Job Search 101 Tutorial: #9 - Job-Search Follow-Up

Job Search 101 Tutorial:
10 Steps to a New Job

Step 9: Job-Search Follow-Up... Job Leads, Interviews... Everything!

Here are some great tips and strategies for helping you follow up in your job-search.

Importance of Following Up

You MUST be proactive if you plan to be successful in your job search. Employers -- in any kind of labor market -- are not going to be banging down your door looking for you. You need to follow-up all your contact with employers -- either by phone or by email, depending on the circumstances. Read these articles:

Follow Up With Network Contacts

Your key to uncovering unpublicized job opportunities -- the ones you will never see (or see when every other job-seeker does) on the job boards -- is through your network of friends, family, and colleagues. If you have already asked them for their help in finding job leads, it's time to follow-up. Don't be a pest about it, but do let them know you are still looking for a job. (And once you find a job, make sure you contact your network and let them know of your success -- and to thank them again for their assistance.) Read our article, How to Tap Into Jobs in the Unpublicized Employment Market.

Job-Seeker Thank You Letters as Follow Up

Remember all those times as a kid when your parents made you write thank you notes to distant friends and relatives who sent you presents on special occasions? Well, guess what? That lesson in manners will pay off for you because you would be surprised at how few job-seekers send thank you letters to potential employers. Remember, your goal is differentiating yourself from the other job-seekers and this small gesture can really pay off for you. Read more about thank you letters in FAQs About Thank You Letters.

Follow-Up Phone Calls and Emails to Hiring Managers

Not everybody is at ease making phone calls, but you NEED to do so if you really want the job. If you say you are going to contact an employer -- and in your job search letters you should do so -- then you must follow-up and actually make the phone call! If you have been communicating by email, you can follow-up by email too, but nothing beats a two-way conversation by phone. Don't be a pest about contacting the hiring manager -- in other words, don't call everyday -- but stay in contact to show your interest in the job and employer.

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Job Search 101 Tutorial: 10 Steps to a New Job