Beat The GMAT - the MBA Social Network

Saying thank you is SO important, especially after interviews.  That is why I am so excited to host a thank you card giveaway today!  The Thank You Card Giftshop is giving away $25 gift certificates for top fold cards (excluding photos) to two lucky Classy Career Girl readers! Go to my website to enter!

Tired of going to job interview after job interview? Sending a thank you note will help you stand out from the crowd. It’s all too common to hear that hundreds of people are applying for one job these days; once you get an interview it’s important to differentiate yourself as much as possible from the other candidates. Sending a handwritten thank you note after your interview is a great way to be remembered and to make a positive impression that could lead to your dream job! Amy Lowry from Thank You Card Giftshop shares eight valuable tips here to help you write great thank you cards after a job interview:

1. A thank you note is the perfect way to show your excitement for the position and how sincere you are about it. Write something that restates your enthusiasm for the organization and your interest in the job.
2. Keep the thank you note short. Don’t write several pages about how great you are and how you’d be perfect for the job – you’ll likely only annoy the interviewer! Keep your note to the point and thank the interviewer for their time.
3. Remind the interviewer of any specific skills or experience you have that is well suited to the position. Don’t forget that there may be many applicants who will start to ‘blend together’ in the interviewers mind – this is an opportunity to help you stand out from the crowd.
4. Send handwritten thank you notes. In this instance it is not appropriate to send printed cards. Use simple black or blue ink, colored ink can be seen as unprofessional and distracting.
5. Use a dictionary and proofread what you’ve written. Get a friend to go over the note to check for any spelling or grammatical mistakes you may have missed.
6. Send the note right away, ideally within 24 hours of the interview, as this will keep your name fresh in the interviewer’s mind and will reach them before they make a decision about hiring.
7. Address the interviewer in a professional, but personal manner; ‘Dear Dr. Brown’ or ‘Dear Ms. Fast’ is much better than ‘To whom it may concern’ or ‘Dear Department Head’.
8. Make notes during the interview, or immediately afterward, which you can use to refer to in the thank you note. Say something specific that came up during the interview, for example: ‘I am very interested in your proposed plan to target a younger demographic’ – this will show your attention to detail.

With the popularity of email it’s been a long time since many of us have sat down and written a letter or card. You may be tempted to email the interviewer to thank them for their time, but don’t! In all likelihood their inbox is jammed full (whose isn’t?) and your email may go unnoticed. A hand-written thank you note may just be the deciding factor in getting hired!

To enter the giveaway, leave your email address in the comments to my original post! Hurry, giveaway ends March 28th, 2012 at 9pm EST. This giveaway is open to all residents in the US (Sorry everyone else, I promise I will have other contests in the future that you can enter).  Winners will be selected via random draw and will be notified by email. You have 24 hours to get back to me, otherwise new winners will be selected.

Good luck!