Creating a cover letter will help you to introduce yourself to potential employers, showcase your unique selling points, and demonstrate your written communication skills. Here are 8 cover letter mistakes and how to avoid them.
- Not writing a personal statement
- Making it too long
- Talking about salary expectations
- Repeating information from your CV
- Highlighting a lack of experience or irrelevant work
- Ignoring incorrect formatting
- Forgetting to proofread
- Using a generic cover letter for every role
1. Not writing a personal statement
A cover letter should give a brief indication of why you believe you’re right for the role. A personal statement is great to introduce yourself, discuss your interest in the specific role and company, and how you will be an asset if selected. Your cover letter should be positive and focused on your future, as well as highlighting your skills, strengths, talents, and accomplishments.
2. Making it too long
Keep your cover letter to 250-400 words or three to four concise paragraphs (ideally, one page or less in length). Making your cover letter too long can overwhelm potential employers, so it’s best to provide short summaries and save some of your examples and scenarios for the interview stage.
3. Talking about salary expectations
Unless the employer has asked you to do so, you should avoid discussing your salary expectations. If you talk about salary expectations too soon, it will appear that you are more interested in the perks the job offers you than how you can contribute to the company.
4. Repeating information from your CV
Cover letters introduce you to the employer and explain your interest in the position, while CVs provide an overview of your professional history, educational background, skills, and achievements. You should treat a cover letter separately as the information should support and enhance what you’ve detailed in your CV. If you’d like CV advice, read our articles on ‘How to write a CV‘ or ‘How to write a CV with no experience‘.
5. Highlighting a lack of experience or irrelevant work
If you have a lack of experience or relevant work, you may want to explain this to ease concerns; however, it’s best to focus on highlighting the skills and talents you already have can help you prepare to be the best person for the position. You can explain instead the things your experience has taught you and how it has led you to the role you are applying for and how you plan to transfer the skills and knowledge you learned to add value to the company and succeed in your new role.
6. Ignoring incorrect formatting
It is important to use a professional format with clear sections and a readable font. Avoid using too many graphic elements or colours that will distract from your message. It’s professional to include your address in the top right column and the address of your employer in the top left column of your letter. Avoid starting your cover letter with “To whom it may concern” and try to find the hiring manager’s name. Check out our free cover letter template for an example.
7. Forgetting to proofread
It’s important to proofread your cover letter before submitting to ensure you pick up on errors such as spelling or grammar mistakes, improper use of punctuation, inaccurate information and missing details. You can use AI programmes to help with this, Grammarly is great for this reason!
8. Using a generic cover letter for every job role
Using a generic template without personalising it to the company and the role you’re applying for can make your cover letter blend in with others. Therefore, tailoring your cover letter and linking your skills and experience to the person specification can help you stand out among others applying. </p>
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Last updated on 21 May 2026
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