If you fail to conduct any research on the company you are applying for, you are making a big mistake. For those of you that are fortunate enough to get an interview, you may struggle to answer simple questions about the company and the role.
Before it even gets to that embarrassing stage you want to ensure your CV clearly represents a good understanding of what’s required of an employee. What does the company do? Who are their customers?
Here are a few tips on the importance of conducting research before you write your CV:
Research will build a better CV
A generic CV will stand out a mile to any experienced manager. It’s vital you don’t fall into this trap, and opt for a more customised approach. Don’t simply use the same CV, updating a little year after year – every CV should be written differently for each role, and tailored as such to ensure it targets the right audience.
Conducting some fantastic research not only builds up your knowledge of the business, but also allows you to tailor your CV to the role and the company. A hiring manager wants to quickly see that you are the right person for the job. Not just through your skills, experience and qualifications, but also by the style your CV has been written in.
Your CV needs to demonstrate your knowledge of the role, the company and even the industry. Without some research you are only capable of creating a generic CV, which will not make a great first impression.
Research = great interview
Undoubtedly someone who has done their homework will stand a much better chance of giving a successful interview. It’s easy to fall into the trap of assuming the questions will focus on your skills and experience alone. But little to no knowledge of what the company does and what’s expected within the role is going to show.
Use this knowledge to your advantage and prepare some answers beforehand that clearly show you know what’s expected of you. Keep your answers inline with the company’s goals and what their vision is of the future.
It shows you care
By going to great lengths to find out more and conduct extensive research shows that you care. Not only does it show that you are passionate about the job and the company, it also demonstrates your ability to take a keen interest in your own career.
If you decide to do some research because it will help you write a better CV and prepare for the interview – then great. However, if you also do this because you are genuinely interested in your career – then ever better.
You need to ask yourself – do I really care about what the company does? If the answer is no, then maybe you should consider looking at something else.
Research will help with difficult interview questions
One of the most common interview questions is – Why do you want to work for us?
If you really want to give a great answer to this question, you need to be prepared. Researching the company and the industry will help you understand their vision and goals for the future. In an interview you need to get the message across that you share their vision.
An employer is looking for commitment, and not just an employee that sees the role as a stop-gap. Your knowledge of the industry needs to be second to none, and the ideas that you can bring to the table will clearly demonstrate how serious you are.
