The cover letter guide: a short letter that actually gets read

Most cover letters get skimmed in seconds. Yours should be short, specific and about them, not you.

Do you even need one?

If the ad asks for one: yes, always.
If it's optional: yes, for jobs you really want. It's a chance to explain a career change, a gap or a move.
If there's no place to upload one: skip it, or put two lines in the "message" box.

The four-part structure (under 250 words)

The hook (1 to 2 sentences). Why this job, at this company, right now. Mention something real: a product, a goal from the ad, a recent piece of news.
The proof (2 to 3 sentences). Your best result that matches their biggest need. Use a number.
The fit (2 sentences). One more skill they asked for, and how you've used it.
The close (1 sentence). Simple and confident.

Example

Dear Hiring Team,

I was excited to see you're growing the customer success team as you expand into Europe. I've spent the last four years doing exactly that.

At Brightline, I built our onboarding programme from scratch and cut the time for new customers to go live from 30 days to 12. I also led a team of five across London and Berlin, so I know how to keep customers happy in two time zones and three languages.

Your ad mentions working closely with product. In my current role I run a monthly feedback session with our product team, and three of our top-requested features came from it.

I'd love to talk about how I can help you grow in Europe.

Best, Sam Lee

Rules that make it work

Match their words. If the ad says "stakeholders", use "stakeholders".
One number beats three adjectives. "Cut costs by 18%" beats "highly motivated, results-driven, passionate".
Address a person if you can. If not, "Dear Hiring Team" is fine.
Same font and header as your resume. It looks like a set.
Save as PDF, named like "Sam Lee - Cover Letter - Brightline.pdf".

Mistakes that get letters skipped

Repeating your resume line by line.
Starting with "My name is…" (they can see that).
Apologising for a gap or missing skill.
Sending the same letter to everyone (easy to spot).
Going over one page.

Explaining a gap or a career change

One sentence, then move on:

"After two years caring for a family member, I'm ready to get back to the work I love, and I've kept my skills sharp with [course or project]."

Zoe writes a cover letter for every job you choose, in your voice, using only things you've really done. You read it, tweak it if you like, and send.