ATTENTION JOB SEEKERS!!! I am about to give you a tip on one of the best and cheapest investments you will ever make. Run down to your local card store and pick up a box of generic blank cards. After every interview you have, I want you to reach out to the interviewer and send them a thank you card with a personal note inside thanking them for their time. Sounds like common sense, right? Well in my years of recruiting, I have only received two thank you cards from potential candidates. It will really set you apart from other candidates, and the goal is to get the person conducting the interview to like you, and to be on your side in the hiring process. Now you may be saying, “I usually send an e-mail, what’s the big difference?”
I’ll tell you how this small, easy, and cheap task is different from an e-mail. When was the last time you got a letter in the mail or a card besides on holidays? And if you did get one, what was going through your mind while you feverishly tore open the envelope to see what it was. Everyone loves mail, and if you are the one sending the mail, then the person who receives it will in turn love you!
Now that you have hopefully completed step one, and you get a call to come back for that final interview, it’s time to show that future employer exactly what you can bring to the table. Everyone likes a candidate who can answer a question correctly, but employers love a candidate who does some research and can actually make suggestions and bring ideas to the table. Call your contacts, mutual vendors you and the future employer have used, and get the inside scoop. When you are able to answer a question, and make it more specific to that company, it will set you apart from the 400 other applicants that probably applied to the same position.
When future employers are interviewing you, they aren’t only looking for a person to do the job; they are potentially interviewing a new teammate, and future friend. Remember my tips and you will see the job offers come rolling in!
