[For Experienced Sales Professionals] Winning Strategies for Online Interviews in the COVID Era (Part 4) - Final Interview - Conclusion

Hello! This is Ryohei, or Ryo-chan. I haven't updated my blog in a while. I'm finally getting a job myself! I wanted to finish this series while my experience is still fresh, so I decided to post this.

This time, I will talk about the biggest hurdle in the interview process: the "final interview."

In this day and age, final interviews can also be held online. In fact, I have experienced this with two companies. Perhaps online interviews have become that common, haven't they?

There are generally two types of final interviews!

(1) A situation where you are already on the verge of receiving an offer based on the initial interview.

(2) A literal final decision-making stage.

Based on my own experience, (1) is a very rare case. If you were highly evaluated during the initial interview, and topics like "annual salary," "when you can start working," or "frank discussions about the company's downsides" come up, it's likely a final confirmation of your intent. It's effectively a job offer!!!

What I want to introduce this time is:

(2) A literal final decision-making stage.

The interviewer is usually the president or an executive-level person. Management decisions are much more severe.

As I wrote in a previous blog, recruitment is an "upfront investment" for a company. If they judge that there is no prospect of a return, you will be rejected. "Will they quit right away?" "Can we expect them to generate profit and grow?" It is a decision based on your future potential!

With this in mind, there were three main things I was conscious of.

1. Appeal your resolve: "I want to join your company! I feel its appeal!"

2. Appeal with numbers.

3. Project a sense of composure and being in high demand, in a good way.

For (1), even if you have multiple companies as candidates, it is about showing an attitude that you are "positively considering joining." Specifically, it is important to show sincerity by saying, "This is a big choice for me, and while it is difficult to give you an answer right here and now, I find your company very attractive." The interviewer will also think, "That makes sense, I want them to join us." The person on the other side is human, too. Making a good impression is likely to be a plus, so I hope you will give it your all in that regard as well.

For (2), since the job is in sales, the president will always have the perspective of "how much revenue can this person generate?" How much leeway will they give you? Are you ready to hit the ground running? This varies from company to company.

Let them have expectations based on your achievements in your previous job and your standout points.

Furthermore, it is also effective to probe the company culture and product lead times by asking, "I will strive to generate numbers and results as a salesperson as quickly as possible, but how long does it usually take for someone to become independent?"

Since you are also on the side of judging them, not just the other way around, it is also important to see if you can approach the interview as an equal relationship.

Regarding point 3, I regret that I didn't manage to do this at an earlier stage myself, but if you can show composure by saying, "There are other companies that want me even if it's not your company," it would be ideal to boost your own value. Showing results like having received job offers from other companies can also lead to expectations of better terms. It's a form of "branding"! In fact, at the end of my own job search, I received three consecutive job offers from the companies I interviewed with, and I was able to choose the best one after comparing their terms.

Having the confidence that you passed the first interview is the most important thing of all!!

That concludes the winning interview strategies for experienced sales professionals, based on my own job-hunting experience. I cannot say that you will get through it easily or get a job offer effortlessly. However, if you put the points I introduced into practice, your job search will surely move in a positive direction, and you will get closer to a career change you can be satisfied with!! I truly hope that those currently job hunting will do their best with a perspective of "retention and success"☆彡

From next time on, I hope to write my blog on a different theme☆彡

Thank you very much for reading this far＼(^o^)／