By: Sabrina C. Spitznagle, Principal & Founder at Loop Legal Search
Chicago Legal Recruiters – Your Recruiting Connection
Candidates often ask me whether they should send a thank you note after an interview. The answer is most definitely YES. I have had a number of clients tell me that a thank you note has impressed them, and it is another terrific opportunity to sell yourself and set yourself apart from the other candidates. BUT, it is imperative that you send a thoughtful, well-written, and error free thank you note, so that you don’t set yourself apart in a negative way. Follow these tips to help ensure you that you send the best possible thank you note after your interview and land the job.
1) TIMING IS EVERYTHING.
Send your note right away – ideally within 24 hours of your interview. You want to send a thank you note before the interviewer has finalized his or her recommendation and while his or her impression of you is still fresh. While I generally prefer handwritten notes, emailing thank you notes after interviews is best. If you send them in the mail, by the time the interviewer receives the note, it likely will be too late to have an effect on his or her decision.
2) KEEP IT BRIEF.
No one wants to read a super long email. Be concise. Your email should not be longer than two to three short paragraphs.
3) BE PERSONAL AND SPECIFIC.
Don’t send a generic thank you note if at all possible. Either mention something that you discussed such as “I really enjoyed learning more about ..”. Or include a link to an interesting article that relates to a topic that you discussed.
4) PROOFREAD.
Proofread, proofread, and proofread again with fresh eyes (i.e., take at least a 15 minute break from looking at the email and then read it again). Then have someone else (your recruiter, your friend, your mom or dad, your sister or brother, really anyone who can read!) proofread it for you. Then proofread it again yourself. You can’t proofread it enough yourself or have too many other people proofread it. Make sure to check and double check your grammar, spelling, punctuation, and that you have the names correct. You are better off sending no thank you note than sending one with a typo in it!
5) REMIND THE INTERVIEWER OF YOUR QUALIFICATIONS.
In addition to thanking the person you interviewed with, your thank-you note is an excellent opportunity to remind the interviewer how excited you are about the position and why you are the best qualified person for it. If possible, mention any keywords from the original job posting, or your specific expertise that you discussed during the interview.
6) BE PROFESSIONAL AND POSITIVE.
Make sure everything from your subject line, to your tone, to your ending is professional, is positive, and reflects well on you. “Thank You” is probably sufficient for the subject line. Start the email with Dear… , and be appropriately formal (but not too formal – you should use the person’s first name, rather than Mr. or Ms.). Make sure you are using the correct first name by which the person goes – e.g., Sue v. Susan, or Michael v. Mike. If you are not working with a recruiter who can help you, you may need to do some google research. If something negative happened during the interview or you don’t feel you answered a question in the best way possible, do not bring it up in the thank you note. You don’t want to remind the interviewer of something negative. End the thank you note with Best, Best regards, or Sincerely.
7) SEND SEPARATE EMAILS TO EVERYONE WITH WHOM YOU MET.
If you interview with multiple people, you should send a separate thank you email to each person. If possible, ask for a business card at the conclusion of each interview so you have the correct contact information for each thank-you email. Or, if you are working with a good recruiter, he or she should be able to provide you with everyone’s contact information. Be sure to vary your email messages somewhat, in case the interviewers forward their thank you email notes to each other.
8) BE PATIENT.
After you send the thank you note (or notes), you are done. Wait for them to follow up with you. You don’t want to risk annoying them with too many emails.