•What made you decide to be a strategist/ copywriter/ UX designer/ art director?
•What work is being done right now that you really admire? Why? (There is no right/wrong answer but have a POV. They are evaluating your taste level w/ this question. What do YOU think is good work??)
•What do you like to do outside of advertising? What do you do in your free time?
•Why do you want to work here? (Do your homework BEFORE your interview – Know the agency’s accounts, key people, work, etc. so you can speak intelligently about why you want to work there.)
· So tell me about yourself…(This is a hard one and very common! Practice how you’ll answer it!)
· So what do you want to do? (Also a hard one!)
•What are you looking for in your first job?
•How would your best friend describe you?
How would your partners/team members describe you?
•How do you think Brandcenter has prepared you for this job?
· Tell me about what you’ve learned at the Brandcenter. What types of classes have you taken? (Everyone is curious about the program so be prepared to tell them what you’ve learned.)
•What project in your book are you most proud of? Why? Walk me through it.
•Tell me about a time you had to deal w/ a difficult teammate. How did you handle it?
•Do you have any questions for me? – (Make sure you have questions prepared to ask of them! It looks like you’re apathetic if you just say, “No.” Seriously… you just got an interview for your dream job…you MUST have questions. Here are some things that I would ask…depending on your track, these might or might now make sense:)
o Tell me more about the structure of the creative department? Do people work w/ the same partners or do you switch it up? Will I work on one account or will I get the opportunity to work on several?
o What do you like most about working here?
o Tell me more about the relationship between strategists and creatives? How collaborative is it? For creative briefings, does the agency have a template/method or is it up to each strategist to “execute” the briefing the way they think is best?
A couple more things:
* If you’re doing a phone interview (not zoom), have a cheat sheet in front of you w/ points you wanted to make. Sometimes you can get flustered and your mind goes blank. The cheat sheet is a little security blanket and b/c it’s via phone, they won’t know you have it!
* You’ll probably be doing lots of Zoom interviews. Test your technology, think about your background, try to find a place that’s quiet/where you won’t be interrupted, dress like you’re going to the agency/company (even though you’re probably sitting in your living room.)
· Practice talking about the projects in your book. Practice setting them up and walking recruiters through the project. The projects are so complex and you are so close to them…practice telling the story to someone who knows NOTHING about the assignment. You will look silly practicing in front of your mirror but do it! It will be worth it!! Practice talking about YOUR specific role on the project…what did YOU do to contribute?? They are looking to make sure you didn’t just ride your team’s coat tails. I promise this practice will pay off.
· Read the trades. Know what is going on in the industry. It’s such an easy/important thing to do and people don’t take the time to do it. You will look more professional and less junior if you can speak intelligently about industry current events.
WHAT ARE RECRUITERS LOOKING FOR IN YOUR ANSWERS? (Knowing what they’re looking for will help you as you prepare your answers.)
They’re looking for…
- examples of when you took the initiative to proactively do more than what was asked to accomplish a task.
- examples that show you work well in cross-functional teams and when conflicts arise, you can solve them professionally and productively
- examples of how well you handle stress and change…”curveballs” are everywhere in advertising and in life…can you adapt and adjust or do you melt down?
- examples that show you are good at creative problem solving…you’re curious and always looking at new, different ways to do things vs. just being content doing the same thing over and over
- finally, they’re looking to see that you’re passionate and excited about the opportunity