The salutation and the first line are where most cover letters stall out. You know the body paragraph you want to write — but “Dear Sir or Madam” feels wrong, and “I am writing to apply for…” feels worse.
Below are actual openers, salutations, and sign-offs you can adapt directly, organized by situation.
When you don’t have a hiring manager’s name
“To Whom It May Concern” reads as dated, and “Dear Sir or Madam” assumes a gender you don’t know. Before defaulting to either, spend two minutes checking the job posting itself, the company’s LinkedIn page, or the “About” or “Team” page on their site — the name is often listed, just not in the posting.
If it genuinely isn’t findable, these are all acceptable modern alternatives:
Dear Hiring Manager,
Dear [Company Name] Recruiting Team,
Dear [Department] Hiring Team,
Dear [Job Title] Search Committee,
“Dear Hiring Manager” is the safest default — specific enough to not read as lazy, generic enough to always be accurate. Reserve “Dear [Department] Hiring Team” for companies where the posting itself names a team or department.
Opening lines that actually work
The job of the first line is narrow: prove you’re not sending the same letter to fifty companies. Six approaches reliably do that, depending on your situation.
Lead with a referral
Jamie Torres on your data team suggested I reach out — after hearing about the analytics overhaul you’re planning, it sounds like exactly the kind of problem I’ve spent the last three years solving.
Lead with something specific about the company
Your shift from generic templates to ATS-tested designs is exactly the kind of product decision I want to be making — I’ve spent the last three years doing precisely that at a competing resume platform.
Lead with a relevant achievement
I rebuilt our onboarding email sequence around behavioral triggers instead of a fixed schedule, taking open rates from 12% to 34% in two months — the kind of measurable improvement I’d want to bring to your growth team.
Lead with a direct, specific interest
I’ve used three different resume builders professionally, and Wensa’s ATS-checker is the first one I’ve seen that actually explains why a score is low instead of just reporting the number — that kind of product thinking is why I’m applying for this role.
Lead with a return from a career break
After two years focused on caregiving, I’m returning to product marketing with the same skill set I left with, plus a level of project-juggling that only comes from running a household on a tight schedule — and this role’s mix of stakeholder coordination is exactly where I want to put that back to work.
Lead with an internal transfer
Two years on the support team taught me exactly where our onboarding flow loses customers — which is precisely the problem I’d want to help the product team solve directly, rather than routing feedback through a ticket queue.
All six work for the same underlying reason: they name something specific — a person, a company detail, a number, a personal circumstance, an opinion — that a form letter sent to fifty companies couldn’t contain. Read your own draft opener back and ask whether it survives having the company name swapped out. If it still makes sense for a different employer, it needs another pass.
Your shift from generic templates to ATS-tested designs is exactly the kind of product decision I want to be making.
I am writing to express my interest in the Product Manager position at your company.
For the rest of the letter once the opener is written — body paragraph structure, length, and format — see the complete step-by-step guide to writing a cover letter.
How to end a cover letter
The closing has one job: ask for the interview directly, rather than trailing off passively.
I’d welcome the chance to talk through how this experience applies to your team — I’m available for a call this week or next.
I’d love to discuss this role further and can make time whenever works for your team this week.
I’m confident this experience translates directly to what you’re building, and I’d welcome the opportunity to discuss it.
“I’d welcome the chance to talk through how this applies to your team” beats “I look forward to hearing from you” for the same reason a specific opener beats a generic one — it proposes a concrete next step instead of waiting passively for one.
Closing when you’re applying through a referral
I’d love to speak further and am happy to work around your schedule — feel free to loop in Jamie if it’s helpful to connect the three of us.
Closing for a career change or transition
I recognize this represents a shift in industry, and I’d welcome the chance to talk through how the underlying skills transfer — available for a call at your convenience.
Sign-off phrasing
Keep this simple — it’s the one part of the letter where convention matters more than creativity.
Sincerely,
Best regards,
Thank you for your consideration,
Skip “Warmly” or “Cheers” for a first application to a company you don’t have an existing relationship with — both read as slightly too casual for a first impression, even at companies with a relaxed internal culture.
Match your opening tone to your closing tone
A common, easy-to-miss inconsistency: an opening line that’s warm and personal, followed by a closing that’s stiff and formal (or the reverse). Read both together once you’ve written them — they should sound like the same person wrote both.
If your opening references a referral by first name, your closing can be similarly direct (“I’d love to grab fifteen minutes this week”). If your opening is more formal and company-research-driven, keep the closing formal too.
Once the opening and closing are set, the format around them — margins, length, exact structure — is covered in cover letter format: margins, fonts, length & layout rules.
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FAQ
What’s the best way to address a cover letter without a name?
“Dear Hiring Manager” is the safest, most current option. Spend a couple of minutes checking the job posting and the company’s team page first — the name is often available, just not obvious.
Is “To Whom It May Concern” still acceptable?
It’s dated and worth avoiding if you have any alternative. “Dear Hiring Manager” accomplishes the same thing — addressing an unknown reader — without reading as decades old.
How do I start a cover letter without sounding generic?
Name something specific: a referral, a detail about the company you actually researched, a measurable achievement, or a direct opinion about their product. If the opening line could apply to any employer, it needs a specific detail added.
Should I use the hiring manager’s first or last name?
Last name with a title (“Dear Mr. Chen”) is the safer default for a first contact, unless the company culture is clearly casual (a startup where everyone, including leadership, goes by first names in public communication) or you were introduced to them directly by first name.
What’s a good way to end a cover letter besides “I look forward to hearing from you”?
Ask for the specific next step instead: propose availability for a call, or state directly that you’d welcome the chance to discuss the role. A direct ask reads as more confident than a passive sign-off.
How do I open a cover letter if I’m returning after a career break?
State it in one plain sentence, then immediately connect it to the role — what the break taught you or reinforced, and why this specific opportunity is where you want to apply it. Don’t apologize for the gap or spend more than a sentence on it.
Can I reuse the same opening line for multiple applications?
Not if it references anything company-specific — that defeats the purpose. A referral-based or achievement-based opener can be reused with the company name swapped, but check that the rest of the sentence still makes sense for each employer before you send it.
