“You did learn how to say thank you when you were a kid, didn’t you?” Patra intones.
Did you send a thank you note after your last job interview? You’d be surprised how many job seekers do not follow through on this important step of the job search process. Hiring managers are impressed when they receive a good thank you note.
In this video Patra provides tips and even note card suggestions for your thank you notes.
Good thank you notes are:
* Short and to the point.
* Thank the person for their time, interest and information they provided to you.
* Say something new about your value to the employer. Maybe something you forgot to mention in the interview.
* Show that you are smart, professional and have useful ideas that will help the employer right away.
Send your thank you note out within a day. Email is fine, but consider a handwritten note for the most senior person you met.
An easy thing to forget, but a critical step to do. It’s always worth doing in-case it helps.
Great post. Always good to take care of small details.
Do you think it’s necessary to be hand-written? I definitely think that would be a differentiator…but wondering if a quick printed letter would also be impactful.
Andrew – good question – it depends on the audience. Do realize that handwritten notes would go a long way with a generation much older than your own, but the mail room may slow it down. Also I have noticed most folks have not practiced their handwriting in years. It is a lost art.
A quick printed letter – in thank you note format- would suffice. And to make sure that it is in a appreciative tone rather than salesy.
If you think this is too much for you, do at least send a gracious thank you email. In many employer presentations that I participate in less than 1% say that they have “ever” received a thank you note from a job seeker.