Bartender Cover Letter Example and Guide

You’ve come across a bartender job opportunity, and you want to try your luck. The only problem is that y? You don’t know how to create a catchy cover letter that will land you the job.

Don’t fret.

We’ve prepared a guide that will help make the process a breeze. The cover letter will accompany your bartender resume and shed more light on your work experience and skills.

Bartender Job Description

To be a bartender, you don’t need to have a formal education. Often, a high school diploma should suffice although certification in bartending courses will give you an advantage.

Great social skills are a must-have for this job since it’s a service job. Therefore, a bartender needs to have people skills, be a good listener, and be friendly. No wonder, when you walk into a bar, you’ll be met with a genuine smile from the bartender.

So, what does a bartender do?

Their main role is to serve beverages and food as per customers’ requests. They mix and garnish alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and cocktails. But that’s not all. Apart from serving delicious drinks, they are loved for being good listeners and good talkers.

Bartender positions are always in demand, and according to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, bartender jobs are expected to grow by 18 percent by 2031. It’s also well-paying, with data showing that bartenders earn a median wage of $12.67 an hour.

Some of the key responsibilities of a bartender include:

• Providing high-quality service to customers
• Understanding and adhering to the local and national liquor laws
• Mixing classic and creative cocktails
• Offering suggestions based on customers' tastes and preferences
• Opening and maintaining tabs throughout their shifts
• Greeting and welcoming customers
• Listening to customers to determine their preferences and taking orders
• Maintaining a clean work area

Let's say you have all these skills, and then some. How do you highlight them and your bartending experience in a way that will impress your prospective employer? The first step is to create a compelling cover letter. Once you manage that, check out how you can create a magnificent resume

So, let’s get right to it!

How to Write a Bartender Cover Letter

Did you know that employers would pay more attention to a resume if it was accompanied by a cover letter? This means that the cover letter is an important document to include when applying for jobs.

A cover letter is useful for various reasons, including:

• Explaining your motivation to join the prospective company
• Describing your career objectives
• Explaining why you changed careers
• Explaining career gaps in your resume (if any)
• Highlighting your professional achievements in your previous employment

Below, we share an example of a bartender cover letter and explore its sections.

A cover letter usually consists of several sections:

• The header or letterhead
• Greeting
• Introductory paragraph
• Main body
• Conclusion
• Call to action

Let’s take a closer look at each of these sections.

Cover Letter Header

The header or letterhead comprises your personal contact information and must be placed at the top of your cover letter. It offers your employer a way of getting in touch with you if they liked your pitch.

Generally, the letterhead will contain:

• Your name
• Phone number
• Email, LinkedIn, and Twitter profile (where applicable)
• City/state, country, and postal code
• Date

If you know the hiring manager’s details, you should include them in the header.

Cover Letter Opening Greeting

Start with Dear + the hiring manager’s name. It's advisable to address your recipient by name. It makes your letter more personal and increases your chances of getting a response.

Cover Letter Opening/Introduction

After the pleasantries, it's time to get down to the meaty part. In a few sentences, provide an attention-grabbing preview of your qualifications.

Here, you’ll mention the position you want to apply for, where it was advertised, and show your enthusiasm to land the opportunity.

Cover Letter Body

Use this section to write about your work experience, how you trained as a bartender, job skills, and anything else that demonstrates your passion for the job. Drop several major achievements and use facts and figures to quantify those wins.

For example, describe how many customers you served per shift, how much cash you handled, and so on. Highlight some of the challenges you faced and how you resolved issues. Problem-solving is a highly sought-after skill in almost all job applications.

Show why you're the perfect match and what makes you stand out from the rest of the candidates.

Add any other relevant information here, such as gaps in your employment history since you can't explain this in your resume.

Cover Letter Conclusion

After neatly laying out what you bring to the company, thank the recipient for their time. This is the time to request an interview with a call to action. Here’s an example:

Cover Letter Closing or Sign Off

End your cover letter with your full name and provide your basic contact information. Close with a simple “Sincerely” or “Thank you” or “All my best.” You can add a digital copy of your handwritten signature below your name.

Cover Letter Writing Basics

Here are some useful tips to apply when writing your bartender cover letter:

Keep your narrative concise and brief

One study showed that recruiters only spend 7.4 seconds on your resume. So, avoid a long cover letter’s narrative and keep it short. Ideally, a cover letter should be a one-page document with a maximum of 400 hundred words.

Unless explicitly stated, keep your cover letter short. Break it into sections of around four to five paragraphs. This makes it easier to read through the content.

Craft it to be attention-grabbing

You need to create a lasting impression with your potential employer or hiring manager. Therefore, use storytelling to take the hiring manager on a journey through some of your key achievements.

To do that, you must:

• Understand your target, hiring manager’s requirements, and tailor your narrative to match what they are looking for.
• Write a story that demonstrates a personal example of how you’ve used your skills to manage your roles and achieve great results.
• Try to strike a balance between being genuine and professional by avoiding being too factitious.

Avoid generic cover letters

Hiring managers and employers hate generic cover letters and resumes. They will toss yours aside if they notice it's not tailored to the job requirements.

Therefore, before applying for the position, understand the demands of your prospective employer and create a cover letter that addresses those demands.

Demonstrate your passion and motivation for the job

Motivation drives job satisfaction, happiness, and productivity, and is one of the key attributes employers look for when hiring. They want to know if you're motivated for the target job.

For instance, if you’ve decided to change careers in 2022, the cover letter offers the perfect channel to convey your motivation, passion, and commitment to the new path.

Use the right tone of voice

The tone of voice in your cover letter can influence your prospective employer’s decision-making. Therefore, along with striking the right tone of voice, you should also write in the target company’s language.

That’s why it's crucial to research your target company’s culture and expectations. That way, you’ll understand the narrative language and style to use in your cover letter.

The tone you use will vary depending on the industry. For example, in the service industry, use a tone and language that strikes a balance between formality and flexibility.

Cover Letter Mistakes to Avoid

Employers will be put off by mistakes in your cover letter as it shows a lack of attention to detail, which is a top skill for bartender jobs. Therefore, before submitting your cover letter, go through the job ad once again and make sure that the letter aligns with the specific job requirements.

Remember to:

• Proofread to remove typos.
• Use ordinary fonts and font sizes. There’s no reason to use splashy and exotic fonts. Furthermore, use a font size that’s legible, usually 12.
• Keep your paragraphs short and add a space between them.
• Avoid fluff and cliches. Use a unique language that is sincere, genuine, and respectful, yet simple to understand.
• Leave out any irrelevant information. You only need to highlight what makes you a good bartender, not how you're good at hiking.

Closing Remarks

A powerful cover letter can give you an edge over your competition. Remember, the sole purpose of your cover letter is to get the recipient to read your resume. So, make it concise, easy to read, and fit it on one page. Avoid sending generic cover letters and create one for every job.