The first part of preparation is to know the expected rules of conduct during an interview.
- Be on time
- Dress appropriately. If your natural inclination is to be a bit outrageous in your manner of dress, do not do it when you are making professional appearances. Standing out from the crowd is desirable only with your qualifications, not in the way you dress.
- Answer each question honestly, but you need not feel obliged to discuss questions that are too personal-like your marital status, religion, sexual preference, personal habits, or whether or not you have children.
- Do not act buddy-buddy with an interviewer, even if you have friends or interests in common. Friendly is fine; familiar is never appropriate.
- If you smoke, do not do it during the meeting, even if the interviewer is a smoker and offers you one. A cigarette in hand is restricting, and it tends to lessen your professional demeanor. Also, since so many people are adamantly against smoking these days, try to avoid smoking just before an interview. It can leave you smelling of smoke, and that can be a real turnoff to a non-smoker.
Keeping in mind what an interviewer is looking for, you can begin to prepare what you want the interviewer to know about you. You will be expected, particularly in the beginning of the interview, to talk a little bit about yourself, your background and experiences, your philosophy about advertising, and why you are interested in working for this agency.
Take control of the interview
When you first walk into an interviewer's office, do not launch into a dissertation about yourself or your love of advertising. Instead, allow yourself and the interviewer to ease into it, to get comfortable. That will give your heart time to stop pounding and your voice time to stop shaking-common symptoms when you are nervous. You can help yourself and your interviewer to get comfortable (yes, interviewers get nervous, too) by asking some light conversational questions first. Begin by looking around the office. Is there anything about the decor, the artwork, family photographs, or collectibles that would break the ice? Maybe you can zero in on something in the office that suggests the two of you might have an area of interest in common. For example, if you play tennis and you notice some tennis trophies on a shelf or even a racquet in the corner, ask about it. And asking your interviewer personal, professionally-related questions can be a good opener. Try some questions like "How long have you been with the agency?" "Where were you before?" Or, if you are talking with the owner, ask how the agency was started.
Do not wait for questions
Once you have chatted awhile and you sense a natural break that could lead into talking about yourself and why you are there, you do not have to wait for your interviewer to start asking the questions. You can take the lead by asking what the agency is looking for in a new employee. As your interviewer talks about the agency's needs regarding employees, look for opportunities to casually slip in those bits and pieces of information that you do know about the agency, its clients, its reputation, and so on. But do be careful not to sound like a know-it-all. Always try to present your information in an offhanded, matter-of-fact way. Here is an example: "I read somewhere that your agency just won the XYZ account. That must be very exciting." Or, "I understand that you've just taken on the LY sneaker account. I worked in their factory my last two years of high school. I learned all about how sneakers are made, and theirs are such great quality, I never buy any other kind."
These two examples would have demonstrated to an interviewer that you had done your homework. And neither of them was said in a way that sounded as if you had been waiting for a chance to show off how much you know about the agency. The second example is especially important because it tells the interviewer that you have had direct experience working for a new client. You know firsthand just what the creative people in the agency need to know to help them position the client's sneakers in a highly competitive marketplace.
An example of an inappropriate way to state what you have learned about the agency would be something like this: "I've been researching your agency for the last two months; let me tell you what I know about it."
Prepare your own questions
Aside from knowing what you want to say about yourself and how you might answer any questions that come your way, you will need to go into that interview prepared with a list of open-ended questions that will encourage the interviewer to speak freely. An open-ended question is one that cannot be answered with a yes or no. Focus your questions on gathering information that will help you understand the agency's goals, philosophy, and needs. Then you can better decide what you have to offer to help fill those needs. When your interviewer asks about you or your work, always try to make your answers relevant to those agency needs.
Know when to leave
Your time is important and so is your interviewer's. Keep your meeting within a reasonable time frame-not less than twenty minutes, no more than an hour. If you notice that the meeting is starting to run a little late, ask if you are keeping your interviewer from anything important. If you notice that the interviewer is looking at a watch or standing up, take that as your signal to exit gracefully.
