A resume with a "for everyman" cover letter is
junk mail. A resume without a cover letter is used to line the
bottom of the birdcage. Most direct mail hits the trash barrel
between the mailbox and the house. All unexpected and standard
resumes go from the IN box to the trash box. Some may generate a
rejection form letter; most get ignored; 99.2 percent get
tossed.
When a salesperson
calls on a customer without an appointment it is a cold call. Cold
calls have a low success rate. The customer may have absolutely no
need for the product, may not even be in the office. Telemarketers
who call at dinnertime have a low success rate. The customer may be
too busy to talk, may have absolutely no need for the product, or
may not be home. Resumes that arrive without invitation have a low
success rate. The person who receives the resume may have no need
for an additional employee, may not even be the hiring person.
You are the product,
and your resume is your sales literature. Super salespeople never
send literature before meeting with a prospective customer. They
know that sales literature sent prior to a need analysis is odds-on
to be irrelevant, off target, and unread. Super salespeople send
literature after the first interview or bring it with them on
follow-up calls. If the literature is not completely customized to
the customer's needs, the salesperson highlights those product
benefits most meaningful to the customer. Super salespeople create
interest in their product and use sales literature to reaffirm and
to leave a footprint, a product remembrance.
You must heed the
example of the super salesperson. Your resume has much more
validity and Velcro if the customer reads it after talking to you,
hearing about you, or meeting you. This is particularly true if
your resume is written for the hirer after you have interviewed the
hirer. Your resume will validate your ability to deliver what the
customer - the hirer - needs.
Turn junk mail into
money mail. Don't send a resume without proper setup. If possible
deliver your resume in person. Present your resume. Follow up with
your resume.