Get the Job You Want (Part 3): Strong Follow Up Strategies
So, you had a great job interview – now what?
FOLLOW UP.
I assure you that strong follow up positively impacts hiring decisions in your favor. Lack of follow up can cost you the job opportunity.
1. After the interview, make a few notes for yourself about each person you talked to. Include what they focused on, what you talked about with them and any specific concerns or issues they seemed to have about you or the position objectives.
2. Send an individual email immediately after the interview to every single person you met with. The email should be short, direct and express your appreciation. Each email can have essentially the same structure but should have at least one unique sentence pertaining to the conversation you had with each specific person.
An example:
Dear [Interviewer’s Name],
Thank you for the time you spent talking with me today. It was good to learn more about [Name of Company] and the X [job opportunity]. I especially appreciated knowing X [something interesting to you about the opportunity]. I am now even more interested in joining [Name of Company] and know that my experience and education in X will enable me to make a valuable contribution. I look forward to hearing back from you.
Sincerely [or another genuine, professional closing of your choice],
[Your Name]
Even if you have no interest in the job, still send a thank you note. It is professional courtesy to do so and since you may cross paths again with the interviewer its always a good idea to leave a positive impression. If you are not interested in the job, leave that part out of the note.
3. Send an actual handwritten note to the hiring manager or key decision maker. Use a warm tone, express your appreciation again, identify specifically what interests you the most about the job, reiterate a couple of your key qualifications and based on your notes, reference or address anything specific that came up in the interview.
4. If someone in your network connected you to the job opportunity, be sure to also thank them and let them know how the interview well. Suggest to your contact that if they feel comfortable doing so, you would appreciate them letting the interviewer know of your continued interest.
5. If you don’t hear from the potential employer by the date they indicated they would get back to you, reach out again with a very simple email.
An example
Dear [Interviewer’s Name],
I am following up regarding our meeting on X [date]. Have you had an opportunity to consider me for the X position? Is there any additional information you’d like to have from me to help you in your decision making. Thank you for giving me an update.
Sincerely [or another genuine, professional closing of your choice],
[Your Name]
6. If you think it would be appropriate to do so, reach out via LinkedIn with a request to connect with the interviewer(s).
7. If you don’t hear back after your follow up note, or if you hear back with a response that the employer has still not made a decision, reach out one more time with an interesting piece of information. This could be an article or a sample of your work related to the company, the position, the industry or something of mutual interest that you and the interviewer discussed. Your email should simply state that when you came across the information you are sharing you thought of the interviewer and the job opportunity. Indicate that you thought they would find the information interesting. Close your note with your expression of your continued interest.
Note that these are six possible follow up touch points. I recommend that you not give up before reaching out at least five times as any number of other priorities may have precluded the interviewer from getting back to you.
THE IMPORTANCE OF PERSISTENCE
Don’t think your follow up is annoying. Your goal is to keep your name top of mind and to show the potential employer the level of persistence. These six follow up strategies show the kind of follow up and follow through you would bring to the job.
Don’t get discouraged and neglect to follow up! You have a great deal to offer. The right opportunity is out there for you.
Want more tips? Learn more from The Art of Following Up.