From the course: Mastering Common Interview Questions

How to respond to: Why are you interested in our company?

From the course: Mastering Common Interview Questions

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How to respond to: Why are you interested in our company?

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- There are a variety of reasons an interviewer might ask, "Why are you interested in our company?" And this really can be more difficult than you think. You may respond about how much you enjoy their product, but what they're really asking is how you see yourself contributing to the position. To best determine the meaning of this question. Let's review the primary reasons for asking it. First, they may be focused on your true interest in the company. They want to have someone who is committed to the profession, product or service, and not just seeking any job. A second reason is that they want to know you understand the position and how you plan on contributing to it. And finally, they want to know your long-term career goals and how this position fits. This helps them to determine how long you may possibly stay in the position. Since you don't know the motivation behind the question, you need to address each reason in a concise manner. You can frame it in any order. And I suggest starting with the area that truly excites you. Let's take the example of applying for a user design position with a company called Red 30. The first thing to do is research the company through their website, news releases, and LinkedIn profiles of those currently in the position and their supervisors. This can reveal if the company promotes from within, signaling the potential for you to grow in a position. In addition, it allows you to see what skills people in the current position are using so you know what really matters for the job. You learn that Red 30 started in 2007, has since grown vertically to include divisions for event promotions and corporate accounts. It's clear that several user design professionals at Red 30 have received promotions, and you also know they enjoy helping people through effective design techniques and use innovative approaches for doing so. With this information, you can frame the answer to why you're interest in this company in the following way. I am interested in Red 30 because it will allow me to use my focus on innovative approaches to design and apply them to a growing company. In my research, it was nice to see a company focused on expanding their offering to the corporate world and growing opportunities for its current staff. It's particularly exciting to see that many of your user design experts have been promoted from within. I'm looking forward to growing my expertise within Red 30. It's a great opportunity to not only build my career, but to also help organizations maximize their brand. As you can see, this answers all three of the reasons that someone might ask this question in a concise answer. This answer would also fit for the following questions. What do you like about our position? Why are you interested in this position? Or how did you hear about this position? It is important to show them in any of these that you are serious about the position and the company.

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