How to Write a Follow-Up Email After an Interview or Application.

Applying for a new job is always exciting but waiting for a response can feel like you’re watching paint dry. This could be your dream job or a role that’s particularly important to you. Regardless, it’s tempting to reach out to the hiring manager after the interview to see if you made a good impression.

Typically, this is a good thing, but there are right and wrong ways to go about it. Take a look at the best approach to follow-up emails so you can stay up to date on your applications and place yourself in a positive light in the mind of the hiring manager. Explore the ways Adobe Express can help you write a follow-up email below.

What is a follow-up email?

A follow-up email can come in many shapes or sizes. But the key focus is that all follow-up emails are unprompted messages sent after an initial meeting or conversation.

If you’re sending a follow-up email after a job interview, you might be thanking the hiring team for the opportunity or, after some time, you might be asking for an update on a decision. If you’re a freelancer, you’ll likely send a follow-up email after a chat with a potential client, first to thank them for their time and then to ask if they want to work with you.

The main aim of these emails is to keep the conversation flowing, find out information, or simply stay at the forefront of your interviewer’s mind. In this guide, we’ll be looking at follow-up emails for job applicants.

Examples of a follow-up email after an interview.

How to write a follow-up email.

Don’t worry, if you’ve done your interview, the hard part is already over. Follow-up emails are typically short and sweet so you can’t go too far wrong. But if you’re drawing a blank, we’ve put together a guide to creating the perfect follow-up email after an interview.

1. Decide if you want to respond to an existing thread or start a new one.

Before you begin to write your email, you should decide whether you want to respond to an existing thread or start a new one. In other words, are you sending a new email, or responding to one?

Context is key here. If there has been little email correspondence between you and the employer, a new email might be your only option. However, if you’ve had plenty of back and forth, it might make more sense to stick to the latest thread.

2. Check your subject line aligns with your intent.

Subject lines summarise the contents of your email, and they can also make it easier to manually search for messages. When you’re writing your subject line, be sure it’s relevant to the email you’re about to send.

A good example for a follow-up message might be “Pat Johnson interview feedback”. It’s straight to the point, sums up the contents and the reader understands the gist of the email before opening it.

3. Select an appropriate form of address.

First impressions count and, assuming you still want the role, you probably want to remain respectful and professional. Start your email off on the right foot by addressing the recipient in a way that shows you’re sincere.

Something like Dear sir/madam, To whom it may concern, or if you know their name, Dear [name] would be appropriate.

4. State your reason for emailing early on.

Chances are you’re not the only person applying for the role, and it’s likely you’re not the only one asking for feedback. So don’t waste the reader’s time with rambling and wooing. State your intentions and/or request in a professional and polite manner.

A good example could be “I’m hoping to get some feedback on my interview I had on Wednesday the 6^th”.

5. Include a professional sign-off.

Much like your professional hello, it’s time to make sure your goodbye is also appropriate. Once again, it’s best to not overthink this and end on a simple note.

Common sign-offs include Thanks, Sincerely, Best, and Kind Regards. All of these would work well. These might already exist in your email signature.

When should you send a follow-up email?

There are plenty of reasons to send a follow-up email. Typically, it’s the most common way of finding the information you need. Below we explore some of the most common reasons.

If you need to send an email that doesn’t fall into one of these categories, with a little tweaking you should be able to adapt the content to your needs.

More editable follow-up email ideas.

Best practice tips for writing a follow-up email.

We’ve assembled some best practice tips for writing a follow-up email after an interview. It’s not the end of the world if you don’t hit all these marks but keep them in mind for a quick way to create an effective response.

When writing your follow-up email:

• Don’t rush your follow-up. It’s worth thinking about what you’ll say before you say it. The beauty of email is that you rarely need to give an immediate response. Instead, take your time and consider your options before you craft your message.
• Maintain a professional tone. If you’re speaking with a future employer, it’s best to keep things professional. You may have developed a rapport during an interview but keep those professional standards high as your email may be seen by others such as CEOs and HR teams.
• Personalise your response. While professionalism is essential, no one wants to read an email that sounds like it was written by a robot. One of the simplest ways to avoid this is to personalise your response. Acknowledging the person you’re addressing is an easy win, as is thanking someone for their time.
• Reference the previous email. Much like the previous point, referencing the previous email can add some humanity to your response. It shows that you’ve read the email that was sent to you, it makes it easier for the reader to follow the conversation and, perhaps best of all, it shows you’re paying attention.
• Use a call to action (CTA). A call to action, put simply, is a sentence or two that encourages the reader to do something. In the context of a follow-up email, it might be a request for a time to talk or asking for details on the application progress.

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Good to know.

How do you write a follow-up email after no response?

If you haven’t heard a response, you can craft an email to chase for an update. Writing this email shouldn’t be too complex, however you might choose ‘Reply to all’ on the previous email you sent. You can use something like:

How do you professionally say ‘follow-up’?

The phrase ‘follow-up’ should be fine to use in almost all contexts as it isn’t an unprofessional phrase or a colloquial one. However, if you’re looking for alternatives, you might choose to say one of the following:

• I’m checking in on…
• Could you provide an update on…
• I wanted to circle back to…

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