates who thrive in dynamic, evolving environments. We’re excited to see how recruits can contribute to the success of the soft launch in 2024.

Professional tone with clear & concise statements

Nobody likes to read lots of paragraphs without concise statements. In cover letters, candidates need to sound professional. It can be expressed by understanding the job requirements, industry skills, and how you will be able to succeed with work responsibilities.

When it comes to mentioning personal achievements, abilities, and education, keep such sentences short. Focus on the main subject that you want to present and how it suits the remote job. That helps recruiters easily understand your main qualifications and strengths.

Active voice and positive language

Being positive in your standout cover letter influences the perception of your candidature. It shows an optimistic attitude toward the position and readiness to work. For example, my background in telecom software development has equipped me with a unique perspective and skills that are perfectly suited for this role.

Sometimes, life struggles and challenges encourage people to pick a certain specialization. Mentioning such stories can positively represent passion and a strong interest in becoming a professional. Therefore, while mentioning such a life experience, you should remain positive and how it helped you to decide on a future career.

Another part of it is using active voice. It makes the application sound affirmative and confident. As for the passive voice, try to not use it or keep it at a minimum.

Proofreading

After finishing creating a standout cover letter, many applicants feel relieved that they have finished an important task. Nevertheless, you should not underestimate the proofreading step and its pitfalls.

Fresh look. Right after placing the last period, cover letter authors start proofreading immediately. However, such an approach often leads to not seeing mistakes as you have gotten used to them. Take a break and return to the text editing later.

Read aloud. To ensure that the letter has a simple readability, read it aloud. That will show what sentences are too long and what statements are not as smooth as they seem.

Information accuracy. During the writing process, it is easier to add some information or change it to sound better. However, it must always be the same as in other application documents as it is very easy to verify the facts.

Proofreading tools. Nowadays, it is easier to check the text with the help of different tools. While they facilitate proofreading, do not trust them completely as they may not completely understand the context.

There is an increased chance of receiving a rejection of the application due to mistakes.

Cover Letter Samples & Their Usage

Cover letters should be original and devoted to a specific job. However, it is challenging to have fresh ideas for each new document. This is when cover letter samples can help you. Many of them are available only for free.

Nonetheless, you shouldn’t just copy them entirely as other applicants may have already used them. Check letter examples for ideas, writing approaches, and ways how you can represent yourself. They also help better understand the needed cover letter format and its peculiarities.

Over the internet, you can even encounter automated generators of application documents. Be careful as they may struggle with providing personalized content and matching all the preferences you have. Some organizations also have software to detect and filter out AI-generated job applications, as they have determined it demonstrates a lack of basic effort.

Don’ts While Writing a Standout Cover Letter for Remote Jobs

Avoid exaggerations. While describing personal achievements, it is natural to want to show how excellent you are. However, information should not exaggerate the fact. Instead, you can mention how important that experience or achievement is to you.

Don’t demand. Every job has some responsibilities to candidates. Nevertheless, you cannot demand something in your cover letter. Save these questions for discussion during an interview.

Avoid too private information. Describing personal motivation through life stories is a nice option. However, you should avoid mentioning very specific private and sensitive details.

Don’t rely completely on AI. Modern tools like ChatGPT can easily write your cover letter. However, it is not as good as you think. Whatever is produced while require lots of editing. Moreover, recruiters can use tools to check whether the text is human-made or not. AI-generated text will likely be disqualifying in the eyes of many recruiters.

Conclusion

The cover letter describes the desire of a candidate for a remote job. Therefore, it should be carefully written to stand out among other applicants. With the above-mentioned information and your efforts, you will be on your way to creating a standout cover letter for remote jobs.