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Customer success managers are vital to keeping a company’s clients engaged and satisfied, especially in industries that provide long-term services and products such as software.
If customers feel abandoned after they make their initial purchase, it’s more likely that they’ll be willing to move on as soon as they encounter a problem than they would if they had someone ready and able to help them.
Not just anyone can hold this position, though. Effective customer success managers need excellent interpersonal, problem-solving, strategic, management, and technical skills.
When you’re applying for a job in this area, employers want to make sure that you’re strong in these areas, so it’s important that you clearly show them that you are. One of the best places to do this is in your cover letter.
Your cover letter is your opportunity to tell the story of how the bullet-point lists on your resume relate to each other and this new job opening. You should always tailor your letter to the position you’re applying for, which means there is no one-size-fits-all letter. There are, however, some elements that need to be in every cover letter you write.
Looking for a job? These position are hiring now near you:
Your Contact Information
The Date
The Recipient’s Information
Salutation
Opening Paragraph
Body Paragraphs
Closing Lines
Generally, you should format your cover letter as you would a formal business letter. When you do this, you’ll put your name and contact information at the top of the page, the date you sent the letter beneath it, and the recipient’s name and company contact information below that.
If you’re sending your cover letter as an email, which is generally only a good idea if you’re following up after you hand your resume to the recipient at a networking event, you can leave off the header and simply include your contact information as a part of your signature.
With either format, open the letter with “Dear” followed by the person’s designation and last name (e.g., Ms. Wilson or Mr. Thompson). If you aren’t sure of their gender, drop the designation and use both their first and last names. If you don’t know their name, try your best to find it out, but simply use their job title if you can’t.
Once you have all of this in place, it’s time to start writing your letter.
When you’re opening your cover letter, it’s essential to keep your introductory paragraph engaging yet succinct. Name the position you’re applying for and the company that’s offering it, and give a brief summary of why you think you’d be a great fit for the job.
Do you have experience in a similar position? Do your past experiences match the job description well? Does this role align with something you’re passionate about?
Go through the job description, pick two or three of the most vital qualifications you meet, and then mention them in the opening paragraph of your cover letter. You can (and should) go into more detail about them in the body paragraphs if you need to, so keep them brief in this section.
As you write, keep in mind the goal of your opening sentences: to introduce yourself in a way that convinces the reader to keep reading.
Here’s an example of what this paragraph could look like:
I’m writing in regard to the customer success manager position at Peaksmouth Company. With my four years of experience as an account manager and degree in business management, I believe my skills would be an excellent fit for this position.
The body paragraphs of your cover letter are where you can really start selling yourself as a candidate. As you plan out and start writing your body paragraphs, make sure you hit these points:
Why you’re the best candidate for the job. Some positions are conducive to on-the-job training, but because organizations rely on their customer success managers’ expertise in order to keep their customers, employers want to know that you know what you’re doing before they hire you.
Use your cover letter to make your case for why you’re a qualified candidate, and strengthen this message by providing examples of your skills in action.
If you created systems that improved client retention rates by 15%, say so. If you overhauled your company’s customer service strategy based on your market research, resulting in another 10% increase in customer satisfaction, tell them about that too.
These stories are what make your application stand out. Every other candidate is likely going to say that they have communication, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills as well, but they can’t tell your stories.
What you’ll add to the organization. Companies want to know that you’re going to serve them and that you’re invested in their goals, not just your own. Talk about how your skills will further the organization’s mission, vision, and values.
This will take some research, but it will show that you’re invested in this position and are interested in being part of the organization, not just in a paycheck.
You can also do this by ensuring that the skills you talk about in your cover letter reflect those listed on the job description. No matter how impressive your background is, hiring managers will lose interest if you don’t meet any of their practical needs for the position.
Why you want the job. Employees who are passionate about their jobs are valuable assets to companies. Think about the reason why you want this position and weave it into your letter. This may be that it fits your skills well, that it involves something you care about, or that you will learn from it.
If nothing about the position itself stands out to you, you can talk about why you want to be a part of the company. Was there a recent article you saw that piqued your interest? Have you heard good things about the organization? Are you passionate about the company’s mission?
Whatever it is, find a way to express this in your letter. Putting some heart into your cover letter will bring your application to life and help it stand out to hiring managers.
Just make sure you aren’t mushy and are always truthful. Between your cover letter and your interview, hiring managers will pick up on insincerity and white lies, and they won’t want to hire you if they do.
To help you see how all of this fits together, here’s an example of some body paragraphs:
During my time as an account manager, I was able to see the impact that quality service can have on maintaining customer loyalty. Not only did I hone my empathy, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills required for face-to-face customer service during this time, but I also learned how to strategically use market research and survey data to improve customers’ experience.
One of the ways I did this was by creating a new onboarding process for my clients. I had received some negative feedback about one of the processes we used, so I changed it in order to alleviate the negative aspects. My clients’ satisfaction surveys improved by 15% after that, and other members of my team started implementing the adjustments as well.
This project sparked my love for using data to solve problems and improve the entire customer experience. When I saw that this position needed someone to do that, I was excited to apply.
I was even more enthusiastic when I noticed that your mission is to treat customers like family. I’ve seen the impact this makes in my own interactions with clients, and I’d love to be a part of furthering that mission at Peaksmouth Company.
Most of your effort should go into the body paragraphs of your cover letter, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t write a conclusion of some kind. It only needs to be a line or two, but you should always wrap up your letter with a note of thanks for the hiring manager’s time and consideration, as well as a call to action of some kind.
Depending on the context, you could express your enthusiasm for continuing to talk about the position or ask them to contact you.
For example, you could say something like,
Thank you for your time and consideration, and I look forward to discussing this position with you further.
Looking for a job? These position are hiring now near you:
Autumn McCoy
2323 E 23rd St.
Topeka, KS 23232
autumnmccoy@email.com
232-232-2323August 23, 2020
Michael Scofield
Hiring Manager
Peaksmouth Company
6868 W 68th Ave.
Topeka, KS 23686Dear Mr. Scofield,
I’m writing in regard to the customer success manager position at Peaksmouth Company. With my four years of experience as an account manager and degree in business management, I believe my skills would be an excellent fit for this position.
During my time as an account manager, I was able to see the impact that quality service can have on maintaining customer loyalty. Not only did I hone my empathy, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills required for face-to-face customer service during this time, but I also learned how to strategically use market research and survey data to improve customers’ experience.
One of the ways I did this was by creating a new onboarding process for my clients. I had received some negative feedback about one of the processes we used, so I changed it in order to alleviate the negative aspects. My clients’ satisfaction surveys improved by 15% after that, and other members of my team started implementing the adjustments as well.
This project sparked my love for using data to solve problems and improve the entire customer experience. When I saw that this position needed someone to do that, I was excited to apply.
I was even more enthusiastic when I noticed that your mission is to treat customers like family. I’ve seen the impact this makes in my own interactions with clients, and I’d love to be a part of furthering that mission at Peaksmouth Company.
Thank you for your time and consideration, and I look forward to discussing this position with you further.
Sincerely,
Autumn McCoy (Handwritten signature)
Autumn McCoy