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Top 5 Telephonic Interview Bloopers to Avoid

Interviewing for a job, in-person or telephonic, is one of the most critical stages of job-hunting. Many of us experience stress and high anxiety. However, making interview mistakes in any form can make you pay for it!

Most of the companies prefer a telephonic interview, which is probably like a ‘mini job interview’ before the final ‘face-to-face’ interview. If all goes well, it paves the way for the final in-person interview.

If you have an upcoming telephonic interview and you are still thinking how to crack it, understanding some of the common telephonic interview bloopers would help you to excel in it.

These include:

Neglecting the importance of the right place for the interview

Most of us fail to understand the importance of a right environment for conducting a telephonic interview. Avoid a noisy location, in presence of friends, or while driving your car. Choosing your home or a private office cabin where no one disturbs you is a perfect place. When at home, avoid distractions like kids, other phone calls, TV, or your pet barking. Use a right phone connection with the proper network. Take out sufficient time to attend the call and do not assume that it will get over in ten minutes or so.

Treating it casually

Don’t think a phone interview to be just another casual ‘know you’ call. These are seriously taken by employers as a part of their screening process and choosing the best candidates for final interview. Never assume that you will get another call, as this might be your first and the last interview call from the company depending on your performance.

Lack of preparation

When you do not take this interview as real, the chances are high that you will lack in your preparation for the same. Like an ‘in-person’ interview, it is vital to prepare for a telephonic interview by researching about the company, job description, and practicing some common interview questions.

Not concentrating on your voice tone

Since you are not present in front of the interviewer, your voice is the only medium that will help you to send across the right impression. Make your pitch convey that you are interested, enthusiastic, and attentive to answer his questions. Speak clearly and slowly to convey your thoughts clearly. A right voice modulation is the key to overcome the disadvantage of the absence of facial expressions, body language, and eye contact.

Forget to keep the application form handy

Keeping your resume, application form and other required details handy is required to answer any related questions quickly. Do not hassle your phone interview by remembering and looking for required details, such as previous salary, at the time of attending the call. Not doing so gives an impression that you have not prepared for the interview, and hence, you are not much interested!

What to do then? Some important tips:

  • Do not drink, chew, or eat anything during the interview, as it might not sound pleasant while speaking.
  • Prepare some common questions such as reasons to leave the previous organization, what you know about the current company/role, what are your strengths and weaknesses, etc.
  • Choose a location that has an appropriate background to avoid any distractions.
  • Keep resume details handy to waste any time.
  • Keep relevant questions ready to ask the interviewer at the end.
  • Avoid multi-tasking (no emails, chats, household work, etc. at the time of phone interview).

All the best!

Author Bio:

Swati Srivastava is an avid writer who loves to pen down her ideas and career tips for job seekers and professionals. Her blog posts, new stories, and articles are focused on the extensive domain of employment sector in the gulf. Currently, she is writing for Naukrigulf.com. Follow her @LinkedIn 

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The Answers to Postman or Post Women Interview Questions

The answers to the most commonly used postal delivery Interview Questions

Often out of 300 applicants only 6 candidates will be interviewed. In most interviews, but this varies depending on the job sector and employer, you will be asked around 10 questions during a 45 minute interview.

The key to passing job interviews in preparation and practice, this sounds obvious but is often overlooked with the average interviewee spending around only 60 minutes preparing for their job interview. This article will give you the questions ask at interviews for the position of a delivery person, and the desired answers – make sure you tweak and personalise these answers to fit your own experience and skill base.

Job Interview Questions and Answers for Royal Mail Delivery Worker:

Job Interview Question 1: Give an example of when you had to work on your own initiative?

In the main, you are responsible for your own post-round, timing and responsible for getting the delivery completed.

The interviewer will ask this question to check if you are self motivated. To answer this question start by saying “in all my roles I have had to work on my own initiative…” and then follow this up with a real-life example.

To get extra bonus points use a story where you have to go above and beyond or where you have had to make a decision without the support of a line manager.

Job Interview Question 2: How would you deal with a customer who is not happy with the royal mail service they have received?

As a customer-facing role, you will at some point throughout your royal mail career come across an unsatisfied customer.

Customers may complain about lost mail, letters then had been ripped or got to wet and even late mail.

The interviewer needs to check if you have the skills to deal with this type of customer and the interviewer will be listening out for an explanation of how you would turn around the customer getting then from being angry to being happy with the service or explanation you give.

To answer this interview questions use an opening line to grab the interviewers attention “This has happened to me before, I had a customer who we called British bull dog, as she had a British bulldog with her when she was complaining…”

By stating that you have dealt with angry customers the interviewer knows you have the experience, all you need to prove now is that you have the skills and knowledge to successful deal with the complaint.

Follow your opening line with this Interview Question 3 Step Process

Step 1 – State the problem “the customer was complaining about X”

Step 2 – Explain what you did to resolve the situation “I did A, B and C…”

Step 3 – Give the outcome “in the end the customer X, Y and Z (with a big smile)..”

Job Interview Question 3: As a post person you will do a lot of walking, how do you keep yourself fit?

Often the role as a delivery person requires someone who enjoys exercise.

Answer the question by giving in detail the amount of exercise you, and how you enjoy walking and being in the fresh air. You can even go as far as saying that you are applying for the role as you enjoy the idea of working outside and getting paid to exercise.

Job Interview Question 4: Give an example of when you worked to a deadline?

The post has to be delivered on time and customers will often complain if their post is 20-30 minutes late. You need to convince the interviewer of your work ethic, your strategy to deliver the post on time and how you enjoy meeting deadlines.

There are several ways to answer this question, one positive answer is to your strategy for meeting deadlines.

“In previous roles I have always met my deadlines. For me the key is in preparation; I would first organise my post depending on the round, as this will make it easy to find the correct letters for each address. I would also look at maps and Google street view to see if there are short cuts between streets. I can easily estate the amount time require to complete the round and use this knowledge to ensure I start the round in enough time to meet the delivery deadlines”

Job Interview Question 5: How do you feel about working in snow or rain, how would you prepare?

The interviewer when asking this question is checking that you understand the details of the position. if you can give details of when you have worked in similar conditions and what you do to stay motived by staying dry and warm.

Job Interview Question 6: Have you ever done a repetitive job before and what did you do to make it easier?

Part of the role as a post-delivery person is to short mail which can be repetitive and walk the same round each and every day. For some people they enjoy repetition, while others don’t. You need to explain how you enjoy this type of work and the benefits repetition brings to a role.

“I really enjoy repetition in a role, for me I like to master a skill and the more repetitious the role the quicker I can complete the task, an example of this is…….”

Job Interview Question 7: Give an example of when you have faced with a particularly difficult situation, what happened?

Questions like this are great as they are open-ended.

If you have a key skill to get across that you haven’t managed to discuss due to previous questions, you can embedded into this answer – such as the customer service story above.

To answer this question resort back to the 3 step process

Step 1 Problem

Step 2 Your solution

Step 3 Outcome

Interview questions and answers

Job Interview Question 8: How would you deal with a customer who is disappointed with the service provided?

When answering any “how would you…” questions use a real example when possible “I had a client once who said she was disappointed with the service the company provided…”

Notice how we refer to the customer being disappointed with the company not you the employee. Follow this up with how you solve the customers issue “to help the customer I asked what she wanted from the service and then made the best effort to provide this…”

Job Interview Question 9: What makes you different than other candidates?

This is the time to really sell yourself and to make yourself stand out from the crowd.

Think about your unique selling point, why you would be a better employee then other applicants, the thing that will make you the best delivery person and tell the interview this in the most positive of ways. “I love working outside, meeting deadlines, im at my best when I work alone, I possess amazing customer service skills – even digs like me!!!”

Use this answer to summarise all your key selling points.

Job Interview Question 10: Do you have any questions for me?

Good interview questions to ask interviewers at the end of the job interview include questions on the company growth or expansion, questions on personal development and training and questions on company values, staff retention and company achievements.

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How to answer the “what is your experience” interview question when you have never worked before

Passing job interviews is hard! But it can be even harder when applying for a position when you have no experience in that sector, or for graduates with no experience what so all.

So how do you answer the “what is your experience?” interview question when you have never worked in this role before?  This article will teach you one of the techniques to get around this tricky interview question.

First, you need to think about your employability skills and where you gained these skills from.

Many people have volunteered, worked part time while at college or undertook work placements.

When you have never worked in the sector your applying for before, you need to still be able to pull up stories that highlight your skills from previous experiences. A technique to help your creative juices flow is to mindmap skills. Write down a skills “customer service” and mindmap when you have used/or where you gained this skill from

The technique is a 3 step approach to answering the interview question “what is your experience” when you have never worked in this job sector before.

When asked this interview question you need to Step 1. Answer the question in the first answer

As an example, if you have been asked “what is your customer service experience” (applying for a retail position) you can summarise your customer service experience “I have over 2 years of customer service experience”

By stating that you have X years’ experience in this skill, the interviewer will be intrigued and will want to listen to the rest of your interview answer.  If this example your customer service experience doesn’t have to be in a retail setting, as customers come in all shapes and forms. If you were, let to say a scout leader, then your customers are your scouts and their parents.

Step 2. Give an example “an example of my customer service experience is when A, B and C…” again the example doesn’t have to be shop related when applying for a retail role, but it does have to highlight your experience in customer service. This second stage is about you explaining how you possess these required criteria. Really sell yourself here.

The final step, Step 3, is to relate your experience to the position you are applying for. Ideally, if you have direct experience in a similar role, you would use this as your example. But because you are using a different context to highlight your experience you need to make it relevant to the employer.

“…this is the same approach I would use in your store if a customer asked X I would A, B and C…”

The 3 Step Approach

The technique to highlight your skill base (because you have no direct experience) is to

Step 1 Answer the question in the first sentence

Step 2 give an example of you using the skill

Step 3 to make the experience relevant to the job role by explaining how you would do X in their company.

In most interview situations, the interviewee who lacks experience will often just state that “I haven’t really done that before.”

This type of answer will only lead to a lack of job offers. Most employers when recruiting low-paid positions are more interested in people’s work ethic, commitment and skill base, as they are willing to mentor and train new employees which is why the wage is set low.

Employers looking for high-paid staff required highly experienced employees who can join their company and with only a quick indication can carry out the required job duties.

By explaining how you have the skill and how you will transfer this skill to the new role the employer will see you as a positive investment.

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How to Answer Social Media Interview Questions

Social media is the new rising star when it comes to upcoming job sectors.

For many applicants applying for this new role the job interview can be a scary place, as it is hard to predict the interview questions for a position that has only been available for the past few years.

Social media is a common tool for marketing services and products and all businesses are joining in. For some social media positions, you will be part social media assistant and part administrator.

Whereas in large organisations and online marketing companies you be full-time social media coordinator. Even though this role is relatively new competition for these roles is high. Surprisingly though many employers, especially in small businesses hire social media techs but don’t really know what they should ask them to do!!

Job Interview Questions for Social Media Jobs

          • Job Interview Question 1: What is your experience in social media and marketing?

Here you need to discuss your online experience by quoting how you/the company you work for have increased page likes, Twitter followers, +1’s on Google, followers on Instagram and on your like me profile. describe that strategy you used to increase your social media presence and explain how these same skills would benefit the company. Experienced marketers can also discuss marketing strategies, presentations and project management

        • Job Interview Question 2: Why is social media an integral part of a business plan?

To be successful in this sector you need to explain to the interviewer how your skills will increase the company’s social media presence, which increases website hits, increasing sales and profit. Give really examples of this in action and quote figures and percentages. You need to show that you can increase profit, making your wage look insignificant

        • Job Interview Question 3: What social sites do you use and how would you compare them against each other?

This is a knowledge based question. start by discussing the success of well know brands such as Facebook, explain how as an example vine and youtube get a percentage of hits compared to other social media sites and discuss the future of social media – G+ is predicted to be highly popular and how the increase of browsing on smart phones increase year on year

          • Job Interview Question 4: What social media pages or profiles have you created and managed for previous employers?

This is a great question to highlight your worth. start by explaining how poorly a site/page was doing quoting numbers. Discuss what strategies you used to increase hits (in detail) and give the out (number of users, followers, outward referrals to the website and increase in sales from direct referrals)

        • Job Interview Question 5: Which social media platform will popular in the next 5 years and why?

first you need to explain how tablets, phones and TV web channels are changing the face of online marketing. research future trends regarding social media and discuss what you predict will happen, explaining how you would incorporate this into your marketing plan.

        • Job Interview Question 6: How can a business generate income from social media?

As you know there are several money making streams available for the employer. Discuss this in general and then pick one key point that you know your future employer would be interested in and discuss what systems you would implement to make your department a financial success.

        • Job Interview Question 7: Which social media monitoring, analytics and publishing tools do you use?

Again, this question is to test your knowledge. Discuss two or three analytic systems and compare them against each other talking about the pro’s and con’s. Finish this question by explaining how you would use this data to change your marketing campaign.

          • Job Interview Question 8: What are the benefits of platforms such as Hootsuite, TweetDeck?

To answer this question, start by explaining which platforms you have used in the past and give an appraisal of each platform. Discuss any new platforms that have recently come to market and discuss the benefits to that particular company.

        • Job Interview Question 9: What are the pro’s and con’s of a LinkedIn group vs. LinkedIn page

This question can be asked for a range of different social media tools. To answer the question give the advantages and disadvantages of the page/group. If you have had any key successes with any tool, explain this in detail  

        • Job Interview Question 10: How would you design a social media page to increase customer retention?

Before answering this question think about the companies targeted audience and use this knowledge to give a relevant answer. Explain the importance of niching, picture vs text percentage, interactive webpages and tools. The relevant the better!!

        • Job Interview Question 11:Why is Google+ becoming leader in social media?

G+ is becoming a force to be reckoned with. In this answer explain why G+ is increasing in usage. Also discuss some of the Google set backs and recent trails such authorship.

        • Job Interview Question 14: Do you have any questions for me?

 Good interview questions to ask interviewers at the end of the job interview include questions on the company growth or expansion, questions on personal development and training and questions on company values, staff retention and company achievements.