7 Career Marketing Documents You Need: Prepare now for your 2026 Job Search!

Jobseekers tend to slow their efforts in December. Afterall, hiring slows down and hiring managers are out of the office, right? Statistics do suggest that hiring slows a bit, and senior leaders are more likely to be out of the office, but it is not the time to slow down. Instead, use the time to get your job search documents together for next year.

A modern job search requires more than a resume. Consider preparing a suite of job search document. The documents you might need, in addition to your resume and LinkedIn profile could include the following:

1. A resume addendum,
2. Cover letter for your resume,
3. Networking letters,
4. Follow-up letters,
5. Thank you letters,
6. Writing samples, and
7. A career portfolio.

You will save time and avoid being eliminated from consideration for not responding promptly to requests when you have documents prepared in advance. And you will have an array of strategies to put relevant information in front of hiring teams that does not fit on your resume.

Resume Addendum

The addendum is “in addition to” the resume. It’s a separate document that includes useful or relevant information which would take up too much space on the resume. Information that could be included on an addendum: publications, public speaking engagements, professional memberships, volunteer activities, etc. Including this information on an addendum provides more room on the resume for experience and accomplishments. The addendum can be sent with the resume or shared during the interview.

Resume addenda may not require a lot of extra work. For example, if you are an academic that lost your research lab funding due to federal budget cuts, you already have detailed lists of publications, speaking engagements, honors, and more that won’t fit on a business resume.

You may also have a lot of other information to offload onto addenda if you are a former federal employee. A two-page business resume does not have room for the great information you once included in your five-to-12-page federal resume.

Cover Letters

The cover letter, sometimes called a job search letter, is used to introduce you when you can’t hand your resume to a hiring manager. In a modern job search, the cover letter may not be a separate document; instead, it may be the text in an introductory email message to the hiring manager or recruiter.

Job search letters, like resume addenda, are a strategy for putting additional information in front of a hiring team that will not fit on a business resume. The information you gather and assimilate into your pitch and responses to interview questions will help you even if hiring teams do not read your additional information.

Follow-Up Letter

Another way to “sneak in” other information that will not fit on your resume is to send follow-up correspondence. If you’ve applied for a job but haven’t heard back, a follow-up letter (most often sent as a follow-up email) can be an effective tool. The follow-up letter can also be sent after a job interview. In either case, the follow-up letter reiterates the qualifications for the position and provides the applicant’s contact information, along with a call to action (requesting an interview from the application or requesting a status update after the job interview)

Sales trainers typically suggest sending two letters after an initial contact with a prospective customer. The sale—in this case an interview or job offer—is probably not going to happen when there is no response to three outreach attempts.

Networking Letters

A networking letter is used when reaching out to contacts for help in the job search — for example, helping arrange informational interviews, referrals to recruiters and hiring managers, or job leads.

Most of the time, you will be sending networking “letters” as email or LinkedIn messages.

The holiday season is an especially good time for sending networking letters and messages. Be sure to add a holiday greeting so the recipient feels flattered that you thought of them rather than imposed upon for job search help.

Thank You Letters

Customized thank you letters should be sent after a networking meeting, informational interview, and employment interview. Thank you letters can be handwritten and sent by mail; however, in a modern job search, most thank you letters are sent by email.

The strategy I recommend is to write a substantive thank you letter. A substantive thank you is a letter that adds new information, such as a more detailed response for an interview question. Not everyone writes unique and substantive thank you letters and emails, so this strategy could be a differentiator that lands a job for you.

Writing Samples

For jobs requiring written communication skills, a writing sample may be needed. Sometimes the prospective employer will provide specific details about the types of samples to send; other times the applicant will simply be directed to provide samples, and the candidate will need to decide which examples of their work to send.

Nearly every professional and administrative job—one could argue nearly every job—seems to require the ability to write clear and concise email messages, so be prepared for your writing skills to be tested.

Of course, you should write the sample—not an AI. AI writing, I have found, is easy to spot. And your writing is likely to be much better.

Career Portfolio

The career portfolio is a curated collection of documents and work samples that provides tangible evidence of your work experience, education, and skills. It can include other career documents, such as a resume and bio, references, and transcripts. Also, it can include copies of awards, certificates, and proof of completing continuing education or professional development courses.

Your LinkedIn profile allows you to upload and link to media, so the profile can include many elements of a portfolio. A LinkedIn profile, though, is “public”—you cannot customize it for specific employers and networking contacts. As a result, you may want to look for a career portfolio website that allows you to distribute secure links to specific people. Other options include maintaining a hard-copy binder, keeping it on an iPad or other tablet you bring to interviews, or having it reside on your own secure website. Most employers that want to see a portfolio probably expect it to be accessible online.

Other Documents

The suite of documents you will need to develop during your job search will vary depending on your industry, profession, and career level. You may be expected to develop documents such as a career bio when you are applying for senior leadership roles. Universities may request an extensive “curricula vitae” detailing your publications, academic credentials, professional society memberships, and much more. Research your specific industry to learn about unique documents employers in that field may ask for. There is nothing worse than being asked at the last minute to deliver a document you have never heard of before to close the deal. That could mean engaging a specialist to help overnight at great expense. But always remember that it is not good business practice to provide responses to questions that the employer did not ask. Provide only relevant information.

Job search is like most business and professional endeavors—you have to do your homework.