Interview etiquette and interview preparation help present yourself as the ideal candidate. Strong communication and interpersonal skills are vital characteristics employers look for. How an individual portrays and expresses themself in an interview is a strong indicator of their personality and ability to work or collaborate with others.
Interview Etiquette Preparation
It’s essential to adequately practice and prepare before an interview. Etiquette goes hand in hand with practice and preparation to ask and answer questions with ease. Mock interviews are a great way to practice your interviewing skills. They are low stakes and help you craft strategies to answer why someone should hire you and how you stand out compared to other applicants.
Etiquette Tips and Recommendations
#1: Be Knowledge and Personable
Think about a marketing manager and how efficiently and detailed they can answer questions about their current clients’ needs. The same goes for an interview: as an interviewee, you need to be confident in yourself and your experience in order to best articulate yourself and your prior accomplishments. It’s essential to be knowledgeable about the company you are interviewing for and educated about the industry to answer questions naturally and genuinely.
#2: Body Language and Non-Verbal Communication
What you say in an interview is equally important to how you present yourself. Treat every employer with respect and kindness from start to finish during the interview process. Eye contact demonstrates interest in the hiring manager’s time and limits outside distractions.
Crossed arms and lingering eye contact can make you look closed off and uninterested. Talk to yourself in a mirror or with someone close to you and practice how you carry and position yourself.
#3: Prepare a Post Interview Plan
People rarely write handwritten notes anymore, so sending one after an interview can make you come across as memorable and personable. Any ‘post-interview thank-you’ needs to be shared 24 hours after the interview.
Personalized emails are perfect when being interviewed by multiple people. However, handwritten thank-you notes go a long way and are often easier when interviewing one on one. Make sure the thank-you notes encapsulate appreciation and a personal anecdote.
The interview process can seem daunting, but using proper etiquette and preparing in advance will make it much more approachable. Take advantage of Burkhart’s previous blog posts as a way to be informed and up-to-date about the marketing industry!
