It is often suggested that a job applicant send a thank you note to a prospective employer after an interview. While there are some modern discrepancies about whether this should be via e-mail or through the US Postal Service, it is nonetheless a good idea. For many people, however, this presents a new challenge: Writing a thank you note that isn’t awkward.
It can be difficult to come up with more than a line or two in thanks for an interview, especially if you only had brief 5-10 minute interview conversations. Your thank you note doesn’t need to be a formal letter, but should encompass at least 4 or 5 sentences. Here are a few tips on how to beef up the post interview thank you note:
- Take notes during your interview and ask questions that elicit more than yes or no answers. These answers can be referenced in your thank you note about a particularly interesting topic during the interview.
- Jot down some of the interviewer’s personal items that may be lying around their office. These offer great fodder for a sentence or two about something important to them. (Stay away from complementing on family photographs.)
- Note an interesting feature of the office space and make sure to complement that feature to add a sentence or two.
- Jot down the receptionists name and take an opportunity to praise his/her friendliness and professionalism in a thank you note.
- If the company has a well designed business card and/or website it would provide an excellent sentence in a thank you note.
What have we missed? Any other ways to avoid an awkward thank you note?
