Following Up: Important Tips

So, you are out there looking for a position or a new career. You have targeted your resume, and have sent it in. There are two ways you can handle following up on things after you submit a resume. The first thing you can do, is do nothing. Just submit it and wait. Of course this will not get you ahead in the game at all. A good rule of thumb is to wait till about the second business day after the day that you sent your resume in. Avoid Mondays and Fridays, as these can tend to be busy days for most.

When calling, you may be tempted to simply say "I sent in my resume and just wanted to confirm it reached the proper person." This general type of call is something most places probably receive quite often after a job has been posted, and such a call gets you very little, except maybe a "yes, we did, and will get back to you if interested," or something along that line. A better suggestion is to use this brief encounter to engage and sell yourself some to stand out, and maybe even to score an interview date then and there. Instead, try something along the lines of "My name is Bob Phillips, and I noticed your job posting for a accounting manager. I have 6 years of accounting experience and 2 years managing a successful accounting team. I expect you have received several resumes for this position, but I wanted to see if we could set up a time we can meet.” This puts your name in their head, and not only will they most likely stop and pull out your resume, but they may actually go ahead and schedule an interview with you right then and there.

Then, after you have finished the interviewing process, it is also good to follow up. Again, the common action is to do nothing, and sit back and wait for them to call you, fearing coming across as too pushy or eager. But as with the above scenario, this opportunity can again be constructed to be of an advantage for you. A general call stating "I wanted to just follow up to see if there were any additional questions or information I could provide to you" is way too generic, and will accomplish little to nothing.

Instead, handle it by saying something along the lines of “My name is Bob Phillips and I interviewed for the accounting manager position on Thursday. What is the next step in the interview process? I’m very interested in the position and think I would be a great fit.” In the world of sales, this is referred to as an "assumptive close" and should be the approach you take, since a job interview is in fact a chance to "sell yourself" to the hiring agent. You need to sell your talent, skills and history to them show that you are the candidate they should invest in.

So, take the extra step, and do not just sit back and wait to be contacted. Take the initiative, and use every encounter as another chance to put yourself on the forefront of the hiring process.

Jeff McCormack resides in Virginia Beach, VA. where he works as a web designer by day. In his off time he is a husband, father, mail order book store manager, and an avid musician, currently active in two local bands. He is also a lover of books, having a large personal library and squeezes in as much reading as often as he can. Aside from being a freelance writer for this Armed Services Jobs blog, he also seeks to assist in career choices and information by contributing to other Nexxt blog site.