Once you’ve walked out of the door from an interview for a marketing or events job, the temptation is to either try to forget about it and plunge back into your current role, or spend days worrying and checking your phone for missed calls. But there are ways you can be proactive and enhance your chances of success - for this job, and for other interviews in the future.

Immediately after the interview ...

We suggest building an hour after the interview into your schedule, so you can head to a nearby cafe, reflect and take some immediate actions. 

Give your feedback - to your recruitment agency
If your interview has been arranged via a recruitment agency, like Regan & Dean, call as soon as you can to let us know how you felt the interview went, and reconfirm your interest.  It’s always helpful if we can let the interviewer know if you felt it went well and what your first impressions were. And the quicker we can give them the feedback the better - it shows proactivity and interest from your side - and can add to the overall impression they have of you. So always feedback to the agency as soon as possible - ideally as soon as you are out of the interview.

Our experience is that if the client has to chase for feedback to hear what a candidate thought of an interview, they’ll feel that the interest and enthusiasm for the role isn’t there - so always, always let us know how you think it went .. and do this as soon as possible.  Immediately if you can.

It’s also an opportunity for you to feedback those things you felt didn’t go so well - if you felt your nerves got the better of you, or if you didn’t mention a brilliant example of your work that would have been good for them to know about.  As the intermediary, we can feedback additional elements like this, to champion your cause.

Send a follow up note/thank you - if it’s a direct application
If you applied directly for the role, you might consider sending an email to the interviewer thanking him or her for inviting you to attend and reconfirming your interest (if you are still interested). 

You might want to expand on an answer you gave or provide a better illustration of, for example, a marketing campaign you led from start to finish. That’s fine if you can do it concisely. But avoid a long email of justification, apology or explanation - that won’t do your case any good. 

A brief follow up note is more than good manners. It gives you another opportunity to make a positive impression if you do it well. Use it to reconfirm your positive interest in the role, and your professional manners in thanking them for their time.

Note: You wouldn’t normally do this if you applied via a recruitment agency. If in doubt, check. 

Reflect
Spend some time over coffee reflecting on the interview. What went well? Which answers seemed to land well? How could it have gone even better? Were there any questions that caught you off guard? If so, make a note of them now. If you get a second interview, these notes will be invaluable for your preparation.

Don’t beat yourself up for any mistakes - see this as an opportunity to learn. If you felt you didn’t know enough about the company, you now know you need to do more research before the next one.  

NLP practitioners say “There is no failure. Only feedback”. Approach your reflections in this positive way. 

Plan a reward
Consider a small treat to reward yourself for preparing well for the interview. Pick whatever works for you, whether that’s a pumpkin spice latte, a book, a movie rental or a large gin and tonic!  It’s important to give yourself a pat on the back… most people will have experienced some stress prior to an interview… so now .. relax.

And later ….

Get Feedback
Always try and get specific feedback on your performance, generally as an interviewee, and specifically regarding your appropriateness to the role and fit to the company. 

If you’re working with a recruitment consultant, they’ll be the ones to get the feedback for you (as much as they can get from the client) - and particularly they’ll be trying to find out where you ticked the boxes, or any areas of underperformance.  All feedback is useful - so embrace it, even if it is not what you were hoping for.  It will always be useful for future interviews.

Remain focused
The excitement of the possibilities of a new job can become a distraction from your current role. The last thing you want is to be pulled up for mistakes or a lack of enthusiasm so stay focused on delivering your current objectives. 

Keep applying
Even if this is your dream marketing or events job and you can’t imagine working anywhere else, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. It’s important to stay active with your job search and maintain momentum. 

It’s good for your morale too. If you don’t land this role, having one or two possibilities in the pipeline will reduce any disappointment. Remind your recruitment agency to let you know about other similar roles and be proactive with your own job search too.

Prepare for next time
Look at your notes from your period of reflection. Are there any questions that tripped you up for which you can prepare a better answer now? Are there any gaps in your CV or LinkedIn profile that were brought up or questioned? Make time to address them now, when you don’t need to rush. 

Be patient
It is easy to become impatient when you’re waiting for a response to a job interview, but you never know what the internal processes are for the business. You might get some clarity by asking about the process, next steps and timescale at the end of your interview - and we’d encourage you to do this -  but even then there may be unforeseeable delays. 

Some managers have the authority to make a hiring decision on the spot, while others need to go through a chain of approvals first.  Or they may have other interviews stretching over a longer period. A slow response doesn’t necessarily mean a negative outcome; there could be all kinds of red tape involved before a final decision is made. 

A follow up call with your recruitment agency to clarify timescales is always good.  

Keep in touch
If the timescales for feedback and next steps are long, make sure you keep in touch with any changes in status from your side.  If you are being invited to another interview (particularly if it’s a second interview) for a different role or company, let your consultant (or if applying direct, the employer) know. This can help them manage or modify timelines on their side if things become critical.  

A good marketing and events recruitment agency like Regan & Dean can help take some of the stress out this whole process for you. We’ll keep in touch with the interviewer and let you know what’s happening as soon as we can. And you can always be sure of a friendly voice at the end of the phone, and someone who is there to support you and the employer throughout the process.