How to write a cover letter that complements your CV

A cover letter is the one place in your application where you can show personality and explain, in your own words, why you are the right person for the role. Where your CV lists what you have done, your cover letter connects the dots: it tells the hiring manager how your experience maps to their needs. A strong letter is concise, specific and tailored — never a generic paragraph that could belong to anyone.

Start with a clear header: your name and contact details, the date, and the recruiter or hiring manager's name if you know it. Open with a strong first sentence that names the role you are applying for and one concrete reason you are a great fit — for example, "I am a product designer with six years in fintech, and I would love to bring that experience to the team at Mosaic." Avoid weak openings like "I am writing to apply for the job posted on your website."

In the body, pick two or three achievements from your CV and expand on the story behind them. Explain the problem, what you did, and the result — then connect it directly to something in the job description. This is where tailoring matters most: a paragraph that mirrors the employer's stated priorities signals that you have read the posting and understood it. Keep each paragraph focused on one idea.

Close with a confident, simple call to action: thank the reader for their time, restate your enthusiasm, and say you would welcome the chance to discuss the role further. Sign off professionally. The whole letter should fit on a single page — roughly 250 to 400 words. Recruiters skim, so keep sentences short and use white space generously.

Common mistakes to avoid: repeating your CV word for word, writing in a stiff or overly formal tone, addressing the letter "To whom it may concern" when a name is available, and forgetting to proofread. A single typo can undercut an otherwise strong letter, so read it aloud and run a spell-check before you send. Pair a tailored cover letter with a clean, well-structured CV and your application will stand out for the right reasons.