Cover letter:
– A greeting isn’t essential but if you include one, make it personal. “Hey Katie!” is great. “Dear Hiring Team” or “Dear Sir” is lazy and suggests you’re a bad fit for a friendly team like Barn2.
– Open with a genuine, friendly paragraph that brings you to life as a person
– Be enthusiastic, but believable
– Make it about the benefit for the employer, not you. Show how your skills will help the business, not how badly you want the job
– Summarize your current role and career history in a way that proves you fit. If you’ve worked somewhere high-profile or relevant, mention it in the introduction
– Structure the rest of your letter around the role description, point by point. Use the same terminology to show alignment
– Don’t just list your skills – provide real examples and and outcomes. Show the impact of your work on the employer’s business (e.g. “increased conversion rates by 15%” or “reduced QA rework by 40%”)
– Conclude by pulling it together and mentioning relevant soft skills

⚠️ AI note: Use AI for inspiration or proofreading, but don’t let it strip out your personality. Generic AI-written letters are painfully obvious and all sound the same. A real human voice instantly stands out.

Resume:
– Assume they’ll only open this if your cover letter has already convinced them. (I open about 10%)
– Don’t send the same generic resume to everyone – create an editable template and tailor it to every role you apply for
– A clean, stylish design with modern typography and color stands out and shows pride in your work.
– Check everything: spelling, grammar, capitalization, spacing, even whether your bullet points end consistently (I hope it upset you that I ended the previous bullet with a full-stop but not the others 😅)
– Tell a story. Explain gaps or job-hopping. Include side projects or volunteering that show you’re a motivated person who goes beyond the bare minimum.
– Skills-based resumes can work, but you still need to include your career history and qualifications. Find a balance between highlighting skills and showing the real experience behind them