By Katherine Konrad, an experienced marketing professional and recent Celarity contractor
So, you brushed up on some resume tips and you landed an interview? Congratulations! The interview itself is surely an important opportunity to give your best impression, but – so is your behavior afterward. Read on for some tips to maintain your place on the top of the candidate pile even after you’ve left the building.
Always write one
The only time you shouldn’t write one is if you don’t want the job. Nope, wait – I lied – not even then. Even if you’re not interested any longer in the position, it never hurts to be gracious. Quite contrarily, it could be beneficial toward a referral for another job within that company, or another in the interviewer’s network. If you do want the job, a thank you follow up is another way to positively set you apart from the rest of the candidates. So, live by Nike’s slogan and: write the letter. Er, I mean: just do it.
Alexa, don’t write my thank you note
Do not – I repeat – do not use a templated thank-you letter. At best, you’ll sound robotic and inauthentic. At worst, you’ll surely forget to change out a position, a name, or to grammatically update the surrounding copy appropriately. In an age where authenticity rules, it’s now more important than ever to sound human in a thank-you letter. A step beyond a non-templated approach is to recall a personal note from your conversation in the introduction: “I hope you have fun in Duluth this weekend; the Glensheen mansion was my favorite tourist attraction if you have time to check it out.”
All in a day’s work
Wait any longer than 24 hours, and the decision might have already been made. Be careful not to send a note too fast though. Sending as you exit the building before your seat cools as and the interviewer might think you have a templated note, or you didn’t put much thought into the exchange due to the haste in which it was written.
YOU get a thank you note! And YOU get a thank you note!
Just like an Oprah episode: everyone gets a thank you note. And if you interviewed with four people: send 4 unique, personalized emails. Chances are you’ve only been in email contact with one or two of them prior to the in-person interview, so make sure you grab all their cards, or ask for their contact information before you go.
Signed, sealed, deliver it to yourself first
Are you as good as I am at finding email typos right after hitting ‘send’? Well it turns out, I can find them just as well if I send the email to myself. It’s true, I experience the same sort of terror-induced adrenaline rush that gives me such super-human error-finding powers. Try it. Maybe it will work for you, too. If you have friends though, you could probably send it to them first to review. Yeah, friends.
Keep it brief
A thank you note should have three paragraphs:
- An Intro. This should include something personal like we talked about earlier; the name of the position you interviewed for; and a thank you for their time.
- A Body. This paragraph should be the meatiest. Here’s your chance to remind them why you’re better than the rest of candidates, and/or include extra information or address any concerns they had during the interview
- A Conclusion. Probably the lightest section. Remind them that you’re great, thank them for their time and affirm your excitement for the opportunity.
Katherine is a marketing professional by day and a content creator by night. She enjoys summers in Minnesota, and anywhere else in the winter. When she’s not writing you can find her exploring new neighborhood hangouts; dressed up at a social event; jogging around Minneapolis lakes; or staring at her phone.
