Marketing Statement

By Zebriod (c) 2008

We all need one, or two. We have all heard of the elevator speech, where you are caught the elevator between floors with the boss, you have 11 seconds of his time, you need to get your message across – clearly and fast. Likewise if an interviewer starts with an icebreaker question like “tell me about yourself’, you don’t want to miss the opportunity to put yourself in the best possible light.

Be sure you don’t ramble on about irrelevancies or get off topic! Instead, make your answer into a 3 part pre-planned marketing statement.

Part 1 – One short sentence as summary of career history to date.

Part 2 – A stand out accomplishment you are proud of that will capture the employer’s attention.

Part 3 – One sentence summary of what you want to do next in your career. This is a forward looking statement, positive (never bash a previous situation) and clearly answers the question why are you here now?

“I’ve had 16 years of experience in the industry while serving as a {job title} with company ABC for the last five years. While at ABC, I led the successful {accomplishment} which resulted in us achieving {bottom line impact…saving money, saving time, awards/recognition}. For my next career move, I desire to move to a company with more prestige where I can continue to add value for the long term.”

**An Extra Tip:If given the opportunity to ask a question at the very beginning of the interview – Ask, “What exactly are you looking for in a (title of position)?” Listen Carefully! You should target the rest of your interview answers so that they cover what the hiring manager’s response was to that question.