You shouldn’t write a thank you note…

Your traditional “thank you” note goes like this.

Dear Ms. Applebee,

Thank you for taking the time to meet with me today. I liked learning about your team. I am confident I can make an impact within your company.

I look forward to hearing from you,

Jake Barnum

That is wasted real-estate, wasted time, and wasted money if you snail-mailed it.

Here is a list of what you should do:

  1. Email the note within 24 hours, or not at all.
  2. Don’t thank them for their time, they are doing a job, and that is hiring someone. However, you should thank them if you were doing an informational interview.
  3. Be specific about what you can bring to the table, and how it can alleviate their pain points.
  4. Tell them what your references will verify.
  5. Let them know you are available for follow-up questions.

This is what it should look like.

Dear Ms. Applebee,

I enjoyed meeting with you and your team today. Listening to you describe the challenges in your department reminded me of my experience at ABC Corp. I helped to spearhead a new way of dealing with BOL’s that helped catch up the department on 6 months of backlogged work in 15 days. I loved taking the bull by the horns, and would jump at the chance to do it again.

Since you are shopping systems right now, be sure to ask my references about my system implementation experience. I was the lead for when we implemented ZactTrack, an Oracle based system. They will verify that we made all our deadlines for implementation.

If you need to get a hold of me, I am available on my cell phone at 503-555-5555. Please do not hesitate to reach out should you need more clarification, or if another question has come up.

Sincerely,

Jake Barnum

And that is how you use your written real-estate wisely.

Have questions, or ideas for future subjects? Send them to Daava@foodguys.com.