How to Write a Cover Letter: Structure, Examples and a Template

A cover letter is read in under a minute, usually after the résumé has already earned a second look. It does one job: it tells the reader which two or three things you have already done that this role needs, in your own words, with evidence. Everything else in the letter is there to make that easy to read.

Start with the job, not with yourself

Before writing a word, read the job description and pick the two or three requirements that carry the most weight. They are usually the ones in the first lines, the ones repeated, or the ones tied to a business outcome such as “reduce churn” or “own the forecast.” The letter exists to prove those, so everything you include comes from that short list.

Then match each requirement to one specific result from your own history. A result has a number, a scale or a before and after. If you cannot attach one to a requirement, leave that requirement out of the letter. A letter that proves two things well beats one that gestures at six.

The four-part structure

• Opening (two sentences). Name the role and say in one sentence why your background fits it. Skip “I am writing to apply.” The reader knows. Lead with the claim you are about to prove.
• Proof (one or two short paragraphs). Each paragraph takes one requirement and answers it with one result: what you did, at what scale, and what changed. Use the same words the job description uses for the requirement, so the match is obvious in a skim.
• Why this company (two sentences, optional). Include it only if you can say something true and specific. A line about the company’s product or a problem you have solved in their market works. Praise for the company’s “culture” adds nothing.
• Close (one sentence). Offer to talk, and name a next step. Keep the whole letter between 200 and 320 words, three or four paragraphs.

The figures in the examples below are illustrative. Use your own, and only numbers you can defend.

Example: operations leader moving to a larger company

“I am applying for the Director of Operations role. For the past six years I have run finance and revenue operations for B2B software companies, and the work you describe, making a growing business run on reliable systems, is what I do.

Your posting asks for someone who can rebuild processes under growth. At my current company I replaced a spreadsheet-based billing process with a single system across four regions. Invoices went out on time every month after launch, and the finance team saved roughly 300 hours a quarter. You also ask for forecasting discipline. I introduced a monthly forecast review that brought our renewal forecast within a few points of actuals.

I would welcome a conversation about how this applies to your next two years of growth. I can share the billing migration plan in detail if that is useful.”

Notice what it leaves out: a history of every job, a list of adjectives, and anything the résumé already says. Each paragraph answers a requirement and nothing else.

Example: product manager changing industries

Career changers have one extra task: translate. The reader may not know your old industry’s vocabulary, so say the result in the new industry’s terms.

“I am applying for the Senior Product Manager role in your payments group. I have spent five years in healthcare software owning the onboarding experience for a product used by clinics, and the core problem is the same one you describe: getting a new customer to their first successful transaction quickly. I redesigned our onboarding flow and raised 30-day activation from 41% to 59%. The method I used was a weekly experiment cadence with engineering and design, which I would bring to your team.”

A template you can fill in

Dear [Hiring manager’s name, or “Hiring team”],

I am applying for the [role] at [company]. [One sentence: your most relevant experience, in the job’s own words.]

[Requirement one from the posting.] [What you did, the scale, and the result, with a number.]

[Requirement two from the posting.] [What you did, the scale, and the result, with a number.]

[One true, specific sentence about why this company, if you have one.] I would welcome a conversation about [the problem you would work on]. [A next step you offer.]

Sincerely,
[Your name]

Mistakes that sink a letter

• Repeating the résumé in paragraph form. The letter adds interpretation; the résumé holds the facts.
• Opening with “I am passionate about.” Passion is claimed in every letter. Evidence is rare.
• Numbers you cannot defend in an interview. Every figure in the letter will be asked about.
• Leaving a bracket or placeholder in the final version. Search the document for “[”, “xx” and “X%” before sending.
• Addressing “To whom it may concern” when a name is a two-minute search away.
• Going past one page. If a paragraph does not prove a requirement, cut it.

When to skip the cover letter

If the application says optional and the form has no place for it, a short, specific note to the hiring manager often does more than an uploaded letter. If the role is one you want and the posting invites a letter, write one. It is the one document in the application where you choose what the reader pays attention to.