Applying for a Job via Email

​​How you find the job opening of your dreams (networking, LinkedIn, Indeed) is important.  How you apply for it is even more important.
Yes, you have a killer resume, yes, a friend is going to deliver it to the hiring manager, but at some point in time, you’re probably going to be asked to email that manager about that job.  That means your email needs to look as professional as your resume.
Let’s start with your email address.  Hopefully by now you are no longer using BunnyHop12@att.net!  If you don’t have a generic gmail account with Google, now is a great time to get one.  Use your name if possible.  FirstLast@gmail.com or First.Last@gmail.com.  The plainer the better and it’s free.  The font you use also should be professional and of course readable.  Times New Roman, Calibri, and Cambria in either 10 or 12 point type is recommended. It’s best not to use color in your text.
It’s important that you use the person’s name when possible, and make sure you spell it correctly.  If you don’t have a specific name, you can use Hiring Manager.  Always send a copy to yourself (use the blind copy or bcc button), then you have a record of the emails you’ve sent.
Your subject line should never be left blank, that’s when your email goes in the big black email hole.  List the position you are applying for in the subject line and include your name, so the person receiving it knows exactly who you are and what you’re applying for. 
Like a business letter, your email should start with a salutation and end with a thank you and your signature. And like a business letter – it should be brief. Your email signature should contain your contact information, and if you have one – a link to your LinkedIn profile.  Here’s a sample:
 
Lucille McGillicuddy
Director, Marketing Research
The Fabulous Companies
800 728 9001
 
If you have a well written cover letter, it’s great to just copy and paste that between your salutation and your thank you – be sure the fonts match and that nothing got left off!
When you have perfected your email – send it to yourself in order to be sure the formatting worked and that any files that you attached are easy to open.  Nothing’s worse for a hiring manager to get a great email and then they can’t open the attached resume.
Edit the text, edit the text, edit the text – get a friend to edit the text.  Nothing will sink you faster than typos, or misspelled words!
It sounds as though applying by email is hard – but once you get the basics set up in your computer, you’ll fly through it.  EBR Consulting wishes you many job opportunities!