Avoid The 90% Pile

Other folks have pointed out that adjusting your resume based on the job posting can be helpful. Truer words there are not.

The same is true for cover letters. Recently, I received a resume and cover letter in response to a job posting for a software engineer. However, the cover letter specifically focused on the person's Quality Assurance background and interest in a Quality Assurance position. I didn't have one of those.

One could almost say that the "job posting" world has a generic feel to it. It's impersonal, and many of the jobs we see look very much the same.

However, the person who reads YOUR information is an individual, which makes it personal. Thus, it's important that your resume and cover letter don't wind up in the "90% pile."

While not everyone reads cover letters, many folks do. If you send your cover letter, you are trying to make a positive impression, right? There's no reason for the following 2 errors:

1. Leaving old contact information from a previous letter
2. Not updating the job title you are applying for to make it the CORRECT one

Not correcting the 2 errors above says the following:
"I'm applying for your job along with MANY others, so it doesn't matter that much if you pay attention."

As job postings can result in HUNDREDS of responses, you simply give the person evaluating your effort a chance to put your resume in the 90% pile. That's the pile of resumes most recruiters and employers get that they have no use for or cannot use. And those are the resumes that will wind up being set aside or put into obscure files.

It's the OTHER 10% that get another review, and from those come choices for initial interviews. So, it's where YOU want to be!

In your cover letter, be specific about contact information and job titles for EACH job you apply for. That way, you let the reader know that you are focused on him/her:
there's a better chance that your resume and cover letter get to the 10% pile if you are qualified for the opportunity!