Graphic Designer Cover Letter

Many companies ask candidates to send a cover letter with their resumes. However, the cover letter isn’t a prerequisite to convincing the employer to invite you for an interview. Instead, it strengthens your job application and diverts the recruiter's attention toward your resume. 

A graphic designer cover letter, or a motivation letter, gives the employers a quick sneak peek into your interests, skills, education, and work experiences. This one-page document is important for a marketing agency looking for a graphic designer with specific job requirements.

An employer can quickly understand a candidate's potential through their cover letter. Meanwhile, this document can also help candidates stand out from the hundreds of applications a hiring manager receives daily. 

Let’s know what a compelling graphic designer cover letter includes and how you can easily write one. 

Is a Cover Letter Important?

According to Glassdoor’s e-book 50 HR and Recruiting Stats That Make You Think, a hiring manager receives more than 250 resumes for a job post. Of these resumes, 4 to 6 candidates receive the interview invitation, and only 1 gets the job. This means you need to do something extra to stand out from the other candidates. 

That’s when a cover letter can help you out. This document helps you give multiple reasons to the employer to prefer you over other applicants. 

Since a CV is usually concise, you can’t write down all of your professional achievements, awards, and skills in it. In contrast, a graphic designer cover letter allows you to highlight all your relevant accomplishments and experiences in more detail. 

Many companies don’t specifically ask for a cover letter. However, it’s good to send one along with your resume to show your willingness and interest in the job post. 

What Should a Graphic Designer Cover Letter Include?

A graphic designer cover letter includes four crucial elements to describe your professional experience, achievement, and education. These are:

Contact Details

Many applicants skip contact details in their cover letters because they have already included the information in their CVs. However, remember that your cover letter is not a complementary part of your CV, and hiring managers consider both documents separately. 

Mentioning contact details in your cover letter eliminates an employer’s need to look everywhere for your contact info. Instead, they can quickly ring you after reviewing your graphic designer cover letter.‍

Opening: Showcasing Your Interest in the Job Post

You only have a few seconds to convince the recruiter to hire you. So you need to hook them with your opening few sentences. Unfortunately, many employers usually ignore cover letters because the documents might seem unorganised, boring, or too long to read. 

Therefore, your first sentence must include your strengths to keep the hiring manager interested till the end.  

After that, discuss your skills and professional achievements relevant to the job vacancy. This will show the manager that you’ve devoted some time to reading the job post. 

Simply put, this is where you can tell the employer that you’re the right fit for this job post. So make sure to keep these tips in mind while writing a cover letter opener:

• Start with mentioning your employer’s name. If not provided, you can write "Dear Graphic Design Team Hiring Manager”.

• Always use "Ms." instead of “Miss” or “Mrs.”

• Add your portfolio link for extra points. 

Body: Showing Your Strengths, Skills, and Achievements 

Now that you’ve set the bait, the next step is to reel the hiring manager in. Your next para should highlight your strengths and skills related to the requirements mentioned in the job post. It will also make your application unique from others. 

Strengths

If you don’t have sufficient professional experience in graphic designing, you can emphasise your strengths more. For instance, “I am proficient at creating aesthetic social media marketing posts, brochures, flyers, logos, and infographics.”

Skills

Imagine that you’re also an expert in running multiple design-related programs and software. It will be excellent to bring the recruiter’s attention to this skill set in the body of your cover letter. 

For example, you can write, “I know how to create appealing graphics with Adobe Illustrator, Lightroom, and Photoshop."

Achievements

Now comes your achievements. Writing down your design-related achievements will tell the recruiter how you can help them. But before that, you need to determine the requirements of your hiring managers.

Let’s say the manager is looking for:

1. Experience

2. Increased conversion rate

3. Quick profit 

In such a case, the middle part of your cover letter must look like this:

“Serving as a graphic designer for 10+ years, I'm motivated to work with the design and development team at ABC Company. You already have an exceptional team, but my presence will open more doors for you in the market. 

Here is how I have helped my previous employer:

• My social media ads attracted more traffic to the client’s e-commerce website, leading to a boost in conversion rate by 20% in 16 months. This ultimately generated more sales and revenue for the company. 

• Completed 100+ graphic design projects annually. It convinced the existing customers to book more design projects with the company, leading to more profit. 

• Contributed to a website that won the Best Shopify Design Award.”

Ending Note: Gratitude and Call to Action

Lastly, write a few words of gratitude to the potential employer for taking the time and reviewing your cover letter. Next, write a strong sentence in the end that shows your interest, passion, and willingness to work with the employer. 

You can also add a “call to action” to finish a cover letter that puts a mark on the recruiter’s mind. Since you’re selling your skills in the cover letter, you need to sound interested but not needy or pushy. 

One exemplary ending note could be:

“I am curious to see what I can do for your company. Can we meet someday to discuss my ideas about enhancing the functionality of your website by 25% in the next 10 months?

Best Regards,

John Smith, Graphic Designer 

PS—I'd love to show you how I enhanced the revenue rate of my previous client by 20%!”

Tips for Writing a Compelling Graphic Designer Cover Letter

Remember these tips when writing your cover letter for the perfect execution:

• Your cover letter should be business-focused, but don’t go for an overly formal one. Avoid using templates, technical jargon, and complicated speech patterns.

• Briefly mention your personal qualities or relevant experiences in the cover letter.

• Don’t repeat your resume’s academic information in your cover letter. If you’ve mentioned the institute names in your resume, describe your volunteer work or research assistance in the cover letter.

• The appropriate length of a cover letter is 3 to 5 small paragraphs, which should take almost half a page. 

• Once you’re done writing your graphic designer cover letter, proofread it to rectify any spelling mistakes or awkward phrases.

FAQs

How Do I Write About Myself As a Graphic Designer?

Write about yourself as a graphic designer by hooking the hiring manager with your strengths. Then, you can elaborate on your skills, such as the design software you’re proficient at, and the achievements you scored with your previous employer. 

What Are the 4 Elements of a Cover Letter?

The four elements of a cover letter are:

• Your contact information

• Introduction or opening 

• Body, usually two paragraphs 

• A closing statement

If you want to make a start in the world of Graphic Design, or if you want to take your skills to the next level, then why not check out our online Graphic Design courses and invest in yourself today!