Interview Thank You Letter

Benefit of Thank You Letter

It is rare that applicants send thank you letters to employers or interviewers. Maybe it is because they do now know how to write one or they do not realize the value of it. Here, we will show you how an interview thank you letter should look like.

An interview thank you letter should have the complete ingredients, so to speak. When you send thank you letters to your interviewer, the immediate benefit is you get noticed and rise up above the rest who were also interviewed during the day. It tells the interviewer how professional you are and that you are a person who appreciates simple things, even if the interviewer was just merely doing his job. If done right, your letter can change his mind and consider you for a second or final interview. If done wrong, you might not get a call.

The Letter Template

When writing an interview thank you letter, keep in mind that it is still a formal letter. This means that you still have to follow the standard format of writing business letters. Below is a useful format that you can follow. This should also be your guide when looking for a sample interview thank you letter online. Essentially, the thank you letter has almost the same forma with a cover letter. These parts in general are the heading, body, and closing.

At the top left of the page, write the following information for the heading, making sure you also follow the line breaks.

HEADING

Date (this is the date you wrote the letter)Name (this should be the name of the person who interviewed you)Position (this is the interviewer’s position; if you do not know what it is, you can leave this blank)

Company Name

Company Address

City State ZIP

BODY

Salutation

Letter Body

CLOSING

Closing Salutation

Your Name and Signature

If you come across an interview thank you letter online that does not have the complete format as described above, we strongly suggest that you look for another one. Many letters online are written as if thank you letters are informal. Make sure that your document processor format is single spaced.

The Letter Body

This is the part of the letter that makes all the difference. When writing the body of the interview thank you letter, make sure that it has the right components as described below.

• Do not sway away from the purpose of the letter.

• Your purpose is to thank the interviewer for the opportunity to be interviewed and for his time.

• Do not make the mistake of reiterating your qualification. You can do this but only in a subtle manner. If you want to reiterate your qualifications, make sure that you only focus on those that were touched or discussed during the session.

• Keep the letter to a maximum of two paragraphs.

• The first paragraphs should express your appreciation.

• In the same paragraph, express that you enjoyed the interview.

• The second paragraph should invite the interviewer to consider you for a second or final interview.

The Letter Tips

• Make sure you send the letter within 24 hours after you were interviewed.

• The salutation should be based on the overall tone of your interview. You must use your judgment if you will use the interviewer’s last name or first name. For example, you need to make sure you do not sound offensive by using “Dear John.” To be on the safe side, use “Dear Mr. Smith.”

• The names and details of the interviewer and the company should be correctly spelled.

• Do not make the mistake of sending a letter that should have been sent to another person.

• When making an interview thank you letter, make sure it is individualized and not generic.

• It should also be short, concise, and very direct to the point.

• Express that you are looking forward to seeing the person or hearing from him again.

• Make sure you spell check your letter. Misspelled words are really one of the things that tell the interviewer your lack of attention to detail.

Now that you are armed with this knowledge, all you have to do is to put it into practice. At first it may seem difficult to write a letter as short as this, considering that you really have to be very short. In the long run, you will get used to it and will be able to whip out a letter real quick.