The Thank You Note

According to the vast majority of employers, sending a thank you note after an interview is still important. It shows that you are grateful and appreciative of the opportunity to visit with them, and in this day and age, more and more employers are not seeing gratitude and appreciation from potential employees. So, take advantage of this opportunity to shine and send that thank you note.

Mailing the note is still the best way to go, as it takes more time and effort to do, and the employer realizes this. It’s just far too easy to tap out an email thank you. However, an email thank you is better than not sending one at all.

Given that we are going to mail the thank you note, the question often comes up as to whether the note should be typed, or handwritten. Most now say a nice, conservative card with a handwritten note is the best way to go. Caveat … if your handwriting is hideous, type/print it out.

Another frequent question about thank you notes is whether or not you can send a “group” thank you note if you were interviewed by a panel, or individually, but by more than one person. The quick answer is “No”. It’s always best to send an individual note to each person you interviewed with.

The biggest question about thank you notes concerns content. At a minimum, thank you notes MUST thank the person for his/her time and reiterate your interest in the position. Additionally, it’s always best if you are able to personalize the note a bit more by bringing out something positive from your interview. For example, you might say “I’m glad you feel that my medical background will help in the field of insurance defense.”

Finally, we are often asked when thank you notes should be mailed. The answer, within 24 hours of your interview. Period.

Remember, use this as a time to shine. Show your gratitude and eagerness to move forward with this employer. Also, since the employer will see this as another writing sample, make sure there are no typos or grammatical mistakes and that the name of the employer and attorney are spelled correctly.