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  Introduction

  Job interview tips are a dime a dozen on the internet these days. You can find volumes of "how to" information from the internet, books, and magazine articles. How do you decide what advice provides the biggest potential to actually get you hired?

  Some people will tell you that writing a killer cover letter will get you in the door, while others (including me!) will tell you that most people who review resumes for a living are too busy to read them.

  There seem to be so many rules that go into making a good impression on a hiring manager. And the frustrating thing to most candidates is that the experts can’t agree on what those rules should be. Conflicting advice is really not helpful when so much is riding on your performance.

  After years of interviewing candidates, we've assembled our top ten interview tips that we know can make a difference. These are the same tips we share with our candidates as they’re getting ready to interview with our clients. We think you’ll find them helpful. So, here we go!
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  Chapter 1: First Impressions

  Since first impressions are hard to counter, make a lasting impact by getting out of the gate quickly. This actually starts as soon as you think about beginning a job search.

  Two things that should immediately come to mind are your email address and your voice mail message. If your personal email address is not professional, open a gmail account through Google (it’s free) and select a professional sounding address. Yourname@gmail.com would be a good choice. Sending something to samsdaddy@anyhost.com just doesn’t make a good first impression.

  Likewise, your voicemail greeting needs to be professional. A prospective employer does not want to hear your two year old telling them you’re not available. They want to hear your voice. If your voice mail message does not sound professional, chances are you will be eliminated from consideration.

  Phone Interviews

  Making a good first impression by phone is important, since this first screening will often determine who is selected for a face to face interview. Here are some tips:

  • Use a land line rather than a cell phone. You want to make sure that there are no issues with the quality of your connection.
  • Conduct the call from a quiet place. Children and barking dogs will not make a good first impression.
  • Imagine your interviewer is in the room. It’s easy to come across “flat” in a phone interview. Make sure that you have energy and that you are animated in your responses.
• About the Author
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  I'm told that readers are always interested in knowing about the author. I don't want to bore you with the official bio - boring to read, boring to write. Instead, I'll give you a quick snapshot into what motivates me to give my knowledge away.

  My first job out of college was with an "employment agency". I hated every minute of it. I was so bad at sales that I quickly went into the hole with the draw against commission plan I was under. No matter how hard I tried, I just could not get the hang of cold calling. I lasted six months - and then placed myself with our biggest client!

  Fast forward many years...and I'm now running a successful executive search practice and a content rich niche job board for sales professionals – www.top-sales-jobs.com. I'm told that I'm really good at what I do. I'm very intuitive. I can tell almost instantly whether a candidate will make the cut. I listen to my gut, and it's rarely wrong.

  Executive search has been a great stop for me along the way. My job board, www.top-sales-jobs.com, along with the e-books I’ve written, are my way of giving something back on a professional level.

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