Thank You Letter
The Thank You letter is a very under-rated tool which really should be exploited to the maximum.
Whether you’ve just come back from a job interview or are looking to close a sale after a presentation, a well written thank you letter can really help you stand out from the competition.
Thank You Letter differences
While a thank you letter is similar in length to a standard cover letter, there are a few subtle differences in the way that it needs to be written.
Timing
The main difference with a thank you letter is that you need to consider the timing of when to send it – something that you don’t really need to do when writing a standard cover letter.
The first thing to say is that your letter needs to arrive before any sort of decision has been made. Therefore, we would recommend that you get your letter in the post within 24 hours of your initial meeting.
That way, you’re ensuring that your letter arrives while your still fresh in your interviewers mind and before (s)he has decided who to hire.
Your last chance to make an impression
Often, it’s quite useful to treat your thank you letter as an extension of your interview/sales pitch.
This letter gives you one final opportunity to summarize why you think you’re the best fit for a particular role.
This is your chance to mention anything that you might have forgotten to say during your meeting or to clear up any misunderstandings that may have occurred.
If you feel that your meeting went well, then take this opportunity to go over your keypoints again or alternatively mention some of the things that you learned in your meeting to emphasize your ability to listen and learn.
How to write your Thank You letter
In a similar way to a standard cover letter, your Thank You letter should be short and to the point. We would suggest that you base your letter around the following simple template.
Layout
If you’re planning on sending your thank you letter in the post, then make sure that it looks right.
This includes:
- Including your contact details at the top of the page
- Inserting the current date in long format (e.g. 25th May 2011)
- Addressing the letter personally to the individual who you have already met
From there, you can go on to the main body of your letter
First Paragraph
Open your letter by thanking your interviewer for his/her time. Be specific about the date which you came in for your meeting to ensure that you’re remembered instantly. From there you can go on and say how much you enjoyed coming into chat about what you did and how much you got out of your meeting.
Second Paragraph
From there, it’s a case of re-emphasising your major selling points and demonstrating the enthusiasm that you have for working with the individual involved.
This is also the time to mention anything new about the organization which you learned in the interview as well as mentioning anything that you might have forgotten to say.
Third Paragraph
Generally speaking, your Thank You letter should be shorter than your original cover letter, so your third paragraph should be where you restate your contact details and also mention any follow up actions that you’re planning to make.
You should then thank your contact again for their time and sign off with the term ‘Yours sincerely’ followed by a comma and then your named signed in ink a few lines below.
Your signature then needs to be followed by your name printed in parenthesis.
e.g. (Frank Butcher)
Check and Re-Check
As with any formal letter, it’s important to come across as an educated and trusted professional who can be relied upon to do a responsible job … and nothing shoots down that image quicker than a letter that hasn’t been checked and then checked again.
As a bare minimum, you need to re-read your letter a minimum of six times before you send it off … and preferably a whole lot more. You want to make sure that your letter has a nice flow to it, but also doesn’t make any of the following key mistakes:
Spelling
Now this is obviously the key thing that you want to make sure you get right … but don’t totally rely on a spell checker. Make sure you go through things manually too. This is because not all spell checkers will pick up on subtle variations of the English language like “there” and “their” or “your” and “you’re” so make sure that you have these correct.
Contractions
Try to remove any apostrophes from your letter. This means that words like “you’re” will be replaced with “you are” and “there’s” becomes “there is.” This gives a much more professional look to your letter and makes you come across as a lot more educated too.
Slang/Colloquial Expressions
Similar to contractions, any phrases which include slang or colloqualisms need to be taken out of your letter. This includes phrases such as “I’ll catch you later” which have no literal sense and only serve to lessen the impression that the reader has of you.
Back up what you say
We’ve spoken about how this is your last chance to sell yourself, so make sure that you re-inforce any key points that you’re making with fact from your CV or company documentation. Don’t be tempted to insert phrases that describe you as being “experienced” or “energetic” unless you can prove these points by work you’ve done in the past.
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