Good recruiters tell jobseekers to send a thank you note after an interview. To address the most frequently asked questions on how and what to send in a thank you note, here are some thoughts.
Won’t the employer think that I am desperate if I send a thank-you letter?
Of course not.
Rarely is an employer unhappy to receive a thank-you letter. It is considered a way of showing politeness, a gesture of courtesy, one way to outshine the rest of the interviewees, and a way to keep your name in front of their thinking.
Won’t it jeopardize the possibility of getting the job? Not in most cases, but it could. So why take the chance?
Answer: Many managers waver between two finalists after the last interview for a position when they receive a thank-you letter from one it made all the difference.
Should it be handwritten or word processed?
What’s most important is the thought of doing it and the speed with which it arrives. It needs be tailored to the specific person and not a standard form note and arrive within 24 hours so as to arrive before a decision is made. Thus, word processing the note and emailing it is the way to go.
So email the thank you note?
YES!
Make sure your note is spell-checked, visually checked for errors, and is grammar checked. There are candidates who were on the verge of being hired but were rejected after emailing a sloppy thank you letters that used poor grammar and typos.
Will a borrowed thank-you letter do?
Yes, but make sure the note written “sounds” like the way you speak and is not a super-polite, formal note. Speak person to person, not person to manager.
If it was a group or panel interview should thank you letters be sent to all interviewers?
Yes
Thank you letters are an extra opportunity to create a favorable impression. They don’t always work AND not sending one misses an opportunity.
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