After a job interview, the way in which you follow-up can either hurt or help your chances of securing the job. Don’t leave it up to the hiring manager to contact you. Job seekers should take action after a job interview, but there are some job follow-up mistakes to avoid.
Job seekers may avoid following-up immediately after an interview to avoid looking desperate. This also stops them from asking a crucial question at the end of the job interview: “what’s the next step?” Knowing how to follow-up depends on how the interviewer answers that question so it’s important to ask it in order to figure out what the best way to follow-up will be.
The first major follow-up mistake any job seeker can commit is not sending a thank you letter. Thank you letters are a must and the timing is crucial. The sooner you send the letter the better, whether it’s handwritten or emailed. It’s imperative that you send it the day of or day after the job interview. This way, your interview is still fresh in the hiring manager’s mind and you’ll further impress them. Failing to send out a thank you letter or sending it days after the job interview will show that you are not on top of things.
Don’t forget to remain professional throughout your follow-up with your potential employer. Keep your thank you letter polished and free of grammatical errors. If the hiring manager said to keep in touch, then do so by placing a phone call and leave a formal voice message if they don’t answer. Don’t be pushy. Calling the employer everyday won’t increase your chances of being hired, that may actually hurt your chances.
During your follow-up it’s important to remember that you are still in the midst of a job search. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket by staying focused on the one job you interviewed for. Remember that there are other opportunities you should be perusing. As confident as you are about the job interview, realize that despite your best efforts they may choose another candidate for whatever reason. Don’t take it personally if they don’t follow-up, just move on to other job opportunities.
Have you ever committed one of these job follow-up don’ts? Do leave us a comment below!
IMAGE: Courtesy of Flickr by brendan-c
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