Congratulations, you’ve been successful in the first part of the application process and now you’re prepping for the upcoming interview. Well, you’ve come to the right place. We have years of experience in recruiting people just like you, so, to help you with your upcoming interview, we’ve created this blog full of tips that will help you nail your interview.
Research, research, research
Companies love candidates who have done their research because they like to know that you are as interested in their company as they are in your application. With vacancy numbers falling by almost 23% between January 2021 and March 2021 (Office for National Statistics, 2021), it’s likely that you’re trying to get any job that you can, and are applying for multiple roles to try to increase your chances of getting to the interview process. The good news is that you have achieved your goal, you’ve gotten to the interview process, but now you need to really hone in on the company and look into what it is about them that first caught your attention.
Look into their website, connect with them on Linkedin, follow them on Instagram, read articles about them, in short, do whatever you need to do to make sure that you know the company inside and out. Doing so will give you a huge advantage in the interview, as you will be able to bring up topics that most people won’t have thought about. For example, if they have office pets, bring them up in the interview or if they work with a charity that is close to your heart, mention that when you’re being asked why you want to work for them. The goal here is to set yourself apart from the other candidates and to make sure that the company knows how much you want to work for them.
Stick to the brief
The creative job application is often a long process, so you will have been asked to write a cover letter at the very least. This means that you will be familiar with picking out key points from their criteria and applying them to your application. So, you’ll already know about the key responsibilities you’ll be expected to carry out, the job requirements and any skills that you’ll need to have in order to carry out the role. With this in mind, the interview is a good stage to reiterate all of these points, so make sure that you are relating your answers back to the job application.
Of course, we don’t expect you to be able to remember the job description word for word, but we do suggest picking out some key points and keeping them in mind when you’re prepping your answers. Doing so, will also let the prospective company know that you have thoroughly thought about the opportunity and really want the job.
Be punctual
A candidate’s timekeeping is the number one factor influencing an employer’s first impression, so we suggest that you turn up to your interview early, or at the very least on time. Nobody wants to hire somebody who can’t get past the first stage without being late. Unfortunately, bad things do happen at times, your train may have been delayed, your bus may have broken down or there may be unexpected roadworks, however, it is vital that you give yourself more than enough time to get yourself to the interview.
If it only takes you 15 minutes to get there normally, leave 45 before you need to get there and sit in your car in the car park going over your notes, or leave an hour early and sit in the closest coffee shop to the office. Our advice is to make sure that you get to the building at least 15 minutes before your appointment, especially if you know the building or office will be hard for you to find once you’re there.
