ABSTRACT
The audience of a job-request message usually is one person—a busy person who may be receiving many similar requests. This recipient may be nervous about the upcoming hiring decision. The recipient of job-request correspondence wants something almost magical: They want a message that seems to promise that the writer would be the perfect employee. Employers often specify their preferred format. In a successful job-request message, the readers should include specific research to explain why they want to work for that particular organization. Again, a job-request message can be sent via email, an attached file, a website application form or a sheet of high-quality paper that they’ll put in an envelope and place in the mail. However, unless the readers design their own stationery, their job-request letter will be on a blank sheet of paper. The job-request message has four parts that usually translate into four paragraphs. In each paragraph, avoid sounding like a business-writing machine.
