More Job Offers, Anyone? Five Ways to Leave the Interview with a Compelling Job Offer.
Although there are a lot of jobs, most of them aren’t very “good.”
And getting a “good” job, which is what we’re talking about here, starts with setting yourself up to compete for the best jobs and the best job offers you can get.
Think about it. Who doesn’t want to get paid more while doing more interesting work?
That’s where these ideas come in.
The thing that people forget when they find themselves competing for plum jobs is the interview process tells employers what it’s like to work with you. And the interview process is full of mini “make-or-break moments” that will determine if you’ll get an offer or not.
Knowing this, interviewing is a high-stakes game.
So if you want to win out over your competition, you need to demonstrate that working with you is fun, easy, and profitable.
And if you think you don’t have any competition, you are wrong, or you aren’t interviewing for a best-in-class job.
By showing prospective employers what it’s like to work with you through the recruitment process, they’ll start to feel comfortable with you, and your chances of landing an offer will increase.
If you’re interviewing, no doubt you’ll find the following tips full of interview gold.
And they can be applied by anyone experienced or just getting started. The following are deceptively simple ways to stand out in the interview process so you can get the job you actually WANT.
So that said, here’s the plan:
#1. Be Responsive
I know you’re strapped for time.
And I know you’re busy doing your “day job.” But when a potential employer reaches out to you, especially one you may want to work for in the future, get back to them. The interview process loves SPEED. So if someone calls you, answer the phone, or call them right back.
And when I say call them right back, I don’t mean in a few hours. Do your best to be available right away.
Don’t have a voice mailbox that’s full, or even worse, a “voice mailbox that has not been set up.”
When interview dates are given, get back to the employer with times that work for you. Make your best attempt to work with the days/times given to you the first time around. Now, this isn’t always possible but do your best.
This strategy applies to everyone. Do this even if you are a very busy, highly compensated executive.
And know this: I’ve had high-level executives lose opportunities because they weren’t responsive.
Unfortunately, my tech clients tend to take slow response times as a lack of interest. And sometimes it is.
But it cost one of my candidates the shot at a high-impact President role for a new division.
Ouch!
The candidate was busy working but, at the same time, didn’t want to appear over-eager, so he took several hours and sometimes up to a full day to get back to us. And he did this EVERY time we reached out to him to schedule a meeting.
Now at first glance, taking several hours or a day to respond may not seem like a long time. And sometimes it isn’t. But if people are working hard to set you up with a CEO, don’t be like my candidate and take a day to confirm an interview time.
Scheduling anything with this candidate became a major hassle.
The interview process dramatically slowed down simply because he refused to give a same-day response.
And mostly, it became annoying.
Finally, the CEO (Surprisingly, his greatest strengths didn’t include patience.) had enough of the delay and called him directly. (Can you sense my client’s frustration levels rising?) Unfortunately, his experience was similar to mine.
He got voice mail and didn’t hear back from the candidate until the next day.
The final result of this interview process won’t shock you. And even though this executive was perfectly qualified for the role and wanted the job, he didn’t get it. And it was because he wouldn’t (not couldn’t) promptly return emails and calls.
And the saddest part of it is when I went back to the candidate with the bad news, and the interview game was over, he confided that he was VERY interested. He told me he didn’t realize he was taking so long to respond.
So was he playing the role of a “busy” executive?
Or maybe he didn’t want to be “over-eager”?
Or maybe it was a case of plain old-fashioned self-sabotage.
I am not a psychologist or a career coach, but either way, he lost a job he wanted because he showed that working with him would be slow-moving and irritating.
He demonstrated his response pace was much slower than the executives he’d be working with, which said everything.
“Don’t let the learning from your own experiences take too long. If you have been doing it wrong for the last ten years, I would suggest that’s long enough.”
#2. Details Always Matter
Details are difficult for a lot of people, not just salespeople.
For those of you who struggle, you’ll need to keep working on improving. Today’s leaders and salespeople can’t blow off the details!
The first place employers look for high-level attention to detail is in your resume. A resume full of typos and formatting errors won’t help you land an interview.
Why are details important?
For example, meeting times, appointments, and calls can be given in different time zones. If you don’t pay attention, you could miss a million-dollar meeting! No one can afford to do that.
Communicating effectively means mastering all channels: phone, email, text, LinkedIn messaging, and more!
Take the time to double-check all communication.
Common mistakes like typos, dates/times, and meeting attendees should be double-checked so you don’t make avoidable and careless mistakes.
I’ve had more than one fantastic candidate lose a job offer because they misspelled a name in an email or thank you note. That may seem harsh to you, but as an employer of choice, when you have several good candidates to choose from, you start looking for reasons to eliminate people.
Don’t let this be you!
#3. Are You Interested?
If there is one characteristic that’s more enticing and hypnotic for employers than any other, it’s passion.
It never gets old, and employers NEVER tire of it.
Like executives love making money, and honey bees seek pollen, employers are attracted to candidates who are interested in their company. After the initial intro call, if you want the job, you’ll need to show interest in the role.
You do this by researching the company, discussing your high-impact results, and being responsive.
Asking good questions, signing up for whitepapers/demos/reports, and checking out the employer’s competitors are great ways to show interest. And they are simple things anyone can do, although at least half of your competition won’t.
When you’re interviewing, make it conversational. This helps people know, like and trust you. And when they like you, and become familiar with you, they will want to work with you.
Participate in making the conversation fun and fluid.
You’ll come across as interested. The minute an employer feels like they are pulling teeth for information in an interview, they assume one of two things: you’re not interesting, or you’re not interested.
So go ahead and provide examples, ask relevant questions, and discuss your most amazing results.
But avoid staccato answers. Of course, answering some questions with short and to-the-point results is perfectly fine, but don’t be afraid to mix in a few great stories.
#4. Yoga Flexible
Take the interview process in stride. Unlike mastering the Tripod Headstand with Lotus Legs in yoga class, being a flexible interviewee doesn’t require hours of sweaty practice.
It simply requires an attitude adjustment you can make in thirty seconds. You need to check your attitude if you get bristled when calls are late, missed, or even rescheduled. It isn’t easy to fully control your work schedule, and things do happen.
Give the employer the benefit of the doubt and make scheduling adjustments for them when you can.
You should also do your best to make dates/times that are convenient for the employer.
As we already covered, if scheduling meetings with you becomes an event, there will be problems.
Believe it or not, I’ve had candidates with strong airline preferences be unreasonable about booking interview travel on their non-preferred carrier.
If you have a hard time being flexible, ask yourself these two questions:
–Who’s the most flexible person I know?
–What would they do?
Then see if you can rise to the occasion.
#5. Be Easy to Work With
Ever worked with someone easy to work with?
What a difference it makes!
They are pleasant, easy to talk to, and delightful to deal with. You remember these people. And you remember them because it’s a standout trait.
If you’re not already one of these people, make an effort to give it a try.
How do you show you’re easy to work with?
When I think about people who I know who embody this trait, they are all —
Highly Collaborative: They don’t complain about things they can’t fix. They are positive, warm, and friendly. They help out without expecting something back. Giving to others is how they operate.
Humble: Arrogance isn’t a part of their makeup. No task is beneath them.
Responsible: They own their job and will do what it takes to get the job done.
Reliable: You ask them for something, and they get it for you. If they say they will do something, they do.
Consider this valuable insight: These traits are not only important when getting a job but will help you in any aspect of your life. This is what makes them valuable and worth mastering.
Have you ever wished you could work with someone who’s: unresponsive, unorganized, not interested, inflexible, and difficult to work with?
Didn’t think so.
Get a Better Sales Job
So if you aren’t getting more job offers, there’s a simple way to fix it. Don’t wait any longer. Instead, resolve right now to kick these skills into high gear.
Make the shift.
By doing these five things, you’ll put youself at the top of the interview slate. Become better and put your sales career on the fast track to amazing. Reach out here if you’d like to be considered for the tech sales roles we’re activley recruiting for.