Over the last decade, I’ve had my fair share of interviews. Preparing for an interview is as critical as the actual interview itself.
Therefore, I wanted to share some tips and advice on the best way to prepare for a Digital Marketing interview.
It’s certainly not an exhaustive list, however, I think if you follow this process as a minimum then you will be putting yourself in a great position to beat the competition!
Upon booking in the interview I will send my candidates an email confirmation which includes the date, time, address etc. Along with all this will be a job description and this is a great place to start.
Go through what skills and experience the company are looking for and make a note under each bullet point outlining where and when you have done this or used a particular tool etc.
I’ve also found that by writing things down, you are much more likely to retain the information at a later date.
Another thing I’ll include in the email will be a LinkedIn URL for the person(s) who you’ll be meeting. It’s a great idea to check them out on LinkedIn (and even Twitter if they have it) to get an idea of their background and see if you can find some common ground that will be an ice breaker at the beginning.
This could be a company you both worked for in the past, a mutual connection you know well, favourite football team, or perhaps you even went to the same University. Having something in common and bringing it up early in the interview will start proceedings on a solid footing!
Lastly, I’ll pop in the company’s URL. This sounds like a gimmie, but trust me, I’ve known candidates not to even bother looking at the company’s website and let’s just say none were invited back in for a 2nd.
Browsing over the company’s site will give you a good feeling for what they do, how user-friendly the site is etc. A great area to look at is the ‘About us’ and ‘Press’ pages.
These will give you an insight into how the brand sells itself, but also will highlight any major and recent news stories. Go into the interview with 1 or 2 of these up your sleeve and you’ll really impress the interviewer.
Next is looking at your own CV.
Yes, I know you probably know it back to front but what I’m saying here is think about certain SEO or PPC campaigns you have been involved with for example.
Why did you set them up? How did it go? What challenges did you face? How did you overcome those challenges? Most important for this part is the OUTCOME!
The interviewer will be most impressed with how you made or saved your previous employer/client money.
Was this reducing CPA/CPC or perhaps increasing conversions? What did this mean to the bottom line? ‘Oh, you generated an extra £2.5m in sales you say, very nice.’
If time permits and you are super keen on working for this organisation then a mini audit will never go a miss. Just 2-3 slides will do the job.
Have a look at their current Digital Marketing activity and make some notes on what they are doing well, what they are not doing so well, and what you would do differently if you were hired into the role.
This will demonstrate that you’ve taken the time to really do your homework, you know what you’re talking about, and most importantly you have some positive ideas that you could implement and hit the ground running with if hired!
My final tip is to have questions for them at the end. If you haven’t thought about this beforehand and have nothing to ask at the end, this can really take away from a great interview you’ve done, so finish strong! Some of my favourites include;
- What’s good about working here?
This question is only appropriate if you are being interviewed by someone you will be working with, but it can be a great chance to connect personally with the interviewer.
- How would you describe the company’s culture?
Asking about the company emphasises your interest in working there and shows you are sociable.
- What do you think distinguishes your company from its competitors?
Showing an interest in the competition shows you are interested in the industry as a whole.
- What are the three most important skills you’re looking for in a candidate?
The answer to this question can give you some insight into whether you’ve shown those skills during the interview while also giving you a chance to point out you have those skills.
- Who previously held this position? Where are they now?
Unless you know that the position you are applying for is brand new, this is a good question to find out more about what your potential future at the company may hold.
- Would you like to discuss any concerns about me or my qualifications with respect to this position?
While this is a rather bold move, asking whether the interviewer has any concerns about you may give you a chance to put some things straight and stop them from not picking you.
- What is the next stage?
Finding out what comes next can help you prepare for the next step – whether it is knowing there will be another round of interviews or that you will have to wait at least a week before you get feedback.
Good luck!
