Write an Email of Interest for a Job
Applying for a job has changed significantly since the Internet became a common avenue for seeking employment. Instead of sending letters of interest and resumes through the regular mail, many people locate job postings or potential employers online and then write emails to express interest in working for a company. Because email can be a less formal way to establish contact, knowing the right format(s) can help you appear more professional. By successfully researching a company, composing an email of appropriate formality, you may be able to land your dream job!
Contents
Steps
Composing Your Email Expressing Interest
- Draft a preliminary email. Before you send your email of interest, use the information you gathered to write a preliminary draft. This will help you ensure that your email sets the right tone and is comprehensive.
- Avoid putting the recipient’s email address into the “to” field so that you don’t accidentally send the draft until you are ready.
- An email of interest won’t be as long as a formal written letter. It should be between three and five paragraphs in length. If you write anything longer, the potential employer may not read the entire text and could miss vital information about you.
- The tone of your draft and letter should be professional, yet personable.
- A brief introduction should state your name, the job for which you’re applying or types of positions that might interest you, what prompted you to contact the company, and that you feel you could significantly contribute to the company and its mission.
- For example, you could write “My name is Christopher Smith and I am interested in working at Brand Marketing, Inc. After hearing positive reviews of your company with colleagues, I would like to inquire if you have any positions in your advertising department. I feel my qualifications and experience could significantly contribute to Brand Marketing’s mission.”
- The body of the email can be 1-3 paragraphs and should discuss your qualifications and experiences, specific skills, and achievements. You can also address how you could benefit the potential employer and point the addressee towards an attached resume.
- You should close by thanking the company for considering your possible employment, a time at which you will contact the addressee to follow up, and how the company may contact you.
- For example, “Thank you for considering my employment at Brand Marketing, Inc. I will contact you to follow up on Monday, September 8 at 1:00 to discuss potential opportunities. Please feel free to contact me at any time by email or phone. My phone number is (555) 555-5555.”
- Use positive and actionable words. When you’re drafting and later revising your email, you want to make yourself as attractive to a company as possible. This can help your potential employer get a better sense you and it may also present a more positive image of yourself.
- Use verbs such as collaborate, cooperate, and promote.
- Use nouns such as team-player, asset, and responsibility.
- Use adjectives such as reliable, intelligent, good-natured, diligent.
- You can put these words together in phrases such as “I collaborated on a marketing project and was a significant asset in my company gaining several new clients. Being a team player was integral to devising my company’s current successful marketing campaign with a Fortune 500 company. This work had a significant impact on raising our company profile and annual profits.”
- Be honest and don’t exaggerate. You want to sell yourself as best as possible while being honest about your qualifications. There is a fine line between honesty and exaggeration and you want to avoid this so that potential employers don’t find your email disingenuous.
- You don’t necessarily need to say you are the best unless they actually are. Instead, consider writing something like “My current employers have called me one of the most responsible and collegial co-workers with whom they’ve had the pleasure to work.” When assessing your technical skills and abilities, you can write something along the lines of “I am among the top 5% of brand managers in my field based on sales.”
- Revise and copy edit your email. Once you’ve drafted your email, revise the text to strengthen it and iron out any areas that need additional development. This will also allow you to copy edit the email for any spelling, punctuation or grammatical errors.
- Make sure your revised draft has the appropriate components of an introduction, body, and closing that are honest, incorporate positive vocabulary, and present the best picture of you possible.
- Consider reading the letter aloud to hear possible mistakes and help ensure that it sounds professional.
- Make sure that the information you provide in the letter is tailored to a specific job or the company.
- Add a greeting and closing. Once you’ve completed your draft, you’ll need to include the proper greeting and closing to your email. Using the right format can make you seem professional and like someone this company would want to hire.
- Your greeting should say Dear “Ms. Smith” followed by a comma. If you cannot locate the name of the person in charge of hiring, you can use “To Whom It May concern” followed by a colon.
- If the person has a gender neutral name and you can’t figure out their gender or preference, err on the side of caution and use the full name in the greeting. For example, it’s better to say “Dear Chris Smith,” than writing Dear Ms. Smith to a Christopher Smith.
- Your closing can say “sincerely” followed by a comma. If you want to jazz it up a bit, consider writing “I look forward to hearing from you” followed by sincerely.
- Make sure to include your name and any relevant contact information underneath it such as telephone number or address.
- Attach your resume and relevant files. If you’ve mentioned that you will attach a resume to your email, add the file and any other relevant files you would like. This can help the prospective employer get a better sense of you and your qualifications.
- Make sure to update and proofread your resume before sending it to a potential employer.
- Address the email. In order to send the email to the company or HR representative, you need to address the email. Having the proper email address for the person or company can help ensure it is directed to the proper person.
- If there is more than one email address that may apply, consider adding them in the “to” field.
- You may want to blind copy yourself to make sure the email successfully sends.
- Proofread one final time. Before you send the email, read over the text one final time. This can help ensure that you haven’t made any mistakes or omitted important information.
Sending a Formal Letter of Interest as an Email Attachment
- Compose a formal letter of interest. If the company to which you would like to apply requires a more formal expression of interest, you can email a proper business letter as an attachment. This can help show a potential employer that you understand the formality of the company and make you appear more professional.
- You can compose a formal business letter by following the steps for drafting and proofreading an email of interest.
- You’ll need to add a couple of additional sections to a formal letter you plan to attach to an email including formal heading and addresses and a formal closing.
- Make sure the letter is on letterhead. You can copy and paste your letterhead onto a word document.
- On the first line of the letter, write in the date.
- Immediately underneath the date, put the address of the potential employer. Address it either to the possible supervisor or the human resources department.
- Include your contact information underneath the potential employer’s information including address, telephone number, and email address.
- Compose a brief introductory email. Since you are going to attach a more formal letter of interest to your email, write a brief introductory email. This can point the company or HR representative to your letter and resume, or any other relevant documents.
- The email should include: a greeting and short paragraph explaining your interest, the attached letter and other relevant documents, and a closing.
- Your greeting should say “Dear Ms. Smith” followed by a comma. If you cannot locate the name of the person in charge of hiring, you can use “To Whom It May concern” followed by a colon.
- Your short paragraph can say something like “I am interested in exploring employment opportunities with your company and feel that I can make a significant contribution to your mission. I’ve attached a formal letter of interest and my resume with this email. They address my desire to work for your company as well as my skills and qualifications.”
- Your closing can say “I look forward to hearing from you. Please feel free to contact me at any time by email or phone.” End with “Sincerely” followed by a comma.
- Attach your formal letter, resume, and relevant files. Add your letter of intent and resume to your email. You may want to include other relevant files such as a performance review or recommendation letter. This can help the prospective employer get a better sense of you and your qualifications.
- Place the proper email address in the “to” field. In order to send the email to the company or HR representative, put the person’s address in the proper field. Having the right email address for the person or company can help ensure it is directed to the proper person.
- If there is more than one email address that may apply, consider adding them in the “to” field.
- You can blind copy yourself to ensure the email successfully sends.
- Read through the email and attachments one final time. Before you send the email, read over the texts one final time. This can help ensure that there aren’t any spelling or grammar mistakes or any missing information.
