In your friends’ time of professional need, you’re always better off knowing the correct format for writing their letter of recommendation than winging it. Granted, most things in life tend to turn out for the better when executed off of a plan. And while there’s a time and place for relying on intuition and shooting from the proverbial hip, with crafting glowing letters of recommendation, it’s typically all chalked out beforehand.
Needless to say, improving your skills at writing a reference letter is by default going to improve the recommendee’s chances of being accepted for the job position. Here’s what you need to do to ensure that your efforts help your candidate friend pass their interview with flying colors.
What are we recommending, exactly?
Well, the question you should be asking is not “what”, but “who”.
For the uninformed, and if you skipped the introduction (lazy, are we?), a letter of recommendation is literally a letter where the author goes in-depth about the capabilities of another person (aka the recommendee) and discusses their strengths and qualifications at length. The purpose of the letter is to convince the recipient, usually the hiring manager, why the candidate in question would be a valuable asset to the company’s workforce.
Sometimes the letter of recommendation is only the cherry on top (the cake being the individual’s application). Others, it comes as the main ingredient. All right, enough meandering. Let’s get down to business.
Mistakes to avoid
Format is important, no matter what you’re writing. With letters of recommendation, how you go about is going to affect the flow of the content, and thereby the readability, and consequently the reader’s reception, and eventually their final decision. Sounds pretty important, doesn’t it?
Let’s discuss some no-no’s before we go into the yes-yes’s, though. I’ll be getting to the formatting how-to in a minute.
Firstly, you want to steer clear of huge blocks of text that immediately work to discourage the reader from consuming the content… which, you know, is nothing more than the very antithesis to reading.
Secondly, don’t mention any drawbacks or undesirable qualities. This isn't a counseling session. You’re literally explaining to the hiring manager why they should hire the individual; if you don’t see a good fit, then you shouldn’t be writing that letter in the first place. Simultaneously, you don’t want to be tooting their horn. Don’t exaggerate, and obviously don’t lie. Anything short of the truth will set your friend up for a disappointing and short-lived employment at that company because their performance won’t reflect your claims.
Thirdly, lean toward concise and brief writing. Don’t spend paragraphs discussing a point that can be explained in a sentence. (Granted, I find that I tend to disregard my own advice in that respect, but hey, being a teacher doesn’t make you a good student.)
Finally, a letter of recommendation’s core is typically five or six paragraphs long, give or take. And by core, I mean anything that isn’t contact details, greeting, and closing.
Onward to the core of this blog post:
How to format letters like a pro
There are eight components of your usual letter of recommendation. Let’s discuss them by the piece.
At the tippy top of your letter, you’ll want to include your contact details to:
a) let the reader know the person behind the bold statements enclosed within the document, and
b) give them an avenue for contacting you directly in case they have burning questions.
As a rule of thumb, you’ll want to mention your name, official job title, address, phone number, and of course, your email – in that order. Note that after writing your name, you’ll want to put a comma or dash between it and your job title. Afterward, go to the second line and list the rest of the information.
After you’ve listed your contact info, you’ll want to add the date the letter was written. Just so the recipient is sure the description you’ve written reflects the candidate in the present time, and not twelve years ago. Without a date, the timeliness of the information won’t stand up to scrutiny. You don’t want that. So, write that date.
This is where the letter technically begins, with a greeting. Ideally, you’ll want to have been made aware of the recipient’s name beforehand; just say “Dear” and add their name. In the case that you have not been made aware (which is your friend’s fault), a slightly viable option is “To Whom It May Concern.” I say slightly because it’s impersonal, and you’re always better off the more personalized your letter.
“Dear Hiring Manager” is a better option.
You want to be extremely concise here. Say who you’re recommending and what you’re recommending them for. Straight to the point.
Then you’ll want to introduce yourself and give the recipient cause for taking your opinion seriously. That is, you want to paint a credible picture of yourself – while still retaining brevity. Give just a tidbit of information.
Afterward, give them a sample of the reasons you’re recommending the candidate. Mention a few key qualities or abilities that would pique the reader’s interest.
Jeez, it’s almost like we’re back in English class!
All right, here you start going into more detail on why you think the candidate is going to be a stellar addition to the recipient’s company. If you’re unsure how to go about this, mention two major accomplishments. (Generic description that lacks real-world examples will make them lose interest swiftly.)
You can quickly distill everything you went through into a few lines, reaffirming that your professional opinion is strongly supporting the candidate’s addition to the hiring manager’s company. Also, feel free to make a passing comment on their skills again.
Your penultimate step is to invite them to contact you in case they have any questions, where you list your preferred contact details again. This can be just one line.
Finally, sign off the letter with “Sincerely” (or anything that maintains a professional tone), add your signature, and ta-da! You’ve written a letter of recommendation.
If this is your first time writing a letter of recommendation, worry not. Just follow this format closely, and your piece will have less room for error. Want more info on advancing you (and your friends’) career? Check out our blog here!
