For the past several weeks I have been
participating in the interview process for entry-level sales positions. The
candidates being considered for the open positions are current / recent college
graduates. The majority of the candidates have similar backgrounds, are
graduating (or just did) from very prominent, local universities, and all have
four year degrees with rather high grade point averages. Yet, only a select few
are standing out.
The candidates, while all very similar,
are showing me what they are made of not from their resumes, but rather their
post-interview correspondence. Can you believe it, I’ve interviewed a few that
never sent a thank you, but left voicemails wondering where the interview
process stood? Seriously, not even a simple thank you email for the time spent
talking with them.
No thank you can cost you a future
interview, future follow-up sales meeting, and quite possibly a sale.
While this is a short post this week,
the advice I am sharing should be taken to heart, say thank you. Whether you
enjoyed the interview process or not, or whether you want to continue to
interview with a particular company or not, saying thank you is not only
courteous, it can be a real differentiator in the decision process.
And oh, by the way, if you didn’t send
me even a simple note of thanks for the recent interview, don’t call and ask
why you’ve not been invited back. This post is your answer.