Want to Land More Interviews?

Picture this. You’ve scoured the internet for hours, read up on all the industry trends, studied company websites, actively engaged in dozens of networking conversations, perfected your resume, typed up a compelling cover letter, and finally mustered up the courage to submit your application.

So much time, stress, and hard work leading up to this application and you can finally take a sigh of relief. Days start to fly by, the constant checking of your email does nothing but enhance your anticipation and no amount of application refreshes can diminish your worry. After a week of crickets, you finally admit defeat and move on to the next application.

If you’re like most job seekers the above scenario is most likely your reality. The majority of eager candidates do all of the “right” things prior to submitting the application, however, they’re missing the most important piece — a follow-up.

Let me show you a real-life example for context. A few weeks ago the team at Climate People posted a highly niche and specific Product Manager position on LinkedIn. Over the course of a few weeks, we had 279 applications and 2,184 people had expressed interest.

As a small team with dozens of job postings, it's nearly impossible for us to go through every application and give each individual the credit that they deserve. We rely on keyword research and enhanced sourcing tools to select a few candidates that move on to the interview process. Climate People’s process is the norm and not an anomaly.

This being said, an element of luck — mixed with stellar experience and keyword research — is a piece of the pie when submitting generic applications.

Given these unfavorable quantitative stats and high application rates, we highly encourage candidates to highlight what sets them apart from the masses. While a resume does a stellar job of sharing your hard skills it lacks at conveying any soft skills or passions that you bring to the table — an interview is how you do this. So, how do you ensure that you get an interview?

Follow these 5 steps for mastering the perfect application follow-up:

1. Time it right. Wait 3-5 days before reaching out. You don’t want to immediately flood the hiring manager’s inbox. Give them some time to scour through the pool and then reach out to draw extra attention to your application.
   
2. Make it specific. Remember how we said we received 200+ applications on one of our dozens of postings? Time is of the essence and you need to remain concise. Ensure that your email contains the date you applied, the position you applied for, and your name. It never hurts to reattach your resume for convenience.
   
3. Make it personal. Make sure you did your homework. Ensure you are sending the follow-up email to the appropriate hiring manager or recruiter. Don’t just search the internet for the first company contact you can find. Not only will sending your follow-up to the wrong person not get you anywhere, but it also might hurt your credibility as a quality candidate.
   
4. Tie in climate. ClimateTech is an interesting use case because, unlike many other industries, passion is one of the most important job qualifications. The startups that Climate People works with care a great deal about the planet and want to see that same level of passion radiate through their employee base. Show your interest in the wellbeing of our planet and relate it back to the company you applied for.
   
5. Show quantifiable impact statements. Reiterate why you are qualified for the role. Don’t just say it, show it with quantifiable statements about the work you have done in the past. Of course, relate these skills, achievements, and qualifications back to the job you applied for.

Here’s an example of what I would send if I were applying to a marketing role at Climate People:

“Dear [insert hiring managers name],

I submitted an application for [full job title] on [exact date].

I wanted to follow up on my application and share a few key things that I didn’t think could get conveyed via LinkedIn’s “quick apply” feature. Given the current state of our environment, I can’t wait it out and sit on the sidelines any longer. I want to use my storytelling, communication, and marketing experience to get as many people working on climate solutions as possible.

Over the past three years, I’ve used this passion for change paired with my marketing expertise to increase social impression rates ten-fold, uptick event attendance by 300 percent, and engage over 10,000 followers with compelling content that encourages action. I would love to utilize my skillset to help Climate People position themselves as a monumental ClimateTech recruitment agency in this ever-growing market.

Thank you so much for your consideration. Please let me know if I can provide you with any more information or answer any questions that you may have. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Best,
Natalie”

Follow these steps to enhance your applications and get more interviews! Remember, you are your own best advocate, and learning to sell yourself is the key ingredient to landing your dream job.

‍