interview Archives

11 Questions to Ask During a Sales Interview at a Startup

Posted on July 15, 2016March 9, 2021 by caitlinhoward

Do you have a sales interview at a startup? Then congratulations! Working at a startup can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it’s also a big risk to work at a company that has no real track record of success. As a salesperson, it’s important to get an understanding of the company and the product before accepting an offer. Learn which questions to ask during the sales in...

5 Avoidable Job Interview Mistakes

Posted on April 11, 2014January 8, 2021 by caitlinhoward

You only have one chance to make a good first impression in an interview. You are being evaluated on the way you talk, dress, and even smell from the second you enter the room. What you do, and even what you don't do, can be the difference between landing a new job or heading back to the job boards. Before you schedule your next interview, consider these 5 common mistakes job seekers make in...

5 Questions Great Job Candidates Ask

Posted on September 25, 2012April 4, 2023 by KathleenSteffey

By Jeff Haden, INC.com Be honest. Raise your hand if you feel the part of the job interview where you ask the candidate, "Do you have any questions for me?" is almost always a waste of time. Thought so. The problem is most candidates don't actually care about your answers; they just hope to make themselves look good by asking "smart" questions. To them, what they ask is more impo...

Sales Interview Questions from JustSell.com

Posted on May 2, 2011 by KathleenSteffey

Interviewing your next superstar? Looking for your next sales position? Here’s a list of 31 interview questions in no particular order. If you’re interviewing candidates, use what you like and improve what you don’t. If you’re in the hunt for a new sales position, use them as a prep tool and work your way through. When you come out the other side, you’ll be completely tuned and ready for action...

Didn’t Get the Job? Don’t Be Shy… Ask Why!

Posted on December 14, 2010January 8, 2021 by KathleenSteffey

By Tim Estiloz, Posted Dec 7th 2010 AOL Jobs You go in for a job interview and do what you believe is a killer performance that should nail you the position, only to find out a short time later, after no call backs, that someone else got the position. Along with the natural disappointment at losing the job, it's also natural to wonder why your qualifications and presentation fell short. You can't ...

Selling a Pen (and Yourself) in an Interview: Outdated Tactic or Timeless Question?

Posted on September 24, 2010June 11, 2015 by KathleenSteffey

A question was raised in one of my LinkedIn groups recently that got me and other members thinking about the tactics used by hiring managers during the interview process. The question: If you were interviewing for a sales job and the sales manager said “sell me this pen," how would you respond? The feedback from the group was varied. Some offered recommended responses to the actual question. Ot...

Keys to Researching Your Next Employer

Posted on September 14, 2010December 2, 2024 by KathleenSteffey

Original Post: By Beth Braccio Hering, CareerBuilder Writer "I know right away when a candidate doesn't know the current news about our company," says Chris Brabec, director of leadership talent acquisition for Western Union. "If you don't know the CEO is retiring, or if a company made a big acquisition recently, that's not a good sign. If a candidate can't tell me what the company does (or think...

Are You Getting Interviews, But Not the Job?

Posted on August 17, 2010 by KathleenSteffey

Original Post: How to Diagnose Where You Might Be Going Wrong By John Rossheim, Monster Senior Contributing Writer Your resume has earned you interviews with several employers over the past year. That's impressive, especially in this economy. But none of those interviews has yielded a job offer. You've done the standard interview preparation. You've shown up on time and dressed in appropriate in...

Step-by-Step Guide to Negotiating a Great Salary

Posted on July 27, 2010May 11, 2022 by KathleenSteffey

By Kim Lankford, Monster Contributing Writer Here's a secret: Employers rarely make their best offer first, and job candidates who negotiate generally earn much more than those who don't. And a well-thought-out negotiation makes you look like a stronger candidate -- and employee. "We found that those people who attempted to negotiate their salary in a constructive way are perceived as more favor...

The Interview Was Awesome. Now What?

Posted on July 6, 2010 by KathleenSteffey

By Don Straits Original post: The Ladders Thank-you letters are so boring. You feel compelled to write one because the career books, career counselors, and HR managers tell you that’s what you are supposed to do. If you don’t do it, then you failed to show professional courtesy. If you do send one, it is rarely the defining factor that gets you the job. Furthermore, they all sound alike. Yawn. ...

Author Dave DeMelo: How To Get Out of an Interview

Posted on February 9, 2010 by KathleenSteffey

I have been an executive recruiter for the past 5 years and throughout my tenure in this profession I have heard a plethora of excuses as to why a candidate cannot attend an interview. Often times, the cancellation comes the day of the interview, leaving recruiters like myself to scramble and put out the fire with our clients. There have been instances where a candidate has to cancel an intervie...

Secrets Buried In a Sales Person’s Resume

Posted on November 17, 2009May 11, 2022 by KathleenSteffey

The vehicle that introduces sales people to companies is a resume, but there are secrets hidden in the resume that hiring managers should know before they interview a candidate. In Lee Salz's sales management career, he would bet that he's seen about 5,000 resumes for sales people. Yet, he still hasn’t seen one that shows someone who has achieved 40% of quota. Every single resume shows 100%, 200%...