Best Graphic Design Cover Letter | Examples and Writing Tips

Graphic Designer Cover Letter_Tips

Cover letters, or “application letters“, are letters written by job applicants to the hiring manager, explaining their motivation for applying for a position, and their competence for the role.

As a graphic designer, you’ll also need to write a good cover letter that accompanies your resume and portfolio. A graphic designer cover letter provides another chance to communicate with the hiring manager. Attaching a graphic designer cover letter will win the employer’s attention and even bring you an interview!  

In this article, you will learn how to structure a graphic designer cover letter to outline your qualifications, experience, and skills that make you the best candidate for a job role. 

Use our graphic design cover letter examples and templates below to save your time. Moreover, see our tips and cover letter sample to write an Upwork cover letter sample for graphic designer jobs!

💬 Note: A motivation letter is, in its narrow sense, used for an academic application or non-profit organization. Nevertheless, some might use a graphic design “motivation letter” to refer to what is actually a cover letter/application letter for a graphic design job.

Graphic Design Cover Letter Example

Below is a graphic design cover letter example to help you save time.

Carla Wetzel

Creative Graphic Designer 

[email protected]
805-778-0643
Boston
LinkedIn URL: CarlaWetzelPortfolio.com

16 July 2021

Nancy D. Coleman, Hiring Manager
SkyCreative 4221 Daffodil Lane, Boston

Dear Nancy,

As a graphic designer with 4 years of experience, I’m enthusiastic to apply for the new senior graphic designer job posting in SkyCreative. My collaboration experience, creative-thinking mindset, and graphic design skills align with your requirements perfectly, and my design experience for HSBC bank and 30+ more clients assures my visual communication talents to help you meet your needs. 

During my previous graphic design case for HSBC, my communication skills and graphic design decisions allow the company to

  • Collaborate with client window to deeply understand client needs and translate abstract identity into creative visual solutions
  • This resulted in a 7% increase in new account registration reached 1.5M potential customers
  • Positive feedback from HSBC marketing window and expressed further cooperating interest

I greatly admire your studio’s agile and dynamic design style, and my graphic design expertise will be your best ally to discover the best approach to represent ideas and concepts to work with marketing strategies. More works and design processes are included in the portfolio. Please don’t hesitate to take a look and reach out to discuss more design details.

Thank you for your time, and please review the attached resume for further details on my previous working experience. I would welcome an interview to elaborate on how I can work with your team to be a supportive member and valuable resource for your company.

Sincerely,
Nancy Coleman

Modify this designer cover letter sample to help you ace an interview!

What to put on a cover letter for graphic designers

Graphic Designer Cover Letter_Sample

1. Header

Listing your information on the top of the graphic design cover letter to make sure the hiring manager knows who’s writing. That includes name, email, and phone number.

If you have an online portfolio website or LinkedIn profile URL, list them too. Also, list the date since a cover letter is a formal document, even for graphic designers.

2. Salutation (with the recipient's name)

Use proper greetings to address the hiring manager who’s reading your graphic design cover letter.

“Dear +Position + Last name” or “Mr./ Mrs./Ms. Name” will do. 

3. Opening

Create an impressive opening in your graphic design cover letter by making a strong self-introduction. Use the introduction as a hook: bring up previous clients, years of experience, awards, or graphic design skills to catch attention and make them read on to the cover letter.

Example:

As a senior graphic designer with 7+ years of robust experience, I am thrilled to apply for the graphic designer specialist position at Aperture Communication. I have worked with Airbnb, Amazon, and Uniqlo to create graphic design elements that consummated marketing campaigns.  

4. Key Graphic Design Qualifications

In the next paragraph of the graphic design cover letter, cut straight into highlighting graphic design achievements, awards, skills, and major clients or cases to show how unique you are. 

💡 Take notice of the original job posting and keywords to write a tailored cover letter for graphic designers. Using quantified results in your graphic design cover letter can serve as a supplement besides showcasing only graphic works.

Example:

In 2020, my design project won the TDC Typeface Design Competition and AGDA Best Design Awards for posters.  In the graphic design project for Artify, I shortened the project time by 15% while delivering a news-making graphic design that exposed more than 100000 potential customers and increased awareness by 10%. You’ve mentioned you are looking for a self-motivated designer, and I am highly adaptable at project managing, communication, and collaborating with the creative marketing team to create eye-catching graphics.

5. Motivation (explain your reasons for applying for the position)

In the graphic design cover letter, after you explain how capable you are, it’s time to explain the motivation that leads you to them. Don’t hesitate to flatter a bit to show that your application is genuine and eager, but also explain what you can bring to the table.

💡 Investigate the design agency or company to understand their culture and style, and show them you did your research in the graphic design cover letter. 

Example:

I greatly admire Digital Sprout’s innovative thinking and creative approach to reach young customers. I believe communication is the crucial facilitator for a successful graphic design, and  I am more than excited to work for your team to build brand recognition.

6. Additional Information

In your graphic design cover letter, the first two paragraphs should be bread-winning. However, if there’s any more graphic design experience worth mentioning in a cover letter, briefly bring it up in this additional passage. 

Supplementary information might include master’s workshops or training, volunteer work, recommendation letters, other design or visual-related hobbies. 

7. Closing 

Finally, end the graphic design cover letter with one or two-sentence that call-to-action for an interview. Express your gratitude for their reading and close the graphic design cover letter politely.

Example:

Thank you for reading and please review my personal portfolio website and attached resume. You will gain insight into my graphic design experience and projects. I am open to an interview to discuss and share how my design skills can best serve Digital Sprout and its users.  

8. Sign-Off & Signature

Leave a closing sentiment, your name, and a signature at the very end of the graphic design cover letter. 

Example:

Sincerely,
Diana Jones 

Cover letter tips for freelance graphic designers on UpWork

🔎 UpWork is the largest freelance work marketplace online, and for graphic designers it’s the ideal platform to meet with employers who are trying to find talent. 

If you’re not so familiar with UpWork, when you press “submit a proposal” in a graphic design job posting page, a cover letter column at the the bottom will read: ”Introduce yourself and explain why you’re a strong candidate for this job. Feel free to suggest any changes to the job details or ask to schedule a video call.” This is where you write a compelling cover letter for graphic designers.

In this column, you’ll write the most attractive message about your graphic design skills to the client. But how exactly? Here are some exclusive cover letter tips for graphic designers so you can craft an eye-catching message on Upwork! 

✅ Tip 1: Include keywords in the cover letter for a graphic design job.

The first step is to read into the client’s job posting. Mark and insert the keywords from the graphic design job details in your cover letter to let them know you are responding to their needs. The clients will not want to reply to templated copy-paste messages. 

✅ Tip 2: Tailor to the job opening.

Besides including keywords, every paragraph in the graphic design cover letter should be tailored to respond to the client’s job detail. 

Most clients are looking for beautiful graphic designs to help them stand out, so your cover letter should speak directly to their requirements and how your experience matches their needs. That means you have to describe your graphic design-related achievements in the aspects that best suit the job, and address them directly to their work in the cover letter.

✅ Tip 3: Highlight specific skills.

To write an attractive graphic designer cover letter for Upwork proposals, you should highlight hard and soft skills related to the job details. Mentioning your skills in the graphic design cover letter will help the client decide if you are the right fit for their project.

Be honest about the design service you can offer, and the skills you have related to their graphic design work needs. 

Example:

  • Branding/Visual Identity/Logo Design
  • Color Schemes
  • Infographics
  • Illustration
  • Layout and editorial design
  • Print Design
  • Photography
  • Presentation Design
  • Project and Time Management
  • Strong Communication skills
  • Typography
  • Technology: Graphic design software/Coding
  • Visual storytelling and narration
  • Web Design

✅ Tip 4: Proofread.

Before you press the “Submit a Proposal” button, check and proofread your graphic design cover letter. Read it out loud to make sure the sentences are clear, and everything in the graphic design cover letter is free of grammatical errors and typos. 

✅ Tip 5: Cut straight to the point. 

Your cover letter for Upwork’s graphic design job will correspond to the job detail. If the details and requirements are clear, you should respond directly by listing your work experience and expertise. If the details are vague or concise, you can ask some well-thought questions to initiate a conversation, or even give an initial graphic design idea on their projects in the graphic design cover letter . 

Most clients are in a hurry or rush, so save your time and theirs and by presenting your best.

Graphic design cover letter template for UpWork proposals:

Hello [Client name]:


I am [name], and it’s a pleasure to meet you. 


I am very fond of your product and am passionate to help you with your [job posting details]. My previous experience with [previous clients] to design [graphic design project] is similar to your project, and my [List some graphic design skills] will allow us to communicate smoothly. Please feel free to check out my portfolio [portfolio URL] to know more about my design process. 


I have some quick thoughts and questions about the project: [ask some questions related to the design project, such as the industry, some quick ideations,  final specifications or platforms, and final contents].


I have designed for [client] on [experience closely related to the job you’re applying for]. In this project, I [design approach] and [achievements]


I’m open to discussing more in a chat if you’d like to collaborate with me! 


[Your name]

Extra tips - Perfect junior graphic designer cover letter

✔️ Tip 1: Focus on graphic design skills related to the posting.

If you have little work experience, you should highlight skills and detailed knowledge that are related to the job description in the cover letter for graphic design. Show them you understand the industry or the details of graphic design work responsibilities.

✔️ Tip 2: Use education as another selling point.

For junior graphic designers, include graphic design training education and workshop experience you have in the cover letter. These will catch hiring managers’ or senior graphic designer’s attention.

✔️ Tip 3: Lead them to your portfolio.

If a junior graphic designer like you doesn’t have enough work experience, you should spend more time creating a strong graphic design portfolio website. Lead them to check out your graphic design portfolio in the cover letter to demonstrate your works and explain your approach or design process directly through visual projects.

Extra tips - Professional senior graphic designer cover letter

✔️ Tip 1: Focus on graphic design leadership.

For a senior graphic designer, your responsibilities include making major decisions on graphic design and visual systems or supervising other junior designers. As a result, your senior graphic designer cover letter should highlight your leadership and decision-making skills. 

✔️ Tip 2: Narrate on your creativity and communication with examples.

A senior graphic designer cover letter should explain how the candidate can make creative or aesthetic decisions while fulfilling clients’ demands using outstanding communication skills. This is essential for graphic designers and especially for senior ones, so make sure you mention these in the senior graphic designer cover letter

✔️ Tip 3: Write about your best projects and biggest clients.

In a senior graphic designer cover letter, don’t spend time on minor projects. Pick 1-2 graphic design projects for a big client you’ve accomplished. Explain your challenge and how you meet their requirements using certain design thinking or graphic design approach in both your senior graphic designer cover letter and portfolio.

Quick recap:

  • Enclosing a cover letter for your graphic design job can create a potential opportunity to open up a dialogue between you and the hiring manager. A good cover letter arouses the reader’s interest and can lead to an interview. 
  • Tailoring your cover letter to the job role is essential so do your research on the target company or design studio to match with their taste.
  • If you need to write a graphic designer resume, CakeResume would be your best choice!

--- Originally written by WuChaoMin ---

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