Excerpted from Thank-You Letters That Win Jobs 
By Wendy S. Enelow, CCM, MRW, JCTC, CPRW

The letter acknowledges the time and consideration of the hiring manager, thanks him, and further expresses your client’s interest in the position.  Unfortunately, most (not all) of the other candidates will be doing exactly the same thing.

After the interview is no time to stop selling.  In fact, it is precisely the right time to continue selling – your clients’ unique skills, qualifications, accomplishments, credentials and more.

Highlight any of the following that may be appropriate to a specific interview situation:

• If the hiring company shared some of their challenges with your client, relate how the client’s experience is tied directly to their current challenges and current needs.  Suppose they’re in the midst of a turnaround and market repositioning initiative.  Share your client’s past experiences in change management, reorganization and company revitalization, his achievements in reversing losses and delivering solid profit margins, his successes in productivity and quality improvement, and all the other things your client accomplished to facilitate successful turnarounds and improved financial performance.

• If the hiring company shared a major problem that they were currently working to resolve, highlight how your client solved that same (or similar) problem before.  Imagine that the company is having to compete in a marketplace that they once owned.  Two years ago there was no competition.  Today, six companies are now competing for the same customer base.  Write a thank-you letter that shares your client’s past achievements in strengthening market position, expanding customer bases and outperforming competitors.

• If the hiring company communicated an objection to hiring you (a reason why they were concerned about hiring him or her), respond to it in the thank-you letter.  For example, let’s say that they were concerned that you had never worked in Los Angeles, and therefore does not have any professional contacts in the area.  Use the thank-you letter to demonstrate that you previously entered new markets and immediately developed strong networks.  That’s one of the reasons you’ve been so successful in your previous positions.

• Suppose there was something really important about your  experiences or qualifications that you forgot to mention during the interview.  The thank-you letter is precisely the tool to communicate those achievements, experiences, project highlights and qualifications.  Give the hiring committee the “ammo” they need to make the right hiring decision – YOU!

• If there were no challenges, no problems, no objections and nothing that you forgot to mention during the interview, then use the thank-you letter to further highlight your specific accomplishments as they relate directly to the company and the position for which you are applying.  It may be that those items were discussed during the interview.  Use the thank-you letter to further expand on them and link them directly to the hiring company’s operations, current needs and future goals.