Career Advice
So you’ve applied for a role posted on JobsInPR, and the company has asked you in for an interview. What to do next? Rupert Wallis from PR recruitment specialists Media Contacts gives the lowdown on how to perform to you very best…
Prepare to succeed
The interview is the most important event in your search for a new job. Regardless of what is written on your CV or your application form, it will be the impression you make upon your interviewer that will make the difference between you getting the job or not.
Interviewers are continually amazed at how many candidates come to job interviews without any apparent preparation and with only the vaguest idea of what they are going to say. Some candidates act too casually and hence create an impression of total indifference while others work themselves into a state of acute nervousness. These marks of inexperience can be easily avoided by doing some basic preparation before the interview.
Once you have a job specification, ensure that you make notes matching your experience very clearly against each requirement. Let's face it, if you can show how you have satisfied every point on the specification, giving real-life examples, what more can you do? Don't be afraid to take these notes with you to interview: it shows you have done your research, you are motivated and you will 'pitch' yourself more concisely.
Practice answers to questions
Be prepared to answer questions by practicing how you’d answer them – here’s a selection of some you might need to answer.
Why are you suitable for this job?
Why are you interested in this position?
What do you understand this job to involve?
What other sort of positions are you applying for?
What do you know about the PR industry?
Why did you choose this particular career?
Why do you want to work for our company?
What do you know about our company?
What experience do you have that makes you feel that you will be successful in this position?
Why should I give you this job?
What are your strengths/weaknesses?
What jobs have you enjoyed the most and why?
When have you shown initiative?
Make the right impression
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DON'T be late. Ideally try to arrive a few minutes early. Companies generally have corporate information in their reception area and this is a rich source of last minute memory-jogging information on the company.
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If the employer presents you with an application form to complete, DO fill it out neatly and fully.
- DO create a positive first impression by smiling and shaking your interviewer's hand firmly.
- DO wait until you are offered a chair before sitting. Sit upright in your chair. Look alert and interested at all times. Show that you are a good listener as well as a good talker. Smile.
- DO look your interviewer in the eye while you talk to them.
- DON'T answer questions with just a simple "yes" or "no". Explain wherever possible but don't go off on a tangent.
- DO make sure that your good points come across to the interviewer in a factual, logical and sincere manner. Stress achievements.
- DON'T waffle.
- DON'T lie. Answer questions truthfully, frankly and as succinctly as possible.
- DON'T ever make derogatory comments about your present or former employers or companies.
- DO always conduct yourself as if you are determined to get the job. Never close the door on an opportunity. It is better to be in a position where you can choose from a number of offers rather than only one.
- DO show your enthusiasm for the job if you are interested, eg ask for the job or a second interview/meeting.
Secure a second interview
If you are interested in the job and want a second interview, say something like: "I am very impressed with what I have seen here today - your company, its services and the people I have met. I have enjoyed talking with you. The job sounds excellent. Do I have the right sort of experience that you are looking for?" This gives you a chance to hear the interviewer's impressions and to counter any negative thoughts or misunderstandings that may come to light. The employer will be impressed with your enthusiasm.
Don't be discouraged if no definite offer of a second interview is made or specific salary discussed at the first interview. The employer will probably want to communicate with his office or recruitment consultant first or see more candidates before making a decision.
If you get the impression that the interview is not going well and that you have already been rejected don't let your discouragement show. Once in a while an employer who is genuinely interested may seem to discourage you in order to test your reaction.
This article is abridged from the Media Contacts website – for even more career advice visit http://www.media-contacts.co.uk. JobsInPR would like to thank Rupert Wallis at Media Contacts for permission to reproduce this article.
