Resumania®: How to Close a Cover Letter

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What You Need to Know About How to Close a Cover Letter

How do you close a cover letter?
What is the best way to end a cover letter?
Examples of how not to close a cover letter
Final tips on how to close a cover letter

How you close a cover letter can make just as much of an impression as how you open it, so always remember that your cover letter closing matters. Here are some examples of what to include in the last paragraph of a cover letter — and some examples that show you what not to do.

Many job seekers focus all their attention on polishing their resume, giving less importance to writing a strong cover letter. But it isn’t just a formality. It’s at least as important as your resume, and there’s an argument to made that a cover letter can be even more essential: If your cover letter doesn’t capture a hiring manager’s attention, your resume might not get a look at all.

Your resume may spell out your skills, but it’s your cover letter that gives you the opportunity to convince a potential employer that you would be an asset to the company and can hit the ground running. And the closing paragraph of your letter is key — it leaves the final impression of you with a hiring manager before considering the next move. Your conclusion should propel them to take the action step of contacting you to schedule an interview.

Aim for accomplishing three tasks with the end of a cover letter so that moving the process forward is the on the hiring manager's to-do list after reading it.

Sum up your strengths. In recasting your professional strengths, don’t simply repeat phrases the hiring manager has already read. Use fresh language to succinctly make your case in the close. (See examples of the last paragraph in a closing letter below.)

Be polite and confident. A cover letter closing like, “I look forward to hearing from you,” won’t spur a manager to pick up the phone. Instead, you could write, “I look forward to speaking with you about how I can put my skills to work for ABC Widgets.” Politely request an interview; don’t demand one or say you’ll call the office in the coming week. You want to be confident, not pushy, and knowing how to close a cover letter will help you skillfully reinforce the cover letter’s confident — but not brash — tone.

Say thanks. When considering how to end a cover letter, be sure to include a thank-you message. Offer thanks for their time and consideration, and choose a professional closing salutation such as, “Sincerely,” “Best regards” or “Thank you for your consideration.” Avoid overly familiar phrases like, “Yours,” “Cheers” or “Take care.”

As far as tone, use the same style in your final paragraph that you employed in crafting the rest of your cover letter: Keep it professional. This isn’t the place or time for jokes, text-message shorthand, strong emotion, exclamation points or casual language.

Be sure to keep your cover letter to one page and indicate any email attachments, as well as enclosures or documents the hiring manager may expect to receive related to your application.

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What are some of the best closing lines for a cover letter? The precise wording of a strong closing can vary, but all effective endings include a polite tone, an eagerness to discuss more details about your suitability for the role, and gratitude at being considered. Below are some options with those three elements to help you draft a strong cover letter closing:

“Thank you for your time. I look forward to speaking with you about my experience and passion for all aspects of [the role in question]. You can reach me at [phone number and email].”

“I would love the chance to further discuss the position and what skills I’d bring to the job. Thank you for considering my application.”

“I believe my five years of experience in [your profession], specifically working in [your area of experience most related to the job you’re seeking], will be an excellent match for this job. I welcome the chance to discuss how my qualifications will contribute to [name of firm]’s success. Thank you for your consideration.”

“With my extensive [are of experience most relevant to the role] experience, I believe I can quickly get up to speed in this position. I’d welcome the opportunity to speak with you more about my qualifications at [phone number and email]. Thank you for your time.”

You can also benefit from studying examples of what you should absolutely not do. Resumania® offers examples of resumes and cover letters that missed the mark. Here are some amusing real-life cover letter closings and sign-offs that our company has come across:

“All I ask is for you to consider my perspicacious aspiration to become an erudite factotum in your organization.”

“Finally, as an overview, I love to collaborate to enlighten direction based on targeted markets.”

“Please, before you blow me off as ‘overqualified,’ understand that what I am overqualified for is being a department-store greeter.”

“Making me an addition to this workforce will not be a problem.”

“Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing from you in the new future.”

This last embarrassing typo is from a job candidate whose first name is Doug: “Sincerely, Dog.”

As with other parts of the note, your cover letter closing should be informative, concise and correct. Bad grammar, punctuation errors or misspellings might be all the incentive a hiring manager needs to toss your application aside for lacking attention to detail.

Don’t rely on spell-check. Proofread your submission carefully, and get someone else to look at it as well. Imagine yourself reading it from a hiring manager’s perspective, and when you get to the end, reflect on what that hypothetical hiring manager’s takeaway might be.

Other steps that can be helpful in crafting the closing to the cover letter is rereading the job posting and revisiting the initial research you did on the company which will be receiving your cover letter.

By rereading the job posting, you may see something there that can help you find effective language in the closing, and by reviewing your company research, you may see ways to better word the closing — or other sections of your cover letter — that you missed before.

A carefully crafted end to a well-written cover letter can go a long way in helping you get that call or email to schedule an interview and, ultimately, in helping you land the job.

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