Competency-based Digital Marketing Interview Questions
With Sample Answers and scenarios
I did my Hotel Management in 1996, worked for a few years in South India, and decided to look for a job on Cruise Ship. Now I am the Founder & CEO of Web Marketing Academy, A Digital Marketing Training Insititute in Bangalore
In 1999, I applied, and the interviews happened in Mumbai. The interviewer asked a few questions about different types of sauces, how to make Terrain, Cold cuts, types of cuts, and a few more about Continental Cuisine.
I almost felt good, once that was done, they asked me some simple questions like this.
Tell me about a time you had to make a difficult decision and how did you go about it
I was stuck….. didn’t know what to answer.
I see a lot of my students stuck in some of the questions like this, so I am planning to share some simple but important Interview questions & sample answers
_________________________________
Question #1:
Tell me about a time you had to make a difficult decision and how did you go about it?
The interviewer is looking for:
* How you handle a stressful situation
* Decision-making abilities
* Your thought process
Answer Format
- Scene: During____ I_____ The team was____
- Conflict: However,_____ Until_____ All of a sudden____
- Resolution: I had to _____ Quickly______ I stop_____
- Results: Because of _____ Increased_____ Decreased______
Answer: (Example)
SCENE: I was running a one-month Pre Diwali Sale Instagram Campaign with a budget of 10 Lacs. The campaign was performing well for the first few days.
CONFLICT: Week 2, due to high volume, our server crashed. My team was planning for this month ahead, however, I forgot to inform the IT department
RESOLUTION: Immediately, I had to stop the campaign. Quickly I spoke to the HR & CTO and fixed it in a few hour’s time. We paused the campaign & lost more than 500 sales in four hours
RESULTS: Lessons learned: Have a process map, a checklist for all campaigns including communication and I created a custom social media policy for our team
Have at least THREE answers like this ready. Practice your interview answers out loud
_________________________________
Question #2:
Describe a situation in which you led a team
The interviewer is looking for:
- Leadership skills
- How you managed
- Teamwork
Answer:
. Scene: Scenario: During____ When_____ We______ Launched _____
. Conflict: However_____ But_____ Out of 4, One had a different POV_____
. Resolution: We _____ Integrate ______ Tested______ Brainstorm_____
. Results: As a team _______ We decided_______ Ended in________
Example:
SCENE: During the course, I worked on a project where five of us were asked to come up with a brand awareness campaign for a B2B company apart from Facebook, Instagram & YouTube. We brainstormed and I suggested Google Display, LinkedIn, Slide Share and Quora
CONFLICT: We brainstormed and identified a total of ten platforms to advertise. Two of the team members challenged that Google Display and Quora might not work
RESOLUTION: After researching and going through some case studies, we were able to find out Google Display gives optimal results for awareness campaigns, so we eliminated Quora, included Twitter and Google Display
RESULTS: We worked together, presented the plan, implemented a sample campaign. We saw an increase of 200% traffic to the website from new users
_________________________________
Question #3:
Describe a situation where you are asked to do something that you had never attempted previously
The interviewer is looking for:
- Your approach
- Your attitude
- How you behave in a different situation
- Your ability to step out of your Comfort Zone
Answer:
. Scene: Scenario: New ______ Process _____
. Conflict: Live today _____ Different team _____ Impact _____
. Resolution: Learn _____ Quickly ______ Changed ______
. Results: Managed _______ Timely_______ Response________
Answer Example:
SCENE: We brainstormed, prepared, created a landing page for the upcoming new product launch that was all set to launch the next day
CONFLICT: We tested. Everything was fine except the Contact Us form was giving errors. Our developer was on vacation and not reachable
RESOLUTION: I was responsible for this entire process. Though I have never built an HTML landing page, I quickly learned the HTML for the landing page and created a similar landing page with a form.
RESULTS: We were able to launch the campaign, got 70 conversions on Day one. I was given Employee of the Month for this achievement
_________________________________
Question #4:
Give an example of a time you had to respond to an unhappy manager/customer/colleague?
The interviewer is looking for:
- Are you a good fit
- Will you get the work done
- Will you be a good team player
- Are you a Problem solver
Answer:
. Scene: Scenario: One customer______ A comment _____
. Conflict: Not happy_____ Negative _____ Bad experience_____
. Resolution: Addressed _____ Listened ______ Responded______
. Results: Happy _______ Apology _______ Gave a five star________
Answer Example:
SCENE: Last year, when we ran a special offer Twitter post, sales picked up, I got a notification about this tweet from a customer which was retweeted five times
CONFLICT: The tweet mentioned that he is not happy about the flight ticket and wanted a refund immediately. He was an Influencer, had a show and a huge following
RESOLUTION: I tweeted to him saying, I will personally look into it and ask for the details and a few hours’ time. I spoke with the management team and asked to refund the process asap even though our regular refund period is at least 24 hrs. We were able to refund within two hours.
RESULTS: He thanked me for the prompt response and refund. He tweeted “ X company is not as bad as I thought, I got my response within hours”
_________________________________
Question #5:
Tell me about your greatest/proudest achievement to date?
The interviewer is looking for:
- Your work ethics/beliefs
- Your story
- Your core values
Answer:
. Scene: Scenario: My ______ The process _____
. Conflict: Unfortunately _____ Time consuming _____ Had to _____
. Resolution: We _____ Presented ______ Changed ______
. Results: Promoted _______ Awarded _______ Responsible ________
Answer Example:
SCENE: I was responsible for keeping the team up-to-date on the latest trends in Digital Marketing
CONFLICT: The team members were given access to the folder where all the updates are regularly uploaded. However, the team didn’t even open the folders.
RESOLUTION: I decided to have a weekly meeting with the team members every Friday to specifically share the recent trends for the week.
RESULTS: The team members were able to propose a few new suggestions to the clients based on their learnings. This initiative led to new business opportunities and an increase of 3% in revenue. I was promoted to a Team Lead. This was one of my proudest moments
_________________________________
Question #6:
Tell me a time when you led a difficult project.
The interviewer is looking for:
- Leadership ability
- Ownership
- Project management skills
Answer:
. Scene: Scenario: New ______ Different _____
. Conflict: Which can _____ Time consuming _____ Team effort_____
. Resolution: New process _____ Surprise ______ New learnings______
. Results: Happy _______ Satisfaction_______ New opportunities________
Answer Example:
SCENE: Last year we want to put together a large Digital Marketing Conference with 500 participants, 10 speakers, and delegates
CONFLICT: While we have conducted small events, we did not have any experience with large scale events.
RESOLUTION: I was nominated to manage this entire conference — right from identifying speakers, vendors, sponsors, to arranging travel, venue, and registrations. I ensured systematic planning, organizing, and handling of the overall logistics.
RESULTS: We were able to bring in 600 paid participants, 10 International speakers, and enough sponsors generating a total Net Revenue of 50L.
_________________________________
Good Luck
I can add more questions and answers if you like to. Leave a comment below
Hope you find this useful if you think it was useful please do share
If you like to get started in Digital Marketing, please give us a call 8792299538 or email Suresh at web marketing academy dot in
Medium users will get a 5 % discount on all courses. When you call or email mention this special discount code: MEDIUMDM
About: Suresh babu, Founder, CEO, Web Marketing Academy | Digital Marketing/Corporate Social Media Trainer | B-School Visiting Faculty
