Best Referral Cover Letter w/ Examples, Templates, Tips [Cover Letter Writing Guideline]

Writing your cover letter with a referral from an employee who is working in the same company can make hiring managers notice your application. A referral is the recruitment program when somebody you know endorses or recommends you for job applications. This person is often someone who has worked with you before, be it your former employer or colleagues. 

Referral benefits both applicants and recruiters. Job applicants who apply using referrals found that their hiring process is faster and smoother than applicants who don’t. 

Understanding the importance of having a referral, in this article, we will share with you how to write the best referral cover letter with some extensive examples, templates, and tips. 

A referral cover letter is a cover letter that mentions an endorsement from someone who is working in the same company, whom your hiring manager also knows. 

When mentioning a referral in cover letter, you can ‘Name Drop’ the name of the person who referred you. It is considered fine to name drop as long as your mutual acquaintance with the hiring manager agrees to recommend you because they think you are an eligible candidate for the position. It is also good to make sure that the mutual contact you share with the hiring manager actually knows your employer or recruiter as this is a better-preferred referral case. 

When you ‘name drop’ in your referral cover letter, employers will take a closer look into your application and learn more about your credibility as endorsed. On top of that, at times, you can get a formal employee referral program when getting referred. This significantly increases your chances to land your next dream job!

When you are thinking of drafting a job application letter with reference person, you obviously need a referrer. If you don’t already know someone who is working at the company you’re applying to, you can broaden your professional network by reaching out to these people personally. 

Here is a step-to-step guide you can follow to get people as referrers in your cover letter:

There are endless network options you can look for and then reach out to who have connections to the company or its hiring managers. First, start with people you already know that can endorse you in your application letter with referral! If you don’t already know someone who is working at the company you are applying to, the easiest and most simple way to find networks is to do research on job-based media networks such as CakeResume, LinkedIn, etc.

On these job sites or pages, you can start by searching the company’s name, followed by:

• Name of your university (if you are reaching out to a university senior/alumnus)
• Name of your current company (if you are reaching out to a former colleague)
• The word ‘Recruiter’ or ‘HR’ (if you are reaching out to a recruiter)
• Other keywords that might be relevant to your search depending who you are reaching out to 
  

After finding these profiles, do a brief background check and reach out to them to connect.

After getting accepted as a connection on these job sites, share a conversation and mention your search for a job opportunity with your future referrer. When the flow of the conversation is right, you can mention your job application to the particular company. They might initiatively offer you help by seeing what they can do for you, such as letting you know about great opportunities and giving you a referral. Otherwise, you can always kindly ask for their agreement to endorse you and permission to mention their name as a referrer in your referral cover letter. 

To make sure that you are not mentioning anything beyond what they have given their consent to, send a copy of your referral cover letter to your referrer. This gives both parties better peace of mind!

Not sure how to mention a referral in your cover letter? Follow these useful steps below!

1. Mention who the referral is.

In your referral cover letter, be sure to clearly mention from who did you get your referral from - mention their name and, optionally, their position to remind your hiring manager from which department they are from (just in case they don’t know your referrer closely!). 

2. Briefly explain your relationship with the referral. 

It is also important to mention your relationship with the person who referred you in your referral cover letter. You don’t have to elaborate in much detail on how you ended up with the referral in the end, but it is great to briefly explain that your referrer is, for example, an ex-colleague or a close friend. Your hiring manager might find this information useful; therefore, including it will make your referral cover letter seem clearer. 

3. Briefly mention the reason why you are being referred.

Your referral still needs support! Surely, the person who recommended you wouldn’t just endorse you out of the blue - if they see that you have the right credibility, suitable skillsets, and experience for the position that make you an eligible candidate, only then they would give you their referral. In your referral cover letter, mention these valuable things that made you get the referral in the first place!

Perhaps, a referral cover letter sample can make you better understand how to mention a referral in your cover letter. Below are 5 referral cover letter examples put in paragraphs for your reference:

Writing a cover letter with a referral might indeed be tricky - follow the steps mentioned below to draft your perfect referral cover letter:

💡 Mention your referral in the beginning of your cover letter.

A referral is truly that powerful - it can catch and influence your employer’s attention. Mentioning your referral at the beginning of your referral cover letter can ensure that your hiring manager will read through your cover letter more thoroughly, and it’s very likely that they’ll read it until the very end. 

💡 Keep it within 1 paragraph.

A cover letter is still supposed to be centered around you! Although a referral can really change the influence of the cover letter, it is best to keep the discussion about the referral within one paragraph. This way, you can still let the most important thing of your referral cover letter, which is still your qualifications and commitment, to shine!

💡 Make sure you have permission from the referrer. 

Make sure your referrer has agreed to refer you! Your referrer must agree that you are in more ways than not eligible and suitable for the position you’re applying to. Without your referrer’s permission, it is not appropriate to ‘name drop’ your referrer’s name in your referral cover letter.

💡 Proofread to avoid any typos or grammatical errors.

Generally, it is essential to proofread your cover letter so that it’s free from typos. It is even more important to pay attention to spelling and grammar in the paragraph in which you mention your referral. Avoid mistyping your referrer’s name - that’s a big blunder! 

Still unsure how to write a great referral cover letter? You can refer to the cover letter for job with reference template below:

Key takeaways:

• Mentioning a referral in cover letter can significantly help recruiters notice your job application. 
• A referral for your referral cover letter can come from many possible individuals: an ex-colleague, a university senior/alumnus, or even a professional you’ve just reached out to on job sites. 
• Permission from your referrer is crucial before drafting your referral cover letter. 
• Despite the big influence a referral can give on your referral cover letter, the cover letter should still center around your qualifications and commitment. 

— Originally written by Lorencia Ang Budijono —