How to Write Thank You Email After Interview – You’ve made it to the end of the interview. The interviewers tell you they’ll get back to you soon regarding your application. This is where some people experience interviewer’s block. You may be reluctant to email your thank you letter just in case the company hires someone else over you. Everyone wants to nail their interview and secure that job offer but some people fail to do this which results in not getting the job. After waiting 3 days for an email about your interview, this is what your letter should include. We’ll also let you know why brevity is key when asking for a reference in your emails.
Most job seekers put a lot of effort into crafting a resume and preparing for an interview. Here’s what many people don’t spend much time on but should: thank-you emails after interviews.
It’s surprising how many job candidates don’t bother to send a thank-you note, because it really does make a positive impression on employers. It’s a simple step to take, and it can separate you from equally qualified candidates who don’t send a email after an interview. And yes, you should send a message after a video interview just as you would an in-person meeting.
If the challenge of crafting a great thank-you email is holding you back from sending one, you’ve come to the right place.
Table of Contents
What to include in a thank-you email after an interview
Here are the basic points you should include in just about any thank-you note you send after an interview, and a few optional ideas:
- Express thanks for the interviewer’s time.
- Briefly reinforce why you’re interested in the job and why you’d be a good match.
- Consider adding something that you and the interviewer discussed while getting to know each other that makes the thank-you email more personal.
- Offer to answer any questions they might have.
- Add relevant examples of your work, or suggest a solution to a company problem that came up during your conversation.
- Close your email by reiterating your appreciation for the interview and asking about next steps.
How to Write Thank You Email after Interview
You must always send an interview thank-you email no later than 24 hours after the interview. If you interviewed with several people, send a personalized thank-you note to each of them. Be genuine, thank them for the opportunity, reiterate your interest, and remember to refer to what you discussed during the interview itself.
Sending any thank you email after a job interview puts you ahead of over half of the competition.
A great, personalized interview thank you email? That’s what will make you the frontrunner.
The bottom line: yes, you always need to send a “thank you for an interview” email.
Here’s how to write a perfect thank you email after an interview in 7 easy steps:
1. Create a clear subject line
No puns, no jokes, go straight to the point. It’s the only way to make sure your thank you email gets opened.
Sample subject lines for a thank you email:
- Thank you, [Interviewer’s Name]!
- Thank you for your time and advice
- Thanks for the interview yesterday
- I enjoyed learning more about [Company Name]
- Thank you!
Simple as that!
2. Open with a personal greeting
- Address the hiring manager directly, by name.
- If you’ve interviewed with more than one person, send personalized thank-you notes to each of them.
3. Express your appreciation
- Since it’s a “thank you email” open with a “thank you!”
- Be sincere and authentic when expressing gratitude or appreciation.
- Show that you care about the time the interviewers spent with you describing the details of your position.
(To see what I mean, check out the wrong example above again. See how many personal pronouns the candidate used. It doesn’t read like a sincere “thank you,” more like “I know I’m awesome.”)
4. Restate that you’re interested in the job
- During the interview, your future employer wants to make sure you’re the right fit for the company. But…
- They also want to know you’re genuinely eager to join. Make sure to mention that in your thank you email.
- If the interview made you realize the job is not right for you, clearly state that in your thank-you email. The hiring manager will appreciate your honesty, plus, you’ll help them save time.
5. Refer to something specific you discussed during an interview and make an offer
- Identify what’s particularly interesting to you about the position and explain why. This way, you’ll make your email after an interview feel personalized.
- Refer to your skills and experience and show how you’re going to use them to help your future employer get what they want.
6. Say you can provide additional information and remind them about the established response deadline
How to end a thank you email after an interview?
The golden rule is, be brief and polite. A succinct paragraph such as the one below will do:
Should you need any additional information from me that could assist with the decision-making process, feel free to contact me. I look forward to our call next week as discussed.
7. Close with a professional sign-off
- Thank them again.
- Sign off with a “sincerely” synonym followed by your full name.
- Below, put your basic contact details: telephone number and email address.
- Optionally, add extra links (e.g. your LinkedIn, Twitter, or a personal website).
Thank You Email Template
Hi [Interviewer Name],
Thank you so much for meeting with me today. It was such a pleasure to learn more about the team and position, and I’m very excited about the opportunity to join [Company Name] and help [bring in new clients/develop world-class content/anything else awesome you would be doing] with your team.
I look forward to hearing from you about the next steps in the hiring process, and please do not hesitate to contact me if I can provide additional information.
Best regards,
[Your Name]
Sample Thank You Emails
So what does this template look like in practice? Here are a couple example thank you notes you can use to build your own perfect letter.
Sample #1
This one’s short and simple, perfect if you’re looking for a quick follow up after the first or second round interview and want to use the template more or less to a T.
Hi Jimmy,
Thank you so much for chatting with me today. It was such a pleasure to learn more about the marketing manager role, and I’m very excited about the opportunity to join News Crew and help your team bring a new readership to your amazing content.
I look forward to hearing from you about next steps, but please don’t hesitate to contact me if I can provide any additional information.
All the best,
Liz
Sample #2
To stand out from the crowd, get more specific with your thank you note. Show you were paying attention in the interview and reiterate what a great fit you’d be for the job with an email that looks more like this:
Hi Ms. Bernard,
I just wanted to thank you for inviting me to your office today. It was great to hear about 4Apps’ goals for streamlining your software and placing an emphasis on quality UX design, and how you see the engineering department playing a role in these initiatives. 4Apps seems like a wonderful place to work—and not just because you mentioned some great summer outings! I really admire the mission that drives your business, and look forward to the opportunity to work with your team to implement some of the ideas I mentioned around redesigning the homepage.
Please let me know if there’s anything else you need from me to move the process forward.
Have a great rest of your week,
Kyle Triston
Take Your Thank You Email to the Next Level
While the template above is all you need, if you really want to blow a hiring manager out of the water, add in another few lines before “I look forward to…” with some ideas you have on how you could add value. Think: a quick mock-up of something you discussed in the interview if you’re in a creative role, taglines if you’re in branding, or some slides or possible partners if you’re in business development or sales.
It could look something like this:
Sample #3
Hi Tanner,
Thank you so much for meeting with me today. I really enjoyed learning more about your career trajectory at CarRuns (and hearing what it was like to join as the fifth employee—so impressive!) and where you see the company going in the next couple years.
To follow up on our conversation about churned clients, I’ve attached a short deck I mocked up on my initial ideas for increasing renewals. Happy to discuss further if you see it being a helpful resource.
I can tell CarRuns is a special place to work, and I would be thrilled to join such an innovative, hardworking, and passionate team of individuals. Please let me know if there’s anything else I can provide to make your hiring decision easier.
Best regards,
Adelaide Jenkins
For more advice on taking your email to the next level, try Muse writer Alexandra Franzen’s tips for how to work your ideas into an irresistible follow-up.
Another way to go the extra mile—especially if your interviewer is more traditional or you have a feeling they’d appreciate a handwritten note—is to drop a card in snail mail as well. To connect the two, you can simply add a line to your email like:
PS. Just because I’m a sucker for handwritten thank you notes, you should be receiving a letter in the mail/I dropped a letter off at the front desk as well!
(And yes, even if you send a snail mail note, you’ll still want to send that quick email thank you to cover your bases—just in case your interviewer doesn’t get the letter right away.)
Conclusion
Thank you letters are also called thank you notes. The way to think of thank you letters is that you are thanking them for taking the time to sit down with you, either in an interview or simply a business lunch. This means that your job is not done after the interview or lunch. The thank you letter allows you to highlight some things about yourself which might have not come out during the interview. It also shows your sincere interest in the company, their vision, and allows you to ask for advice regarding timing of follow-up communication or anything else they are willing to offer.