We here at US Music Jobs wanted to address the mysterious cover letter and how to make it work for you.

A cover letter serves as your first introduction to an employer. How do you want to shape their first impression? Yes your resume needs to be impressive, but what if your cover letter isn’t doing you justice, and the employer never even gets to your resume? That’s the first hurdle – getting an employer to notice you.

Keep it short
You don’t want to run on for pages; a paragraph or two will go a long way. Highlight your career objectives, what attributes you bring to the table, and how your work history will help you achieve their goals. Let it be a reflection of you and your abilities and demonstrate why you’re the optimum candidate for them. It’s all about making you stand out amongst the crowd.

Language
Be sure there are no typos or grammatical errors, and use complete sentences with correct punctuation. If you don’t put time into presentation of yourself – why should an employer bother to pay attention? Don’t forget to proofread!

Stay professional
There’s a fine line between being professional and overly casual, so tread carefully. Use correct vocabulary and structure to achieve a serious yet friendly tone – this is not an email to a buddy! See the below examples of introductions, and think about who the employer would consider hiring:

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We here at US Music Jobs wanted to address a few pitfalls that every job seeker falls into from time to time in their job hunt, as well as how to correct these missteps. We want YOU to get the most out of US Music Jobs. This post deals with…

Proofreading
So many people skip this essential part of the application process. When was the last time you re-read and updated your resume details, especially your cover letter?

There are many grammatical and spelling errors that occur when submitting a job application that a spellchecker does not pick up. For example, most commonly misused are the trio of their, there, and they’re. Another word that often trips people up through speedy typing is from, which usually becomes form.

Your job hunt will most definitely be cut short by an employer if your cover letter, essentially your first introduction, includes errors. These errors often occur from intelligent professionals who are simply not carefully proofreading. You’re invested in your job hunt and your career, and that’s how you should portray yourself to an employer as well.

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So I’ve recently finished reading Quincy Jones’ autobiography. I’ve always known the guy is a legend and that he’s worked on more projects than I could ever dream about, but reading the book has catapulted him even further into legend status in my mind, if that was possible. Within a few pages (or within a few years of his life), he would casually mention performing with Frank Sinatra in Vegas, becoming the first black VP of any record label, scoring the soundtrack for Ironside and hanging out with his pal Steve McQueen.

It got me to thinking, how on earth does one person have so much scope or influence?
What was the key to his incredible success? His determination? Sure that was a factor; he had more than his fair share of troughs along the way and always pushed on through. His passion for music? Possibly; he would be out listening to and writing music while other kids would be throwing a baseball around. But there’s plenty of passionate and determined people out there who either struggle to get by or don’t make it at all. The answer is a bit of both of the above, combined with…. talent.

A huge, unscalable, stratospheric dosage of talent.

“There’s lots of undiscovered talent out there too” I hear you say. Well, yes, but my point is that the different areas are not exclusive. Believe it or not, people often forget about the talent part. Everyone’s worrying about not “Getting a Break” (link) because “it’s who you know” etc. That can also be true in part, I just thought I’d emphasise the fact that you have to hone your skills in the studio along with having to constantly market yourself to your target. It does get infuriating, the amount of artists that develop relationships and reach key industry shakers with their demos only to hand over something weak and uninspiring. As an old college tutor of mine used to say…

“You can’t make Chicken Soup out of Chicken $h!t”.

Refining, improving, and showing the best of yourself should also apply to your Music Jobs profile. Adding your best mp3s, updating your resume, and adding some appropriate photos means that when you are searched or referred by people, you have a stronger chance of a foot in the door, and ultimately, successful connections in the music industry.

Lee Jarvis.

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Well, here we go with the launch of the US Music Jobs blogs! We hope to make your visit to the Music Jobs website a bit more informative and enjoyable, with news, reviews, advice and gossip from around the world. My ’specialist subject’ is discussing the digital music revolution, music 2.0, music marketing strategies, social networking and share music job finding tools.

Having said that, I aim to cover as much of the music world as possible. I love going to live gigs, so you’ll hear my rants on Dance, Jazz or Rock, and I’ll also bring you news from major labels and their latest troubles. I hope to cover these as completely as I can, and I expect a flurry of adulation / abuse as I attempt to do so. You guys may know more or feel different about what I write, so tell me so!  I enjoy the honest replies – blogs are supposed to be interactive, so please comment on anything you feel strongly about. I need to know what amuses and disgusts you so that I can delve deeper into the subjects that you all want to hear about. The Music Industry is a big ol’ world, and I only have two hands and one groggy brain to try and get it all across to you…. but bear with me, it’ll be a fun journey.

Lee Jarvis.

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