With newspapers and magazines publishing advertisements galore, it is but obvious for employers to get inundated with the resumes of prospective candidates and employees. This is a pointer to the fact that if your resume does not stand out from the many other resumes in tow, it may not be given the kind of attention it deserves. With cut-throat competition in the job market, you will lag behind if you resort to cutting corners. Another thing that is deemed equally important is your referral cover letter. If you are not sure about what an employee referral cover letter means and when you need to send it, then stay put. If you have any mutual acquaintance with whose help you can obtain an interview, then it is advisable to include his/her name in your cover letter as it is a great way for you to break through the many other letters from candidates that the hiring manager may have shortlisted. Such a letter mentioning the person through whom you got to know the job position is known as referral cover letter. Its tone and tenor must be balanced and the facts and credentials must be absolutely true. As writing referral cover letters are not exactly child’s play, refer to the information below for some useful guidelines on writing them.
Tips For Writing Employee Referral Cover Letters
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It is important to remember that a cover letter referral is not something that you can whip up hastily. It is also not written in bombastic way with fancy words making it look less business-like and more classroom-like. As such a letter is a proper business correspondence that gives an idea of not only your credentials, but also your personality, it requires greater individualized information.
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If you are applying for the job through someone known in the company, make sure that it is none but you who writes the cover referral letter. You must express in an impactful yet succinct manner as to how you can contribute to the job. It must sufficiently convince the manager in charge of hiring that you perfectly fit the bill for the job. To achieve this through the medium of writing in your letter, you must adopt proper diction. Use a style that is standard and casual and refrain from using superfluous jargons, slangs or technical talks.
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Since it is a referral letter, an important aspect is to include the name of the person who referred you to the job. You can briefly mention how you know him/her and the connection you have. However, avoid dwelling on it. This helps the employers know the people they hire and also ups your chances of landing the interview. Additionally, it gets easier to build trust with the employer who is likely to give you priority. Be careful that the name of the referrer is mentioned right at the outset so that the manager realizes that you have connection to someone within company.
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You need to be careful about one thing before you actually include the referrer’s name in your letter. Most of the times, a person referring you to a job will not mind if you mention her/his name as it can also translate into an referral incentive for the person. However, there are times when the referrer does not want his/her name to be disclosed in the letter and may request you to avoid making any references. There can be many reasons for it. It can be either due to personal reasons or s/he may have taken a chance and violated some company policy by passing on inside information that has not yet been made public. Hence, always seek the referrer’s prior permission and respect his/her wishes if they do want to include their name on your referral letter.
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Ensure that all the details you mention in your letter are completely truthful and nothing is fabricated or exaggerated. Giving false information either about references or your background can put you at the risk of committing employment fraud or make you lose out on the job if any dishonesty is traced in your cover letter.
Hope you find these tips useful when you start writing your own referral cover letter.
