5 Things to remember when applying by e-mail

Read the advert – Any e-mail replying to a job advert that starts “I don’t have the degree/experience/industry background you asked for but…….” will be deleted immediately. If they stated that they are looking for someone with a degree in chemical engineering with five years experience in the petrochemical industry then that’s what they are looking for.Put the job you are applying for in the subject line of the e-mail – This makes life so much easier for the person who is going through the ad response and avoids your CV potentially ending up in the wrong folder by mistake.Address the person by name – If the advert gives a name of the person to apply to then use it. There is nothing worse than starting your cover letter with ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ or ‘To Whom it May Concern’ when the advert has clearly stated that you should respond to ‘Bob Smith’. If you do use their name then make sure you spell it correctly (in fact read the whole e-mail five times to make sure there are no spelling errors at all).Don’t use the same e-mail for more than one application – It may seem a good use of technology to send your CV to 20 jobs at the same time, but the chances are your e-mail will be deleted. Any potential employer is not going to be impressed to see that you have used the same e-mail to respond to other jobs.Remember to attach your CV – So often you are so excited about applying for the job you press the send button before you have attached your CV – doesn’t create a great first impression. Take your time, re-read what you have written, make sure the CV is attached, read the e-mail again and then (and only then) send it off.