In part 1 we covered the initial steps needed to properly prepare for a search marketing interview. For part 2 we will cover preparing yourself for the more subjective questions you might come across in an interview. After answering questions about your experiences and your past work history, you need to be ready to openly answer questions about your thoughts and opinions about everything SEO. Although the interview itself can be looked at as an assessment of your attitude and personality, you should also expect some form of testing, whether you are asked to analyze a website you have never seen or actually complete a written test.
Thoughts/Opinions/Current Issues
Being ready for these questions can be the most valuable part of your preparation. These questions are meant to measure how involved you are in the search marketing industry. People who aren’t prepared for questions about their opinion can be thrown off balance and often times don’t recover. None of these questions have right answers, but help the interviewer assess your industry knowledge.
Questions to consider:
What blogs, forums, and industry news sites do you read regularly?
– Reading is the best way to stay ahead. Everyone has a blog and some of the best information can be found on them. This question will allow interviewers to gauge your knowledge of leading industry practitioners, industry trends and advancements.
– If you haven’t been reading regularly, get to it!
– Some of the most well known industry sites are Search Engine Land, Search Engine Watch, Sphinn, and SEOmoz.
– Don’t stop with just these sites, there are many additional sites to complement them, each with their own insight and perspective on the industry
What do you believe are your strengths/weakness in SEO?
– Be honest, and be prepared, this is a standard question you should expect.
– Don’t give canned responses like you are “hardworking,” go into detail about your strengths and make your responses relate to search marketing and the job you are interviewing for.
– When talking about your strengths use the STAR method
– When talking about a weakness be candid, but present it in a way that turns it into an opportunity. For example you could discuss something you dont have experience in, but want to learn more about
o “At my last job I started getting involved with social media, but I’m not yet an expert. I look forward to an opportunity to expand my knowledge of this area with this position.”
Where do you think the SEO industry is headed?
– Don’t rehash someone else’s blog posting. You will not be held to your prediction, but be ready with an answer that shows your understanding of the where the industry is and what trends it is showing for the future. An interviewer may ask about where web 2.0 is headed or what you think of universal search, just think through your answer and reference examples you are comfortable talking about.
Questions about your opinion give you the floor to speak your mind and show your worth. Take this opportunity to draw on all the knowledge you have developed from the 78(or so…) SEO feeds you have in your google reader.
Onsite Assessment/Testing
It is very common for an interviewer to ask you to complete some form of skills assessment. We have worked with employers who fire off word problems, give our candidates a set of data and ask them to analyze it, or ask them to critique the search strategy of one or more websites. The biggest thing they are looking at is how you process a task. Walk them through your thought process and lead them to your answer.
Questions to Consider
Tell me what’s wrong with this website(our website)?
– This is a very easy way for an interviewer to gauge your SEO techniques. They show you a website and listen to how you would improve it. For an assessment like this start with the basics and work your way up. Look at the source code, alt tags, linking structure, and don’t forget to look at how the competitors stack up.
– Make sure you are ready to give ample feedback to the employer about their own site. If you are hired this is where you will be doing most (if not all) your work, so show them the value you would bring to their team.
Do you know (insert name here)?
– Based on how you answered previous questions, you might be expected to know certain industry faces or “SEO Rockstars”. If you say you read Search Engine Land regularly, it would only make sense for you to know who Danny Sullivan is, if you read SEOmoz, Rand Fishkin. If you are familiar with a “SEO Rockstar” they ask about be ready for a follow questions about what you think of their blog or specific articles they may have written.
What do you think of (insert black hat technique here)?
– By looking at the site of the company you are interviewing with you should be able to know whether they use white hat, black hat, or grayish colored hat techniques. How does this mesh with you own convictions?
– If you are asked if you would utilize a perticular technique you might consider risky or you dont agree with, answer it honestly, don’t try and guess how they would want you to answer the question
– If the company’s convictions are different from your own, make sure you consider whether you would be willing to make the switch for the job.
Additional Ways to Prepare
Terminology – No matter how good you are, if you start using the terminology wrong, and the interviewer catches it, it will work against your favor. Scan through the company’s website and see what terms they use. Also scan through a search marketing glossary like the one at SEMPO to refresh yourself on any terms you haven’t used in a while.
Touchy Subjects – If you have been fired or let go from a job, be ready to field a question on it and describe the circumstances.
Question Lists – While preparing for an interview it can be very helpful to answer sample questions you might be asked in an interview. If you have a friend around ask them to run through the questions with you to test how you might fare in the real deal. These are two good lists to start with 55 SEO Interview Questions, and Interviewing In-house SEO candidates.
Every interview is different so preparing for them can be a very difficult task. The best way to attack the issue is to start with the fundamentals and work up to the more detailed aspects associated with the position and the company. If you walk into an interview with your thoughts in order you will be more prepared to answer the questions you didn’t expect, and have an easier time impressing the interviewer.
