Charlotte Bennett

Cover letter that only you could have written for this job

Writes a 220-280 word cover letter tied to one company and your real evidence, bans the usual filler, then audits every claim and generic sentence.

At a glance

Best for: Applicants to smaller companies and mission-driven roles where a real cover letter still gets read, and a generic AI-sounding one hurts.
Tested on: Claude · Opus 5.5
You fill in: job_postingcompany_notesexperiencereal_reason
You get: Dear Ferrybox team, Your founder's post about return rates stalling at 71% described the problem I've been chasing for three years. At a regional… (full result below)

Prompt

Write a cover letter for this application that could only have been written by me, for this company. If a sentence would work in anyone else's letter, cut it.

Job posting: {{job_posting}}
What I know about the company (site, product, news): {{company_notes}}
My relevant experience: {{experience}}
Why I actually want this job: {{real_reason}}

Structure (220-280 words total):

• Opening (2 sentences): connect one specific thing about the company to one specific thing I've done. No "I am writing to apply for".

• Middle (2 short paragraphs): the 2 requirements they care most about, each backed by one piece of evidence with a number or concrete detail.

• Why this company (2-3 sentences): use my real reason, specifically, without flattery.

• Close (1-2 sentences): a clear, confident next step.

Banned: "passionate", "dynamic", "I believe I would be a great fit", "team player", "fast-paced environment", "hit the ground running".

After the letter, list: (a) every factual claim and which part of my input it came from; (b) any sentence that's still generic, with a sharper alternative.

Fill in

{{job_posting}}: The role and its key requirements.e.g. Operations Associate at Ferrybox, returnable packaging for grocery delivery...
{{company_notes}}: Specific things you learned about the company.e.g. Founder's blog post says return rates stalled at 71%
{{experience}}: Your most relevant experience, with numbers.e.g. 3 years shift lead at a regional food bank...
{{real_reason}}: Your honest reason for wanting this job.e.g. I spent 3 years watching pallets disappear

Example input

job_posting: Operations Associate at Ferrybox, a startup making returnable packaging for grocery delivery in Portland, OR. Responsibilities: coordinate reverse logistics with 12 partner stores; analyze return rates in spreadsheets; improve process documentation; comfortable working on the warehouse floor.

company_notes: Their site says each box is designed for about 30 trips. They launched with local independent grocers. The founder wrote a blog post saying return rates have stalled at 71%.

experience: 3 years as shift lead at a regional food bank. Ran volunteer shifts of 20-40 people. Rebuilt the pallet tracking sheet in Google Sheets; lost pallets went from about 25 a month to 6. Wrote the onboarding manual now used at all 3 of our sites. Forklift certified.

real_reason: I spent 3 years watching pallets and crates disappear, and I want to work on making reusable packaging actually come back. I also bike everywhere in Portland and see their boxes on porches.

1.8k0

Generated Outputs (1)

2 hours ago

Claude

Opus 5.5

2 hours ago

Generated Output

Dear Ferrybox team,

Your founder's post about return rates stalling at 71% described the problem I've been chasing for three years. At a regional food bank, I watched pallets disappear the same way, until I rebuilt our tracking sheet and lost pallets fell from about 25 a month to 6.

You need someone to keep reverse logistics running across 12 partner stores. As a shift lead, I've run volunteer shifts of 20 to 40 people who needed clear instructions the first time, and I wrote the onboarding manual that all three of our sites now use. Keeping a process consistent across locations, when the people doing it change every week, is most of the job.

You also need someone who can find answers in return-rate data. The pallet fix started exactly there: a Google Sheet that nobody trusted, which I rebuilt until the losses were visible and could be fixed. I'd bring the same habit to your return numbers, and I'm forklift certified and at home on a warehouse floor.

I bike everywhere in Portland and see your boxes on porches. After years of chasing crates that never came back, I want to work somewhere that makes reusable packaging the whole business, and help each box reach its 30 trips.

I'd welcome a conversation about how I'd approach that 71% figure.

Sincerely,
[Your name]

---

(a) Claims and sources

• 71% return rate, founder's post: company notes

• 12 partner stores: job posting

• 25 to 6 lost pallets a month, Google Sheets: experience

• Shifts of 20-40, manual used at 3 sites, forklift certified: experience

• Boxes on porches, cycling in Portland: real reason

• 30 trips: company notes

(b) Still generic or unsupported

• "a Google Sheet that nobody trusted" is my dramatization; your input doesn't say that. Replace it with what was actually wrong with the old sheet.

• "when the people doing it change every week" assumes volunteer turnover. Keep it only if true, or swap in: "with new volunteers on most shifts."

• "I'd welcome a conversation" is safe but soft. Sharper: "I'd like 20 minutes to walk you through how I cut pallet losses, and what I'd look at first in your returns."

Why it works

The opening rule, "if a sentence would work in anyone else's letter, cut it", sets the standard the whole letter is judged by. Requiring the opening to connect one company fact to one thing you've done forces specificity from the first line, where hiring managers decide whether to keep reading.

The banned-phrase list removes the phrases that make letters sound machine-written. The claim audit at the end is the safety net: every fact must trace back to your input, so nothing invented reaches an employer, and the generic-sentence check gives you a second pass for free.

When not to use it

Many large-company application systems barely read cover letters; spend that time on your resume and a referral instead. If you have nothing specific to say about the company, research first, because this prompt can't create real interest. For roles in a language you don't write well, have a fluent person read the final version.

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