You finally got an interview with your dream firm, nailed the interview, but found out you lost out to someone else. Total bummer, right. What happened? In 2017, we found that the #1 reason candidates lost out on a great new gig was fumbling the thank you note/follow up process.

A lot has changed about the job interview process over the past few years but the one thing that hasn’t changed is the NEED to send a thank you note to your interviewers. This small, but mighty gesture can set you apart from the competition. So, even if you knocked the interview out of the park – in fact, especially if you knocked it out the park – you should send a thank you note. The good news is that you can generally send your note via email, so you can send it right away (same day preferably) and re-confirm your interest in the position.

Here are some do’s and don’ts so you don’t spaz out during your interview process.

• DO send your thank you note within 24 hours. Knock out your gratitude and sense of urgency through this gesture.
• DO include all your interviewers in your note.
• DO include the name of the position in the subject line, followed by the words “Thank You”
• DO check your message for any spelling errors or typos. Get your mom, roommate, spouse, etc., to review your note before sending.
• DON’T overwhelm or annoy your interviewers. One thank you email and a follow up a week or so later are more than enough.
• DON’T share your social media accounts unless you have cleaned them up. Yeah – this is a biggie. Your twitter rants and unprofessional Facebook/Instagram photos need to go.
• DON’T discuss compensation. Just don’t; you can thank us later.

 

See below for a sample thank you note (there are a ton of free templates online, so take advantage).  Keep it short and sweet, and hopefully you’ll be responding to a job offer next.

 

Hi [Interviewer Name],

Thank you so much for meeting with me today. It was such a pleasure to learn more about the team and position, and I’m very excited about the opportunity to join [company name] and help [bring in new clients / develop world-class content / anything else awesome you would be doing] with your team.

I look forward to hearing from you about the next steps in the hiring process, and please do not hesitate to contact me if I can provide additional information.

Best regards,

[Your Name]

 

Go get ‘em!

 

NPR team