5 Things To Do Before An Interview

A common question I get is, "Do you have any tips on what to do in order to prepare for an interview?'' I have compiled many different tips I have into what I believe to be the 5 most important:

1. Research the company - I can't tell you how many people I see who interview with a company and don't have the slightest clue what they do. This will give you a quick exit.
• Check out their website - See what products and services they sell, find out who their top clients are, where their office are located (are they global?), what is their mission statement? The wealth of information on a website leaves you know option to go in looking dumbfounded when the interviewer asks, "Do you know what it is that we do exactly?"
• Check out their Facebook page - See what kind of posts they put up and what their message to their fans looks like. 
• Check out their Twitter feed - See what image they display here and find out their strategy with social media
2. Research the interviewer - With powerful tools like LinkedIn and Facebook, you can perform quite a bit of research on the interviewer (keep in mind, the interviewer is doing the same to you!). 
3. Create an elevator pitch for yourself - I teach all of my clients right from the start how to build a resume pitch for themselves. You should have a quick blurb on why a company should hire you in the first place. Define who are you, what you've done, and why you are different...
4. Study common interview questions - In my book and through my sales coaching, I go over the most common interview questions and teach my clients how to effectively answer them. This is where you should spend the most time preparing for the interview.
5. Study your resume - Make sure your resume is up to date and targeted towards the company you are interviewing.

MORE...