Many job candidates make a huge mistake in their interviews—and you need to make sure it isn't happening in yours. RELATED: How To Prepare For A Job Interview Even though qualified, talented job candidates do a great job of preparing for the interview, researching the company, putting a lot of thought and effort into answering interview questions, and all that...at the end of the interview they fail to ask THE key question that could get them the offer.
What's The Question?
It's about closing. Closing is a sales term. Every sales rep must close, or they may very well lose that business—but guess what? The job interview is a sales process. You are selling you to that hiring manager for that job. Closing allows you to gauge what's happened in that interview, and react accordingly. How many times have you left an interview not knowing how it went? Or thinking it went well—but not getting the job offer? Closing helps you avoid those problems.How Do You Close?
If you are closing, you are asking for the next step. Please note: this does not necessarily mean asking for the job. Asking for the next step is easier for you to do, and requires less commitment from the hiring manager—so it's easier to grant you that next step. In the phone interview, you can say,“Ms. X, I've got to tell you that I am very excited about this position and I know that I could excel at it because of A, B, and C. Can you see me being successful in this role?" “Is there any reason why you wouldn't move me forward?" “Can we go ahead and schedule time for us to meet next week in a face-to-face interview?"In the face-to-face interview, when you can tell that it's wrapping up (you know your time is up, or the hiring manager starts looking at his watch, for example), you can ask,
“Mr. Manager, I've enjoyed this time with you today. I hope that you can tell that I've put a lot of time, energy, and effort into preparing for this interview. I can tell you that I am super-excited about this role—even more so now that I've learned more about it today. Can you see me being a fantastic addition to your team?" “Can you see me being someone who would thrive in your environment?" “Can we move me forward to the next step?"These are all closing questions that allow you to gauge where you are in the interview so you can react to it. If they say 'no,' you can ask why not and possibly correct a misconception or add more information that would change their mind. You'll never leave another interview wondering if they liked you enough, or if you said everything you needed to say. If you get a 'yes' answer, you know you've done well. And, because they've said yes, they are more likely to offer you the job.
