In a highly competitive job market, hirers’ expectations for every part of the hiring process are inflated. It used to be enough to list your jobs and education on your resume. Now you should quantify achievements and specify how they benefited your employer in terms of time saved and profits.
Interview Questions And Answers Click here
It used to be enough to follow the stated directions for submitting an application. Now you want to network your way directly to the hiring manager.
It used to be enough to find the office where the interview was conducted; now you should prepare for the interview by researching the company from Aardvark to Zygote.
So it’s no surprise that the once-humble thank you note is escalating into a major piece of marketing communications.
The thank you note is a valuable opportunity to supplement the interviewer’s notes with your take on what was discussed during the interview, answer questions that caught you by surprise or create an opportunity for your follow-up, and most important, to communicate that you do want the job.
Just as the cover letter and resume are marketing tools, so is the thank you. Writing this kind of thank you takes thought and effort. And just as you want your resume to be perfect, the same is true of the thank you.
Job Listings
Here are some tips:
Express your enthusiasm overtly. Say outright you want the job. Of course, some of your enthusiasm is implied-you wouldn’t write a full-page letter unless you really want the job.
Some say a thank you should be hand written… but I disagree. That’s OK for a note thanking granny for home-baked cookies, but a well-developed letter that advances your cause has got to be prepared on a computer. It takes too much revision to be dashed off in ink.
Anyway, this thank you will be long. Generally you’ll want to confine it to one page but this is still of lot of handwriting, especially if yours is hard to read.
Promptness is good, of course, but it is possible to be too prompt. If you send an email thank you from the lobby right after the interview, it looks suspiciously like a form letter to which you have simply added the recipient’s name and then pressed “send.”
Email or postal mail? Why not ask the hirer at the end of the interview?
As you discuss “next steps,” simply say that you appreciate this opportunity, plan to reflect on what was discussed and send a few follow-up ideas. Then ask which way they prefer receiving your note.
Of course, this puts the pressure on you to follow through. All for the good!
If you were interviewed by more than one individual, write a different thank you to each. Don’t send out even one until you can send them all.
Why?
As you write, you may run out of things to say in the last note. Then you’ll want to reapportion your good points differently to hit every letter. (And of course, you can repeat points, though ideally you will change out the exact wording a bit.)
If you intend to write thank yous, prepare for it. First, ask each individual for his or her business card. Then between interviews (if possible) or at the end of them all, jot down each interviewer’s most important concerns and a few words to remind you what to say in the thank you.
Admittedly, the kind of notes I recommend take a little time. Ideally you should get it out in 24 hours, but I believe it is better to take two days to do it right than 10 minutes to cross it off your list and get on to the next task.
Today, simply getting an interview is a real achievement. So maximize this opportunity with a written thank you note that sets you apart from the competition.
Interview Secrets Click here
