Is Your Follow-Up Doing More Harm Than Good?

Some people don't realize the value of sending a follow-up letter after an interview, but in almost all cases, it’s not only good manners, but expected. A promising candidate who fails to send a note of thanks after a great interview may lose big brownie points with the hiring manager. It’s a well-known fact that a timely follow-up yields good results.

But what about when your follow-up does more harm than good? Just as you look good when you send a great thank you letter, sending two, three or more letters inquiring about the status can have the opposite outcome: it makes you look bad.

Just as with dating, the key to a new prospective relationship is knowing where to draw the line between keeping in contact, and scaring the other party off by appearing needy or just plain desperate – two qualities which are an equal turn-off in both the personal and professional world.

We asked employers for advice on proper follow-up etiquette after an interview:

Do: Send a follow-up letter or email within two business days of the interview

Sending a brief, positive follow-up letter (via snail mail or email) is your chance to let your interviewer know how much you appreciate their time. Because most companies do the majority of their correspondence via email, a physical letter also implies that you took the extra steps to write, sign and mail it. Employers will see this as a sign that you're willing to go the extra mile to accomplish a task.

Don't: Send more than one follow-up letter

Sending more than one letter is not only unprofessional, but it also comes across as desperate. Employers are busy, and yes, they already read your first letter. They know you want the job.

These days, a hiring manager may receive two hundred emails for one job posting and interview twenty candidates. Trust us, if he or she wants to hire you after doing all this legwork, they will be in touch as soon as the decision is made.

It sounds harsh, but in most cases the job candidates who failed to make the cut will not be notified. Sending multiple letters can invalidate your first letter because it shows them that you're insecure and impatient. If the manager is trying to decide between you and someone else of equal talent, getting a big pile of letters from you may turn them off to you and have the opposite effect to the one you intended.

Do: Include a recap of your strengths and desire to work

A follow-up letter is a good chance to summarize your interview. If the open job has a large applicant pool, chances are your interviewers may not remember every last detail of your interview. Some of those details might be important. A follow-up letter gives your prospective employer a handy recap of your best points, and that might give you an edge over your competitors.

Don't: Be unprofessional

A follow-up letter is expected to be brief, to the point, and professional. Don’t use it to fawn, flatter or try to manipulate your prospective new boss in any way.

Employers don't have time to read your novel about how beautiful you thought the family photo on their desk was, or how landing this job will help you feed the homeless by using your earnings to improve the local soup kitchen. If you didn’t mention it at the interview, don’t mention it now. At best you’ll come across as needy. At worst they will think you’re trying to influence their decision.

A note on the follow-up calls

The same DO’s and DON'Ts apply when making follow-up phone calls:

-- Do make one phone call, a week after you send the follow-up letter, but make sure that it's brief and to the point. As mentioned above, remember why you are calling, and stick to the point.

-- Don’t ask for a decision on the hire if one is not freely offered to you, and don’t feel like it’s okay to relax and try to befriend the hiring manager with a long drawn-out call about your thoughts and feelings on the interview. You’re not calling a friend to chat about how your job hunt is going, you’re calling your prospective employer during his or her office time, and they may be busy. 

By following the proper professional etiquette in your follow-up, you'll make a much better impression, and avoid making rookie mistakes that could cost you the job.