As is with any job interview, preparation is key. In this newsletter, I am going to give you valuable insights on how to best prepare for an interview from a hiring manager’s perspective. While I work in the medical device sales industry, these nuggets of information can be used for any sales interview in any sales industry. The information I’ll write below will not be redundant to what you can find online or by asking ChatGPT, “how can I prepare for a medical device job interview?”. I will not be covering how to research the company you are interviewing with or what dress attire you should wear.
Instead, listed below are stories and pieces of advice I am providing you as someone who has interviewed hundreds of people over my tenure as a sales leader. I know what works in winning over hiring managers, and I know what doesn’t. I will summarize my thoughts into 3 key talking points, which, if executed appropriately, can help differentiate you from other candidates that are interviewing for the same position. Often times it is not just the candidate’s experience or ability to answer questions that sets him apart in an interview. He needs to stand out in other ways as well. At the end of an interview day, after a hiring manager has spoken with 6-8 candidates, responses and backstories all seem to run together and things get muddled. Here are 3 ways in how you can differentiate yourself.
Share a passion statement/story
I often begin my sales interviews with the questions, “Why are you interested in working for our company? How do your goals align with our company’s mission?”. 3/4 of the time candidates will answer those questions with material they have read from our company website. Or, their “why” is something they think I want to hear. They want to make money, they want to work for a high performance company, they want to develop in their career, they want to be a part of something meaningful. All of those are decent answers, and most of them are probably true. However, I hear those answers all day long during interviews. What I want is for the candidate to open the interview with something that will help him or her stand out. I want them to sell me on them.
I often remember the candidates that share their purpose, or “why”, with a story, rather than simply just sharing with me what’s important to them. After all, to be a good salesman you need to be a good storyteller. There is one story from a candidate that has stuck with me over the last few years that is hard to beat. I was interviewing for a Territory Manager position in one of our Surgical Oncology divisions. I was interviewing someone who was an experienced medical device rep, but they were not working in Oncology and had zero experience in the Operating Room. Fair to say, heading in to the interview I wasn’t sure he would be a good fit. However, when I asked him why he was looking to get in to surgical oncology sales after spending much of his career in a different space, his answer is something I still remember today. During his career he had always chased money. The next promotion, the next start-up. He had little to no loyalty to the company, job, or mission. He was just following a paycheck. Then, his father passed away from cancer, and his entire perspective on the meaningfulness of his career changed. He wanted to work in a space where he could impact how patients were being treated, and he wanted to help educate and sell physicians on innovative products that would prolong their patients’ lives. That was his renewed purpose in life and he oozed sincerity and passion in sharing his story. I was struck with how authentic his “why” was and it was something that made him stand out among the rest of the candidates I had that day.
While you may not have a personal story as emotional as this one, the point I want you to take away is that you need to share a story that helps you stand out when beginning the interview. Every question you answer during an interview is an opportunity to sell the hiring manager on YOU.
Come prepared with creative & thoughtful questions
Other than sharing a strong, personal “why” message with the interviewer, being thoughtful with the questions you ask is the best way to differentiate you from other candidates. In almost any interview, the hiring manager will give you time to ask him any questions you have about the company or job. If they do not allow time for this, that is a red flag. After all, you are interviewing the company and people that work there just as much as the hiring manager is interviewing you.
It is important that your questions are genuine and that you are asking questions that you actually want the answers to, not just questions that you think the interviewer wants to hear. It is just as important that your questions are unique. If I had a dollar for every time I heard the same 3-4 questions from candidates, I would be retired already. I mean that tongue-in-cheek, but there is truth to that. You do not want to ask the same questions to the interviewer that he has already answered 3 times that day for other candidates. You want to stand out! Below are examples of the most common questions I hear during an interview, and below those are new, revised ways in which you can ask the same thing, with some notes on the impact of this change.
Common Question: What does a typical day look like as a Territory Manager?
Revised Question: In preparing for this interview, I spoke with members of your team. They shared with me that most days are spent in the OR supporting procedures. Can you help me understand a bit more about the procedure itself?
Impact: Shows you are prepared and genuinely curious about the day to day.
Common Question: What makes your best reps successful?
Revised Question: What specific characteristics do your best reps display in the field that help them close more deals? How did they develop those skills?
Impact: Shows that you can be articulate when asking discovery questions and are dedicated to your own development.
Common Question: What is your company culture like? What is your leadership style like?
Revised Question: In speaking with your team, they stated you drive a high performance culture, but also promote a safe space for people to be vulnerable and ask for help. What are things you do to help promote that environment on your team?
Impact: Shows you are prepared and can use information to ask more detailed questions.
Hard close, not soft
The final piece of advice I will provide you before heading into an interview may seem small, but is incredibly important. In a sales interview, everyone knows you need to close the interviewer at the end of the interview. After all, this is a sales interview, and hiring managers want to ensure you are able to close the deal before leaving the conversation. However, how you close is just as important as what you close for.
About 90% of the time, candidates close the interview with some variation of the following phrase:
“After what we discussed today, do you have any reservations in moving me forward in the interview process?”
This is what I call a “soft” close. It’s soft because you are not asking for the job and the tone of the question is inherently negative. You are leaving room for the interviewer to simply say, “Yes, I have some reservations and they are…”. Instead, you want to close the interviewer with some variation of the below:
“After what we discussed today, you stated that you find communication skills, persistence, and a proven track record to be the most important qualities in someone new joining your team. Throughout our conversation, I believe I have conveyed to you that I possess all 3 of those qualities. Do I have your support in moving forward in the interview process?”
This is a hard close. You are recapping what’s important to the manager, which shows active listening. You are also asking for his support, not if he has any reservations on you. That shows that you have confidence in yourself and are not afraid to ask for the business. This type of close takes some practice, but it can sincerely help you stand out among other candidates.
In conclusion, while there are many ways in which you can stand out in the interview process, these 3 that I shared are not discussed frequently enough. They are simple and actionable and can make you memorable come interview time.
Sincerely,
S.M.K., The Sale’s Mentor’s Playbook
For a more personalized approach to your career journey, I conduct one-on-one coaching through virtual portals (Zoom, Teams, etc.), and would be happy to schedule a free 20 minute introductory call to see if I can help you. To reach me, please respond to this email with your contact information.