Some people meticulously write their resume but then treat their cover letter as an afterthought, resulting in a mistake-riddled, dull and underperforming document. It is important to ensure your job search tool kit is fully equipped with high-quality, well-honed marketing messages that are blunder-free. The following four cover letter mistakes-and accompanying remedies-will help sharpen your cover letter saw.



1. Using a Generic Salutation. While it is not always possible to obtain the name of the cover letter recipient, often, with a little digging, you can!



The Fix. One example is to use LinkedIn. Let's say you discover an opening for an electrical engineer position at an engineering organization's website. The position description indicates the employee will report to the lead electrical engineer. You decide (initially) to bypass the company's automated application system so you can customize your communications.



You sail over to LinkedIn and begin researching. Use the advanced search feature and type in "name of company" for the company name, "lead electrical engineer" for keywords and "64152" for a zip code for greater Kansas City (where the company headquarters and this position are located) and click enter. Your results will appear.



Search within your first or second tier contacts. You want to be sure to land on the contact with lead electrical engineer in the title. You will have access to that person's first and last name. This information, along with the company's mailing address which you can generally pick up at a corporate website, will equip you to create a custom-addressed letter.



This is just one of many examples to research contact names that will help you tailor your cover letter versus writing a generic "Dear Hiring Manager" salutation. Another method is to use Glassdoor's Inside Connections feature that finds any connections to companies you search for through your friends on Facebook.



2. Peppering The Letter With "I." While the cover letter touts your value, you should be familiar with the reader's areas of pain and heartily address their needs with your solutions.



The Fix. While it is nearly impossible not to use the words I or my in the cover letter, you can slant the tone and construct your sentences to better reverberate with the reader's needs. For example, instead of launching into a diatribe of "I did this" or "I did that," you might lead into a letter with something like:



"Simplifying complicated information in measurable, digestible ways to align stakeholders is my talent." Notice how my is used, but the sentence does not lead with the first person possessive.



Also, consider directly connecting the dots of your traits with the current industry or market need. For example: "With more than 15 years' technology process management experience, I've learned to cut through the fog and chart a clear course. Clarifying routine processes versus necessary processes has sharpened investigative abilities¡­ (etc.). These traits are particularly imperative in the current tumultuous economic client.