A friend of mine who has been out of work for nearly a year was recently contacted to be scheduled for a job interview. Once they had specified the date and time of the interview, my friend asked a simple question: “I’d like to do some research on your company, what is the address of your website?”. The prospective employer thanked him for asking since my friend was the only person being interviewed who indicated an interest in learning more about the company prior to the interview. Score one for the good guy.
The initial interview
In the first interview after the prospective employers asked him an array of questions, my friend asked another rather simple one: “What is special enough about this company that I would want to work here?”. The interviewers were caught off guard, apparently it never occurred to them that they were also being interviewed by prospective employees. They mumbled through a series of disconnected attributes of the company in an attempt to answer the question. My friend moved on to the next level of interviews.
Phase 2 of the interviews
At the conclusion of the next phase of interviews, which were rather intense, my friend asked one more crucial question: “When can I start?”. The general manager of the company smiled, stood up and shook my friend’s hand. ”You”, he said, “are the only person who has asked.”
Where does one start?
Many conversations are initiated with a question. Yet, how often do companies utilize questions in their marketing messages? If the newest trends in marketing focus on creating engagement, wouldn’t it be logical to utilize more questions than statements? It is certainly possible to overuse this technique, but as my friend’s experience has proven, a well-crafted and timely question can be refreshing and distinctive.
So, do you think he was hired?
Mike
