Clerical Text-Only Cover Letters
Years of Experience
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Anthony Gentile
123 Convoy St, San Diego, CA 12345 | (123) 456-7890 | [email protected]
Monday, August 15, 2022
Ms. Rachel Johnson
Hiring Manager
Creavey Manufacturing
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
Dear Ms. Johnson:
In my current role as Office Assistant for XYZ Supply Corp., I’ve streamlined email communications with clients, helping raise our customer retention by 22%. I’d love to uphold that same level of service at Creavey Manufacturing.
I’m a self-directed clerical assistant with 5+ years of experience refining these core strengths and attributes:
- Adaptability – Quickly learn new business systems, scheduling programs, and automation software
- Organization – Maintain detailed, accurate records of customer correspondence and account updates
- Initiative – Offer ideas to continually improve operations and deliver high-quality work with minimal oversight
- Tech savvy – Apply advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel, Outlook, and SharePoint
I look forward to telling you more about how I can assist Creavey Manufacturing, and I am available to talk at your convenience. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Anthony Gentile
Kevin Morrison
123 Windermere Rd., Seattle, WA 12345 | (123) 456-7890 | [email protected]
Monday, August 15, 2022
Ms. Lori Taylor
Hiring Manager
MFC Bank
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
Dear Ms. Taylor:
As a senior office assistant for KCG Financial, I was praised in my annual review for finding a more precise and efficient way to schedule meetings and business trips. I’d love to apply that same sense of innovation and continuous improvement at your bank.
I’m a clerical assistant with 5+ years of experience in the banking industry. During this time, I’ve reinforced the following core strengths:
- Combine steady focus on due diligence with a willingness to try creative, practical new office administration methods
- Expertly balance multiple tasks and priorities in a demanding, fast-paced corporate environment
- Consistently meet deadlines while upholding high standards of compliance and accuracy
- Equally effective working independently or on a team
Your job posting intrigued me, particularly the call for someone “committed to helping us support our clients with valuable investment products and banking services.” I’d greatly appreciate the chance to discuss how I can fit that role perfectly at your bank.
Please call or email me to arrange an interview. I will follow up with you soon to confirm you received my resume and see if you have any initial questions. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Kevin Morrison
Raheem Richardson
123 Franklin Pike, Nashville, TN 12345 | (123) 456-7890 | [email protected]
Monday, August 15, 2022
Ms. Meiling Li
Hiring Manager
SRN Associates
(123) 456-7890
[email protected]
Dear Ms. Li:
Over my past two years as a law clerk, I’ve introduced data entry processes that raised efficiency by 35%. I’m interested in helping your firm make similar strides in enhanced office administration.
Your job posting jumped out at me, particularly the call for someone who is “strategic, collaborative, and relentlessly focused on making our office run smoothly.” This is precisely the reputation I’ve developed through my 5+ years as an office assistant. During this time, I’ve also shown my ability to:
- Build positive, productive relationships with diverse colleagues in multiple departments
- Put complex legal and administrative topics in clear terms to promote seamless internal communications
- Gather, analyze, and draft summaries of legal research from various credible sources
- Thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced work environment
The enclosed resume contains an overview of my recent work and education experience. I look forward to hearing from you and possibly learning more about this job opportunity soon. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Raheem Richardson
Clerical Cover Letter Tips
Below are three essential tips to follow in working on your cover letter for clerical positions:
1. Use freewriting to find a confident tone
Cover letters work best when their writing projects confidence. But many people find it hard to write anything confidently, much less a formal request such as a cover letter. This “writer’s block” happens when you can hardly jot down a sentence without immediately second-guessing yourself and deleting the sentence to try it a better way.
You can use a brainstorming technique called focused freewriting to overcome this problem. It’s “focused” in that you must only write about a particular topic, but also “free” since you can write whatever comes to mind without regard for order or organization. Try a focused freewriting session for your next cover letter. Spend ten minutes writing down anything that comes to mind about why you’re drawn to the job in question. What intrigues or sparks your curiosity about it? And what draws you to your field in general?
This method helps you overcome the self-consciousness that makes many jobseekers use bland, generic phrasing on their cover letters. By writing more freely at first, you can better explore and capture your original thoughts about your job search. You’ll probably generate a lot of stray thoughts and ideas that you don’t end up using in your cover letter. But you’ll also probably generate at least a few clear, confident sentences that genuinely express your career interests. Get those clear sentences on your cover letter, and you’ll dramatically improve its persuasive effect on hiring managers.
2. Show your “soft skills” in action
For clerical workers, so-called “soft skills” like diligence and organization are key. But how can you emphasize those skills in your letter in a clear and compelling way? One good strategy is to set off each one as a bullet point, then couple it with an active statement that shows how you applied the skill to make a positive impact.
Example
I’m a self-directed clerical assistant with 5+ years’ experience honing these core strengths and attributes:
- Adaptability – Quickly learn new business systems, scheduling programs, and automation software
- Organization – Maintain detailed, accurate records of customer correspondence and account updates
- Initiative – Offer ideas to continually improve operations and deliver high-quality work with minimal oversight
- Tech savvy – Apply advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel, Outlook, and SharePoint
3. Start with a specific career highlight
Countless cover letters begin with a general statement like “Please accept my enclosed application to your [Title] job opening.” But statements like this are stuffy and unnecessary — if the hiring manager is looking at your cover letter, they already know they’ve received your application.
Give your letter a fresher intro by cutting to the chase with a specific, factual statement of one of your work highlights. When the highlight aligns with a hiring manager’s needs, it’ll catch their attention in the same way the job posting caught yours.
Example
Dear Ms. Johnson:
In my current role as Office Assistant for XYZ Supply Corp., I’ve streamlined email communications with clients, helping raise our customer retention by 22%. I’d love to uphold that same level of service at Creavey Manufacturing.