A receptionist has a crucial role in an organization because the first person you meet when visiting an organization for the first time is a receptionist. Due to this, a receptionist job becomes highly competitive. As one of the applicant who want to be noticed, you must write a professional receptionist cover letter to increase the chances of your hiring in that particular organization.
To write a receptionist cover letter to apply for a job, you must understand the job description and write the letter according to it. This article provides all the information and tips you’ll need to write and format a winning receptionist cover letter.
Physical Letter v/s Email
Writing a receptionist cover letter in physical form is different from writing it as an email. To write your cover letter as a physical letter, take note of writing it in business letter format and include the company contact information, date, a business salutation, the body of your letter, your contact information, and justify to the left-hand side. To close your physical written letter, put your handwritten signatures.
If you write an email cover letter, choose a subject that clearly explains what the body entails and add your name. Next, add a business salutation and the body of your email as that of a physical cover letter. Finally, close your email cover letter by putting your full name, followed by your phone number. And if it’s an email attachment, put your typed signature (your name).
Pre-Considerations
After seeing a receptionist job description, you must consider specific things before writing your receptionist cover letter. The following are the pre considerations before writing your cover letter:
Read the job description and follow the directions
The first thing you will see is a job description informing you that there is a vacant position for a receptionist. Make sure to read the job description carefully to figure out what the employer is seeking from the applicant. The employer may request you to send the letter to a specific place or add some specific information in the letter, make sure to follow all the guidelines given in the job description.
Find out the name of the recipient
It’s best to avoid general salutation while writing your receptionist cover letter. Instead, know the recipient’s name and use it directly on your cover letter. It gives you a higher chance of being hired and personal touch to the cover letter.
Formatting guidelines
As a prospective receptionist, one of the skills your employer expects is document formatting skills. Therefore, you should show professionalism if you format your receptionist cover letter professionally.
The following are the guidelines to format your cover letter:
- Your receptionist cover letter should contain a professional header containing the date of the letter, the name and contact information of the recipient, and a professional salutation.
- Write the body of your letter and format it briefly.
- After the body, write a professional closing salutation (sincerely).
- Use a one-inch margin for your typed cover letter page layout.
- Line spacing throughout the document must be 1.0 or 1.15 inches.
- Use any easily readable font such as Arial or Times New Roman for your letter and use 11 or 12pt font size.
- Align your cover letter to the left as the left alignment is easy to read.
Writing a Receptionist Cover Letter
The following are the key things you need to write in your receptionist cover letter to make you win an interview and get a job:
State the purpose of writing
Always write about the job you are applying for in the first paragraph of your cover letter and state the purpose of writing to show the recipient you know what you are writing. In addition, write about where did you saw the job posting. You can also consider writing the date on which the job is posted.
Provide your brief educational background
Highlighting your educational background in your receptionist cover letter makes you get noticed by your employer. Write how your educational background is relevant to the receptionist job and how your speciality and skills make you suitable for the receptionist job.
Highlight relevant experience and accomplishments
Highlighting your relevant experience is highly recommended for you to win a job when writing your cover letter. Therefore, it would be best to explain relevant achievements related to the receptionist job description instead of explaining irrelevant achievements by making your letter voluminous.
Highlight your receptionist skills
If you want to win a receptionist job with your receptionist cover letter, you need to highlight relevant receptionist skills to make your employer know you are fit for the job.Always include your interpersonal skills in your cover letter, as interpersonal skills relate to how you are different from others.Examples of receptionist interpersonal skills are patience, leadership, responsibility, dependability, prioritisation, communication skills, people skills, organizational skills, initiative, teamwork, and telephone etiquette.
Explain why you want to work by showing enthusiasm
Employers seek receptionists who are friendly and eager to work for them because friendly receptionists create a good relationship between their organization and clients. Showing enthusiasm to your employer aid in getting hired for a receptionist job.
Write about what you can do
Your cover letter for the receptionist post is an excellent chance to emphasize what you can do. It’s the first introduction between you and your employer. Therefore, you have to utilize the chance by truthfully writing about what you can do as a receptionist. Also, write about how you’d be a great asset to the company you are writing the cover letter to and relate it to your reputation in your previous company by giving examples.
Write a call-to-action statement
Before thanking your employer, you should always write a call-to-action statement at the end of your cover letter. Writing a call-to-action statement makes you win an interview with your employer.
Template & Sample
Given below are the Receptionist Cover Letter template and sample that you can modify and use for writing your own letter:
Template
[Date]
[Company’s manager name]
[Name of the company]
[Address of the company]
[Contact information]
Dear [Manager’s name],
In response to your advertisement posted on [mention the date of posting], seeking a receptionist at [name of company], I am writing as a highly experienced receptionist to express my interest in your receptionist job post.
I have [mention your educational qualification] in [mention specialization] from [university/college name].
I have [mention the number of years] experience working as a receptionist in [previous organization’s name]. My skills are in match with the requirements in your job description. My skills and background make me an excellent candidate to join your organization in promoting its magnificent name.
My [mention your receptionist skills] make me fit for administrative support as I can handle multiple phone calls and visitors in your organization. In addition, I can leverage good customer service skills to communicate with my colleagues and clients by paying attention to details, decision-making, and teamwork.
I will be a great help in managing any data in your organization because I am computer literate. I can handle [list some computer software tasks relating to a receptionist job] and other computer software programs.
Please see my attached resume to get more information on my work history. I would appreciate it if we could discuss more the receptionist job. So you can confirm more on how to leverage my skills in promoting your organization’s name.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
[Your full name]
[Signature]
Sample
January 20, 20xx
Alex James
FYB Exporting companies
234 Coffee Road
Coffee City, MY F5891
Dear Mr. Alex,
In response to your advertisement posted on January 16, 20xx, seeking a receptionist at FYB exporting companies, I am writing as a highly experienced receptionist to express my interest in your receptionist job post. I have a master’s degree in Information Technology and Computer Science from the Allstar University of Technology.
I have seven years of experience working as a receptionist in Maryland holdings. My skills are in match with the requirements in your job description. My skills and background make me an excellent candidate to join your organization in promoting its magnificent name.
My telephone etiquette, communication, and organizational skills make me fit for administrative support as I can handle multiple phone calls and visitors in your organization. In addition, I can leverage good customer service skills to communicate with my colleagues and clients by paying attention to details, decision-making, and teamwork.
I will be a great help in managing any data in your organization because I am computer literate. I can handle Microsoft office excel, word, PowerPoint, Outlook, QuickBooks, and other computer software programs.
Please see my attached resume to get more information on my work history. I would appreciate it if we could discuss more the receptionist job. So you can confirm more on how to leverage my skills in promoting your organization’s name.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Arseni Riajski
[Signature]
Free Templates
Here is a collection of free templates that you can easily download from our site:
Tips for Writing
Suppose you’d like to write a receptionist cover letter that will impress your potential employers. In that case, you have to consider the following tips to write your cover letter to have higher chances of being employed:
Use keyword
A great tip for writing a receptionist cover letter is using the keyword in the job description you are applying for. Then, you highlight the skills requested in the job posting and include them in your cover letter to help your employer know that you are fit for the job.
Provide examples
The next tip to consider in your cover letter writing is to give examples of how you used your skills in solving any challenge in your previous organization. Providing an example is showing your employer that you are the right person for the receptionist job.
Customise each cover letter according to the need
Job seekers often use the same cover letter for different jobs. But it’s not advisable because there will be a mix-up in the companies’ names and specific skills requested. As a receptionist, you are expected to have excellent writing skills to write different cover letters for different jobs.
Focus on skills and strengths
As a receptionist, you should focus on your skills and strengths directly related to the job requirements rather than other skills. Focusing on your skills and strengths makes the hiring manager quickly know that you are fit for the receptionist job.
Proofread
One last thing after completely writing your receptionist cover letter is proofreading. You have to proofread your cover letter and make sure there is no grammatical or spelling error. Because as a receptionist, you have to be accurate in details. Making mistakes in your cover letter shows you are not a professional applicant. You can quickly detect mistakes in your cover letter by reading your letter aloud or by using a spell checker.
Conclusion
A receptionist cover letter is written to apply for a receptionist job. Therefore, writing an outstanding and error-free cover letter is essential to winning a receptionist job. In addition, it’s essential to read the receptionist’s job description to get accurate information on where to send the letter and who will be receiving it. It’s also pertinent to add some relevant receptionist skills to your cover letter so your employer can know you are the right person for their job. Lastly, it’s essential to edit and proofread your cover letter before submitting it to your employer.
