Vital News Writer Interview Preparation Guide

Download PDF

This one is pretty easy. Because I always felt writing is in my bones J I am an Engineering graduate and understandably this was a standard question in all interviews. I gave the same reply in all interviews and it worked just fine.

Salespeople today should be asking questions more than making pitches. Open-ended questions that help a rep thoroughly understand a prospect’s needs are as good as gold.

Because you already have a specific idea about the style and message of your content, it’s important that your copywriters are able to convey that message without any problems. If your candidates have experience taking direction, you know you can rely on them to create content that aligns with your campaign’s goals without having to make several rounds of revisions.

Though this might seem like a standard interview question, it’s especially important for copywriters. Not only will it help you gauge their interest in the position, but it will also give you clues on what type of writer they are. You’ll want an inquisitive writer who conducts backgrounding and research before submitting any work, and this is a great way to see how thorough they are. You can also take this time to measure their copywriting proficiency. Ask them how they would describe your brand’s tone/voice, and also ask them who they think your target audience is. This should help you wean out the clueless writers from the ones who really know their stuff.

Again, it’s not necessarily a deal breaker if the salesperson doesn’t actively share and engage with content on their social media accounts, but they should at least want to start doing so.

SMO is an upcoming and very exciting avenue for enhancing website popularity and traffic by harnessing the power of various social media like Twitter, Facebook, Digg, YouTube etc. Be prepared to suggest some ways to promote a product, service or website on Facebook and Twitter. So go sign into your Twitter and Facebook accounts and try out a few things to develop enough confidence in the field. Nowadays SMO is an expected skill for most content writers and SMO has blurred the distinction between SEO and content writing as both, Search Engine Optimizers and Content Writers dabble in the field. Check out my post on SMO tricks to get a better grasp of the subject.

When it comes to maintaining a consistent content creation schedule, there will certainly be instances where your writers will be forced to meet a tight deadline. When that time comes, you need to know if your candidate will rise to the challenge or crumble under pressure. Ask them if they’ve worked in high-pressure writing situations before, and ask about their approach to any writing tasks when faced with a deadline.

Keep in handy a pen drive containing your best write ups. Yes, you need to be selective; we all know the nonsense we write in the early days of our content writing career and even when we just don’t feel like proof reading some write up, so skip such stuff. It’s always advisable to show a wide variety of write-ups like blogs, articles, home page and on different topics. Also if the write-up is under your name it’s even better for sake of authenticity. But as we know copywriting signifies that the identity of the actual writer is not disclosed so I’ll suggest another way to prove your credentials. Post some articles on varied topics like technology, travel, tourism etc on article submission sites like Hubpages, Ezine, Buksia and so on. I did that and it paid off in a big way. Writers looking for a career in web journalism should have posted related articles on some online magazines or current affairs sites.

While this technically isn’t a question, it’s important to assess whether the candidate has a helpful demeanor.

The answer to this question doesn’t have to blow you away. However, the candidate should have some sort of action plan to get up and running. No matter how much training you provide, it’s still smart to hire a self-starter when you can.

Uh, the China- Phil. territorial dispute

Preparing to deal with objections instead of winging it is critical. Listen for evidence of a process.

Yeah. To inspire other people around.

My ideas and personal perceptions.

Yeah, maybe to inspire.

This sales interview question serves two purposes: It shows how much research the candidate did before meeting with you, and it demonstrates their creative thinking and entrepreneurial capabilities.

I prefer to talk than listening.

When you work as a copywriter for a company, sometimes a project will pass through five different sets of hands before it’s ready for publication. When that’s the case, it’s important to hire a candidate who’s comfortable writing in a team environment and is willing and eager to receive constructive feedback. Likewise, if you’re looking for a candidate that can shoulder the weight of the content creation duties alone, make sure he or she has prior experience being the sole lead/project manager.

Depending on your company’s goals, either answer could be the right one. But beware of reps who will prioritize quota over truly giving customers what they need -- or withholding from them what they don’t.

☛ There can be a considerable amount of repetitive work — how would you stay motivated?
☛ How do you maintain attention to detail?
☛ How do you approach proof-reading material?
☛ What would you expect from us as your employer to keep you motivated?
☛ Tell us how your background and experience makes you a fit for this role?
☛ What do you know about this company?
☛ Who are our customers are and where are they located?
☛ Where would you ideally see yourself a year from now and in three years from now?

☛ Why do we invest in producing content that we give away for free?
☛ How do you think people discover our content?
☛ What’s the importance of voice for a brand?
☛ How would you go about giving voice to a brand?
☛ If I told you you need to make 50 pieces of content per week what would you say?
☛ How many pieces of content do you think you could deliver in a week?
☛ How would you go about prioritizing one piece of content over another?
☛ What new content would you recommend for our marketing operation?
☛ How do you go about improving SEO for content?
☛ What’s the value of an infographic?

☛ What are your current writing projects?
☛ How do you manage deadlines and priorities?
☛ How much do you write about our industry?
☛ How do you handle writing about “boring” topics?
☛ How do you capture a brand’s voice?
☛ What is your experience with community management and social media?
☛ What are some of your favorite social media tools?
☛ What is your experience with analytics, metrics and tracking content success?
☛ How do you make content SEO-friendly?
☛ What is your approach to keyword research?
☛ What is your experience in technical writing?
☛ How do you research a target audience?
☛ What is your experience with non-text content (images, infographics, etc.)?
☛ Are you familiar with the Penguin and Hummingbird algorithm updates? How did they affect your content strategy?
☛ What do you know about our company?

An interview with a potential copywriter is an audition. Don't be afraid to give them a writing assignment, and give them a couple days to complete it. That will give them time to research your topic and give you an opportunity to see how well they grasp your industry and, more importantly, their technical skills and style. Is their submission riddled with industry speak and jargon, poor grammar, or bad flow from one thought to the next? Their writing assignment may reveal more about him or her than a portfolio full of previously written works.

Social selling is becoming more important in all industries. If the candidate has not used social channels to research prospects or look for leads in the past, make sure they have a willingness to learn.

Social Issues.