Direct Response Letter

Recognizing that so many job-seekers use cover letters just to ask the advertiser to look at their resumes (which he's undoubtedly going to do anyhow), in 1972 I suggested to a number of my clients that they experiment with a new approach. Results since then have been amazingly good. Some job-seekers reported that advertisers phoned them the same day their letters were received; others reported receiving telegrams advising that advertisers had called and found the candidate not at home.

THE "DIRECT RESPONSE" LETTER

Assume for a minute that you are at an important job interview. During the course of the conversation, your prospective boss asks you a very specific question, such as: "Tell me about your managerial experience." Would you hand him a copy of your resume and say: "Why don't you look this document over and see if there is anything in it that answers your question." Of course not! You'd answer him as directly as you could. You'd define the extent of your managerial experience. You'd tell him when it occurred. And hopefully, you'd offer specific worthpoints to prove how your managerial experience actually helped the companies you worked for. While a direct response to your prospective employer's question seems so natural in an interview, only a handful of job-seekers make a similar effort when they respond to ads! It's easy to understand why. It takes only a few minutes to type up a standard cover letter and to slip it into an envelope along with a resume. It takes a great deal longer to compose a special letter that speaks clearly and directly to each of the advertiser's needs! But avoiding the extra effort might be a mistake if your resume isn't sufficient, by itself, to get you in the door. Good opportunities aren't advertised that often. Few job-seekers can afford to let one slip by for lack of trying.



If you accept in principle that responding directly to the specific needs stated in a job-wanted display ad makes sense, and agree that writing a special letter might be worth the extra time on your part, you may still be hesitant to take this approach. You may wonder about those instances where an advertiser asks for specific experience or qualifications that you cannot provide. What should you do then? If you analyze a particular ad and discover there are ten specific requirements sought by the advertiser and that you can fill only three of them, perhaps your best bet is just to send your resume with no cover letter and not worry if you never hear back. In those situations where you can respond to seven or eight out of ten needs, however, why not write a cogent, compelling letter proving that you are the best person the advertiser will find to fill these seven or eight needs, and don't mention the other two or three requirements. Rarely do the mails bring advertisers replies from an ideal candidate who possesses every qualification.

So the person placing the ad is most likely to hire the candidate who appears to meet most of his needs.

Let's assume for the moment that you and one other person do answer an ad that spells out ten specific qualifications. Let's assume, too, that you and your competition both match up to eight of the ten needs. In this instance neither of you is an "ideal" candidate, although you both come close. Now, let's say your competition responds to the ad in a typical fashion with a resume and a cover letter. But you respond with a letter in which you express your interest in the opportunity based on your belief that the advertiser's needs are matched by your background. Then, let's say you go on to review point by point each of the advertiser's specific needs and your qualifications that relate to them. And for good measure, you offer worthpoints describing how you succeeded in dealing with similar needs for the companies you have worked for. Who do you think the advertiser might call first? It's a good bet he'll call you. First, because you've shown genuine interest in his ad and have addressed yourself directly to it. And, secondly, because your ability to fill each of his stated needs is obvious. This is probably not true of your competitor's resume, which, after all, was not written specifically to respond to this one ad.

This actual direct-response letter was sent by Bob Thompson, a client of mine. Only the names have been changed.

Let's consider for a moment the specific techniques that Bob Thompson used:

• At the very beginning he expresses a genuine interest in the opportunity and gives a specific reason for his interest.
• Bob responds to each of the advertised needs, one by one, underscoring it at the start of the paragraph so that the advertiser knows which specific qualification he is replying to.
• As Thompson deals with a particular qualification he starts with a paragraph in which he provides sufficient specific information concerning his background (title, company, etc.) to assure the advertiser that he is, in fact, qualified to respond to the ad.
• In a separate paragraph, Bob describes a relevant worthpoint as proof that he is not just qualified by virtue of title or experience but has contributed in the particular needs area.
• The elements of the format taken together add up to this thought: "Mr. Advertiser, I understand the problem. I am qualified to deal with this sort of problem. And, perhaps more important, I've had luck in solving problems like it before."
• Thompson uses a separate paragraph to summarize other experience he considers relevant and to discuss his education. This last paragraph gives Bob's letter the flavor or a personally written "letter resume." Of course, Bob's letter is anything but this since it is in actuality a need-by-need response rather than a year-by-year chronology. What is important is that you feel Bob has provided a complete picture of himself in his letter; that he does not sound coy and mysterious.
• In the final paragraph Bob repeats his interest in the position and his reason for interest and asks to learn more about the advertiser's needs. It's a refreshing change from the many cover letters you may have seen, which end with the candidate asking for an interview in order "to review my background in greater detail."
  

Several facts surrounding this letter might interest you. First, Bob Thompson received a phone call from an executive recruiter within twenty-four hours of mailing his letter. Second, Bob was invited to go two thousand miles for an interview at the company's expense and was offered the job. Third, in his letter Bob discussed only three of the five stated needs. He was unable to meet two other qualifications so he left them out of his letter altogether. Fourth, the specific experiences Thompson alludes to in his letter actually occurred three years (or more) prior to his writing this letter. For two of the previous three years Bob had been vice-president at a different firm from the one he talks about in the beginning of his letter. For the past year, Bob had been both employed by a small real estate firm and then unemployed when things did not work out. As you looked over the letter, chances are you didn't realize the experiences Thompson reported were, in fact, quite dated.

Maybe you are bothered by this. Was Thompson less than honest in sending this letter and not submitting a resume? Should he have advised the advertiser in his letter that his experience was not current? If these questions concern you, it's because you are conditioned to responding to ads with a resume plus cover letter. Bob Thompson responded specifically to the advertiser's request that candidates provide background information on how they could fill the advertiser's particular needs. Had Thompson sent his resume, his chances of getting an interview would undoubtedly have been jeopardized. The direct-response letter may not be the traditional approach, then, but it was extremely effective in getting Bob Thompson what he wanted-an interview. Obviously when Bob got to his interview the weaknesses in his experience were exposed as he reviewed his background (and resume) with his prospective employer. And he still was offered the job.

This experience is not unique. It has occurred again and again with this type of direct-response letter. In Bob's case, he did not send a resume as it would have hurt his cause. In other instances it's worked with resumes when the resume has contained nothing in it that runs counter to the qualifications sought by the advertiser. The key to job search is still an offer. The direct-response letter is a door-opener, nothing more.