6 Important Notes for Writing a Thank You Email After an Interview

6 Important Notes for Writing a Thank You Email After an Interview

As we all know, there are 3 general stages in a job-seeking process, including preparing for applying to the job, performing in person and over the phone interviews, and following up after an interview. In the first stage, we need to analyze the job requirements, collect relevant information on a website, like Salary.com, make an educated decision based on the information you gathered, and decide to apply the job. If you are lucky enough get an interview with recruiters, you need to be professional and flex your interpersonal skills, applying the knowledge and information you learned while researching. Most people may think once they get an interview, they will land the job, maybe even including a bonus. However, if the candidate ignored the after interview thank you email, all your effort may not have been worth it!

The thank you email after an interview can add further weight to you while in the interview. It is a polite way to show your appreciation for the chance to have a face to face meeting and thank the recruiter for speaking with you. You may ask yourself "should I send a thank you email after an interview?" and for most of job recruiters the answer is yes. Thank you emails after an interview are a potential test for applicants to see if they are engaging enough to be hired and whether they have enough experience interacting with people. After all, a job is different from school or practice exercises. In a business setting, the ability to communicate with- and successfully engage with people is regarded as one of the most sought-after skills with candidates.

Why the thank you email after an interview has critical power?

• It can emphasize the positive impression you made in the interview.
• It shows your professional manner.
• It provides another opportunity to put yourself in front of the recruiter.
• If you did not perform well interview, a proper thank you email after may leave a better impression with the interviewers, thus building the relationship for a future career.
• If the recruiter is hesitating to make a decision among candidates, including you, a thank you email after the interview will help you stand out.
• If you are the candidate the interviewer has already chosen, an appreciative after interview thank you email will help start your new job off on the right foot.

How to Write the Best Thank You Email After an Interview?

The after interview thank you email may have possibility of being a disaster. If you use the wrong expression, or copy the content from a website, you could be kicked out of the running. So how do you make a proper thank you email after an interview? What do you say in a thank you email after an interview? Here are 6 important tips to help you make a perfect template for a thank you email after an interview.

At the beginning of the thank you email after an interview, you should address the interviewer directly in the greeting, and offer a brief re-introduction of yourself (e.g., "It was so great meeting with you yesterday"). Details like these are very important. If you don’t know the name of the interviewer and write only the title in the cover letter, it isn’t the end of the world, but it is disrespectful to do the same thing in the thank you email after the interview. At this point, you can add more personal details showing you have clear understanding of the industry. For help with this, more information could be found on Salary.com.

Next, in the short thank you email after interview, you’d should recall the details about the interview, include the time, job title you are applying for, and the department or company name. The more specific information you provide, the more sincere your thank you letter after the interview will look. This will have you stand out from other candidates who have found sample thank you letters after an interview online.

You should mention an interesting topic you may have discussed in the interview and provide feedback. This will show the interviewer you have strong listening skills and personality. Provide feedback on the interview and how you felt it went. Background information relevant to the role can also be included, for help, you can find more information about role requirements on Salary.com.

Emphasize your abilities which apply to the job and willingness to join the team. Make it clear that the thank you email is a further push to land the job, so repeating your intention helps. Refer to the job description and other information you gathered on Salary.com to emphasize your abilities. You should come off confident or committed, but not arrogant or conceited.

In the last part of your after interview thank you email, you should again express appreciation for the time that the job recruiter spent chatting with you and indicate you are waiting for a reply. This is meant to calling them to action after reading the thank you email.

When to Send a Thank You Letter After an Interview?

You're probably asking yourself "how long should I wait to send a thank you email after an interview?" Keep in mind, the purpose of the thank you email after an interview is to strengthen the impression you made in person. The best time to send an email is the next business day following the interview with a short, casual, and structured format. Job recruiters are too busy to read a long and arduous letter. Furthermore, a clear and concise message will show that you respect the time of others.