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Interview prep: Marketing roles
Know the user. Know the magic. Connect the two.
"Know the user. Know the magic. Connect the two."
Every marketing role comes down to one thing, which is communication. Value communication. Whether you're running social media or building a new landing page, as a marketer, you're foremost looking for the best way of communicating the value of your products or services. Thus, it's not a surprise your communication skills will be examined at every interview stage. This chapter will show how you can master your communication skills and what you should prepare for each interview stage when applying for a marketing role.
Know the company. Know your magic. Practice, practice, and practice ...to connect the two.
"Know the user. Know the magic. Connect the two." is a mantra that runs deep among Google marketing teams. The same approach applies to the interview prep for marketing roles.
(1) Know the company. You should thoroughly research the company you're applying for. Knowing what they're looking for in the candidates will make it easier for you to tailor the right stories from your experience.
(2) Know your magic. You should know what you're capable of. It's not about facts and stats. It's about strategic narratives you build by using the facts from your experience. Under no circumstances, it's not about making things up. It's about clearly communicating your experience in a digestible way.
(3) Lastly, you should practice a lot to connect the two.
While you'll need to research every company before the interview, there is nothing much to prepare in advance. What you can prepare, however, is your experience well packed in your elevator pitch and properly framed answers. Below, I'll show you the most common prep I used for almost every role in marketing I applied for.
(1) Know the company. You should thoroughly research the company you're applying for. Knowing what they're looking for in the candidates will make it easier for you to tailor the right stories from your experience.
(2) Know your magic. You should know what you're capable of. It's not about facts and stats. It's about strategic narratives you build by using the facts from your experience. Under no circumstances, it's not about making things up. It's about clearly communicating your experience in a digestible way.
(3) Lastly, you should practice a lot to connect the two.
While you'll need to research every company before the interview, there is nothing much to prepare in advance. What you can prepare, however, is your experience well packed in your elevator pitch and properly framed answers. Below, I'll show you the most common prep I used for almost every role in marketing I applied for.
Pre-screen stage
- Elevator pitch. Having a short but catchy pitch is useful not only for job interviews. You basically need it every time you introduce yourself to new people from your field or industry. If you don't have one yet, as a marketer, you definitely should write it down. Moreover, you should have different variations for different cases: your summary on LinkedIn is your pitch, your headline in FB/IG is also your pitch, your answer to the recruiter's "Tell me about yourself" - is also your elevator pitch. Remember, you have very little time to make the first impression. So nail it down. See Chapter "CV and online profiles" for more details.
- Standard Q&A. After a few interview rounds, you'll notice that all recruiters ask the same common questions: "Why did you leave your last job?", "What are you looking for in your next role now?", "What are your salary expectations?", "Do you have a work permit?", "Are you interviewing with any other companies?" etc. Take these questions, write your answers down, so you sound confident enough in your first conversation with the recruiter. You should show you clearly know what you're looking for.
- Fan facts. Your expertise is critical, but there might be many experts just like you. You should have something that will make you remarkable in recruiters' eyes and differentiate you from the other candidates. It's not just listing your hobbies or travel destinations but also some fun facts that you can share discreetly.
Screening of hard skills
After you successfully pass your pre-screen interview with a recruiter, you most probably will have the interview with a hiring manager to screen your hard skills. At this stage, your work experience in marketing will be examined. You'll be asked to share the stories from your experience to show how well you managed different scenarios. It's recommended to wrap your case studies with a STAR approach, as we mentioned in Chapter "CV and online profiles". This will help you to structure your story and give it the flow. Here are the assets to prepare:
- Case studies: for every skill or achievement highlighted in your CV, you should have a supporting story as an example. Preferably tailored by using the STAR method. We recommend preparing at least 5-10 stories covering the biggest highlights from your CV. Consider building a website/portfolio to showcase your case studies there visually.
Prepare a supporting story for every skill or achievement highlighted in your CV. Use STAR method to write down your case studies.
- Homework: Often, smaller and medium-sized companies would also ask you to complete some homework for them. Usually, it's preparing a GTM strategy for a new product line or service, drafting a piece of content on the topic to showcase your creative writing and communication skills, or prioritizing growth initiatives. It's not something you can directly prepare, but you can start organizing your own knowledge base in marketing long before you actively start looking for a new role.
- Skill assessment tests: CAT (cognitive ability tests) are very popular among larger companies. We wouldn't recommend spending $80-$100 for a subscription to prepare for them if only you know that this is the only way to get through the interview in your desired company. However, other courses such as Google Skillshop certificates might be useful and often even required for particular roles.
Screening of soft skills
There is a widespread misconception that soft skills you either have or don't have by nature. Therefore, people who believe they lack leadership or teamwork skills don't even try to develop them. However, we believe these skills can be learned just like hard skills. This is why we recommend allocating some time for preparing:
- Case studies on cultural fit: write down real stories from your experience when you successfully managed to solve a conflict with your team or management, where you showed empathy or tolerance or demonstrated emergent leadership.
- Presentation: you might also be asked to prepare and give a presentation in front of other stakeholders, very often based on your homework at the previous stage. Remember, the content is important, but the way you present it is the key. Your presentation skills will also be assessed at this stage, so practice to make a good impression.
Summary
1. For every application in Marketing, you should have your experience well packed in your elevator pitch and properly framed answers. The answers you prepare for anticipated questions, the more confident you'll sound at the interview.
2. Having a short but catchy elevator pitch is useful not only for job interviews. Your summary on LinkedIn is your pitch, your headline in FB/IG is also your pitch, your answer to the recruiter's "Tell me about yourself" - is also your elevator pitch. You have very little time to impress, so nail it down.
3. Prepare a supporting story for every skill or achievement highlighted in your CV. Use the STAR method to write down your case studies.
4. Allocate extra time to prepare for your soft skills assessment. Write down your case studies to show your cultural fit.
5. Know the company. Know your magic. Practice, practice, and practice ...to connect the two.
1. For every application in Marketing, you should have your experience well packed in your elevator pitch and properly framed answers. The answers you prepare for anticipated questions, the more confident you'll sound at the interview.
2. Having a short but catchy elevator pitch is useful not only for job interviews. Your summary on LinkedIn is your pitch, your headline in FB/IG is also your pitch, your answer to the recruiter's "Tell me about yourself" - is also your elevator pitch. You have very little time to impress, so nail it down.
3. Prepare a supporting story for every skill or achievement highlighted in your CV. Use the STAR method to write down your case studies.
4. Allocate extra time to prepare for your soft skills assessment. Write down your case studies to show your cultural fit.
5. Know the company. Know your magic. Practice, practice, and practice ...to connect the two.
Action items
1. Prepare your 3-min elevator pitch.
2. Write down case studies to support your experience from your CV and stories about your cultural fit.
3. Consider building a website/portfolio to showcase your experience if applicable visually.
4. Practice your answers in front of the mirror. Audio/video record yourself. Watch the timing. Try to spend not more than 3-4 min on one case study.
5. Arrange mockup interviews with your friends or referrals (more on this in the Chapter "Where to get help").
1. Prepare your 3-min elevator pitch.
2. Write down case studies to support your experience from your CV and stories about your cultural fit.
3. Consider building a website/portfolio to showcase your experience if applicable visually.
4. Practice your answers in front of the mirror. Audio/video record yourself. Watch the timing. Try to spend not more than 3-4 min on one case study.
5. Arrange mockup interviews with your friends or referrals (more on this in the Chapter "Where to get help").
In the next chapter, we'll share preparation tips and resources for the engineering roles.