Cover letters are a bear for many new job seekers. After the umpteenth job application, you might be tempted to copy and paste your cover letter or to give up on cover letters altogether—but do not do this! One cover letter never fits all, and a generic or missing cover letter is the kiss of death when you’re vying to stand out.

So back to the grind with you. And what can you as an entry-level job seeker to write a cover letter that gets you noticed?

Generally, to start

• Always, always, always submit a cover letter tailored to the job you want.
• You are not a robot, so don’t let your cover letter sound like one. Keep it professional, of course, but let your personality and passion shine through! (And if you’re not feeling passionate about this posting, is this really the job for you?)

In the first paragraph

• Introduce yourself!
• Did someone from the company refer you? (Namedropping: Not always glamorous but often effective.)
• Mention the position you’re interested in. If you’re excited or passionate about this work or this company, say so.
• It’s not enough to say you’re a great fit for the job—your cover letter must show this through examples from your journey.
• Offer a sneak peak at why you’d be awesome at this position, introducing what you’ll be talking about in the next two paragraphs.

In the second paragraph

• Sell your past experience!
• Draw overt lines between your job or volunteer experience, your accomplishments, and the qualities needed to successfully perform this job. Give greater voice to what may not be immediately apparent in your resume.
• If the position asks for solid attention to detail, talk about your experience editing the college newspaper, your experience preparing accurate client correspondence, your experience balancing the cash drawer, or your experience teaching at church camp.

In the third paragraph

• Sell your skills!
• As above, pick a skill the job requires (this can be a soft skill, like communication, or a technical skill, like a software program). Then describe a time you successfully employed this skill: what you did, how you did it, and what the outcomes were.
• Try to pick a powerful example with a positive outcome, and be sure to tell a succinct but engaging story.

In the fourth paragraph

• Finish strong!
• Keep your tone confident and positive. Avoid weak language like “If you think I might be a good candidate and you would like to talk more” in favor of “I look forward to discussing this position further.”
• Briefly summarize the points you hit in paragraphs two and three, mirroring your introduction but not copying and pasting that text.
• Offer a call to action—that action being for the employer to contact you for an interview.
• Always thank the reader for their time and consideration.

Generally, to finish

• Just when you think you’re done, proofread your cover letter one more time to look for embarrassing errors like wrong job title or wrong company name.
• It also helps to ask someone else to proofread your cover letter for anything you may have passed over.