In my industry, cover letters are being used less and less.  Many companies no longer want them but on those rare occasions when I do need one, I say: Dear (company name).

If there is no contact listed, usually there is a reason.

A Cover letter won't help you get an interview, and that is the #1 most critical step in all of job hunting.  There's a better, modern way to get interviews with people that can hire you.  Among its advantages is that it lets you go in to an interview pretty much pre-sold to the hiring authority.  IOW, if you use the method I'm going to tell you about and it results in an invitation to an interview, then that itself is a strong indication that the hiring authority believes you have what s/he is looking for in the kind of person they want to fill the position.

Here's what you should do:
* Send a Marketing letter directly to the hiring authority and in it, tell them about some of the benefits and advantages you can bring to the position to help him or her and the employer reach their business goals faster - as the result of your education and experience.

* IOW, address the main question that is on their mind, which is, namely:  What can YOU do for me?

* If you include enough key information about yourself, don't include a resume.  Instead, wait until they contact you in response to the letter you sent.

This strategy lets you get evaluated on factors that you can WIN on.  If you get evaluated based on a resume, you are more likely to not hear back from them, because companies today use resumes to screen people out.

So, skip old school methods, switch to modern methods, and the result? RESULTS!!

For more reality-based job hunting tips and pointers, send an email to
CareerKeysMan@gmail.com

TOM KELLUM
Job Hunter's Consultant & Strategist

This method works for advertised jobs as well as unadvertised positions -- and it's worked effectively since i first used it personally in 1986 - whenever I applied for a position as National Sales Manager for a software company in Glendale, California.

You will rarely ever see a job ad which names the hiring authority, so you will have to find out that person's name yourself.

BTW - I've also proven many times that you can send a Marketing letter addressed
to e.g. VP, Sales, CFO etc.  "Dear CFO.....

So, if you can't find a name, you can simply address your letter to a title.

Hi D19M66SGA,

When there's a blind job posting and no way to find a name, you don't really have a choice other than to use a generic salutation. Here are a few options:

"Dear Recruiter:" (If you know the posting is being handled by a recruiting firm)
"Dear Hiring Manager:"
"Dear Selection Committee" (This is appropriate in some fields in which hiring is done by committee)

I hope this helps!