While starting a cover letter correctly is vital for grabbing the hiring manager’s attention, your cover letter closing is where you reinforce your strongest selling points as a candidate.
Your cover letter ending should convince the hiring manager to call you in for an interview before another company snaps you up first.
Read on for six examples and tips on how to end a cover letter in a way that ties your application together and makes potential employers eager to meet you in person.
How to close a cover letter
Your cover letter closing needs to grab the attention of employers and guarantee they remember your application.
To accomplish this, when closing your cover letter, ensure you include the following three sections:
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- Final body paragraph — add your key selling points here
- Cover letter closing — push for an interview and say you’ll follow up
- Sign off — use HR-approved language to achieve the right level of formality
Here’s an example of a complete cover letter closing with all three sections highlighted:
6 tips for writing a strong cover letter ending (with examples)
Not sure exactly how to write a strong ending to your cover letter? Here are six tips to help you write a cover letter closing that makes employers want to call you in for an interview:
1. Restate your value as an employee
Before you prompt the hiring manager to contact you, you need to reinforce why by explaining how you’ll add value to the company if hired.
The best way to end a cover letter is by emphasizing what you can do for the employer.
State how your skills, expertise, and experience will directly benefit their business. By focusing on the needs of the company instead of your own, you’ll end your cover letter by showing the hiring manager you’re serious about the role and a results-driven candidate.
Here’s an example of how to restate your value as an employee when closing your cover letter:
I’d be honored to show you in an interview how I can bring the same results I had at Frontier Health, and boost employee retention at Monsanto Inc. by 10% in under a year through the implementation of low-cost training courses and employee benefits.
2. Express your passion for the industry and the company
One of the most desirable traits in an employee is genuine enthusiasm.
Employers know that passionate workers maintain and improve their performance over time, resulting in longer retention rates and higher productivity.
Use your cover letter closing paragraph to demonstrate how passionate you are about the work associated with the job, and you’ll immediately be viewed more favorably by hiring managers.
Here’s an example of how to show enthusiasm for the beauty industry when closing a cosmetologist cover letter:
As a devotee of the beauty industry and a loyal customer of Body+ Skincare, I’m excited to use my social media and marketing skills to bolster the company’s reach online. I can’t wait to share my ideas for how best to spread the brand’s message that everyone is beautiful.
3. Quantify your value as an employee
At the end of the day, businesses need to make revenue to be successful. If you show your potential employer exactly how you’d be able to contribute to the company’s bottom line or overall success, employers are much more likely to invite you for an interview.
In the last paragraph of your cover letter, make it clear that you’d be a strong asset to the company if hired by citing a previous accomplishment (with hard numbers to back it up).
Here’s an example of how to promote your ability to drive sales on a sales cover letter:
If hired, I’ll bring the same results-oriented mindset to Power Gym as I brought to UltraFit. I’m looking forward to showing you how I improved member retention by 35% and drove monthly sales of over $2500 in supplements and fitness accessories.
4. Focus on the company’s future
When applying for your target company, you should know their values and goals. Knowing the company’s goals allows you to establish a connection with the hiring manager, and shows how you can be a vital part of achieving the company’s mission.
If you explain in your cover letter closing how your objectives align with the organization’s and how you’ll help them grow, hiring managers will know you’re a dedicated employee and serious about the role.
Here’s an example of how a customer service representative shows they’re dedicated to their potential employer’s mission statement:
SmartMeals’ mission statement is that it wants to reinvent how people approach their diet. On your team, I would continue to develop my conscientious approach to customer service and help create the most compelling organic food shopping experience imaginable.
5. Show you’ve done your research on the company
Hiring managers value employees who are invested in the company and willing to learn about the job. One of the best ways to show you’re invested is by researching the company and referencing your research at the end of your cover letter.
There are several subjects you could choose to research about potential employers, such as their mission, the products they offer, or even their annual balance sheet (though the balance sheet is probably only relevant if you’re working in accounting or finance).
Sometimes simply browsing the company’s website is sufficient to find information to include when wrapping up your cover letter that’ll get the hiring manager’s attention and show them you’ve done some extra homework.
Here’s an example that shows you’ve done extra research in your cover letter closing:
After reviewing Lonestar’s 2022 balance sheet, I found the debt to equity ratio to be high in Q2. At my previous company, Skyward, I decreased their debt by 10% in under 2 years through altering inventory and storage costs. I would love to share my techniques in an interview and discuss how I could be an asset to Lonestar’s financial department.
6. Leave a time for following up with the hiring manager
Hiring managers want to hire motivated candidates who are ready and willing to invest their time and energy in excelling in their new position.
A quick and easy way to show the hiring manager that you’re motivated to excel at the job is by leaving a time in your cover letter closing for following up with them (assuming they haven’t contacted you yet about the position).
However, when leaving a time or date for contacting the hiring manager, ensure that you don’t come off as too pushy.
Here’s an example of a cover letter closing that leaves a time for following up:
I’m looking forward to discussing my skills and experience in more detail soon. I’ll be in touch next week to follow up, just to make sure you received my application. Thank you for your time and consideration.
How to sign off a cover letter
Once you’re done writing your cover letter’s closing paragraph, you need to politely sign off. It’s only a couple of words at most, but your sign-off is an important part of writing a cover letter.
You don’t want to sound too rigid and formal, but you also don’t want to come off as too relaxed and treat the hiring manager like an old friend.
Here are seven of the best sign-offs for your cover letter:
7 best cover letter sign-offs to use
- Sincerely
- Best
- Regards
- Thank you
- Respectfully
- Kind regards
- Best regards
(Optional) closing a cover letter with a P.S.
Now that you’re well-versed on how to conclude your cover letter, there is one (optional) final aspect to discuss – leaving a postscript (P.S).
If you have one knockout quality that makes you a unique candidate, or simply a favorite cover letter closing line, putting it in a P.S. can be a nice finishing touch.
Remember, though, a P.S. isn’t necessary for ending your cover letter, but it can be a powerful tool if used well. It’s best to omit it if you can’t think of anything worthwhile and meaningful to say, rather than just adding more fluff to your cover letter.
Here’s an example of a well-written P.S. for a cover letter ending:
P.S. — I consider myself a lifelong student, and would love the opportunity to apply my 10+ years of experience in education but also continue to learn as a member of your school faculty.