PERSONAL COMMERCIAL

S. Russell Jackson ICT-Morrow

OVERVIEW

Personal Commercial• Discussion • Practice

Cover Letter

Resume

WHAT IS A PERSO N AL COM MERCIAL ?

It will be the narrative that drives the conversations you have with Hiring Managers and recruiters throughout the job search process.

You will mold this message for each interaction (networking, resume, cover, letter, interview, thank you letter

It’s how you articulate your brand two B.I.G.G’s

Let’s practice and see what you came up with!

BUILDING THE BRAND

Establish your self as a SME• What have you done in your career of which you are

most proud?• List something that you have achieved at work or

school?• What tasks have you performed at work?• What RESULTS have you achived when performing

those tasks?• List 3 things that demonstrate your ability to

produce results• What have you done that shows your ability to work

successfully work with people? • Anything else you have completed in school or

professionally you are proud of

BUILDING THE BRAND

What special skills or foreign languages do you speak?

What are your areas of interest?

Now, how would you re-write your personal commercial?

• Let’s re-tool it and try again

COVER LETTER

What is the role of your cover letter?• To entice a reader to want to read your resume• To act as a “handshake” and introduction to the

reader• The cover letter is a chance to “speak” to the reader

or the interviewer. • By developing skills and achievement-oriented

letters, you will give yourself a competitive edge. • Each letter needs to be individually developed for

each position

COVER LETTER LAYOUT

Paragraphs in Cover Letter 1. They identify the specific job and how you

learned about it.2. They match your skills, training, and

experience with those required for the job, using your specific knowledge of the company.

3. The last line should emphasize your interest in the job and indicate your plan for follow-up.

COVER LETTERCarefully review job announcementIdentify key job skills, and highlight company needsInclude key qualifications in both cover letter and résuméIn the cover letter:• Mention the target company by name• Mention how you learned of the job• List specific qualifications (reflected from the job posting)

that make you an excellent candidate to interviewInclude daytime telephone number on both• Telephone voice mail and/or message machine is

professional• Do not include introductions that are unprofessional

COVER LETTER

Although it is acceptable to utilize “I” and “my” in a cover letter, be careful not to begin most sentences with the word “I”

Address cover letter to specific person

Refer reader to the résumé

Request interview (not job) at close of letter

Display initiative

FOR NEXT TIME

More on Resume and Cover Letter (Document Review)

Networking and Linkedin • Read Chapter 13