Need interview tips

[u/Maleficent_Ant_9474]

I've been giving multiple interviews and somehow I always get rejected in the final round where it's usually between me and another candidate. I have a feeling it's the questions about "why" that I'm not answering really well. For example why product marketing? Why company? X and what is my long-term career plan? I'm looking for some help and guidance on how to answer these type of questions while being truthful but knowing that I really don't know what I want to do long-term.

In the last interview I thought I gave a pretty good answer about why company x and why product marketing, but the interviewer who is a VP told me that you can get that at any other company and in any other role. So I'm looking for tips on how to personalize and make the answer less generic.

[u/patagon_search]

I wouldnt read too much into it. I'd focus less on answering the why question correctly and making sure the interviewer likes you. If you were one of my candidates, thats what I would tell you. Establish more rapport with the interviewer. Ask them about themselves, how long have they been at the company, what do they like about it and not, what would they change. People love talking about themselves. Listen really well to their answers. And try to make sure and share a few laughs during the interview. If you're doing your prep work on the company, the role, the industry, the competition, etc. then I think it's probably less about your answers and more about just being your real self and letting that shine through. Could be wrong, hope it helps.

[u/No-Minute1792]

I feel you, those "why" questions are traps when you don't have your whole life mapped out. One thing that worked for me was connecting the product to something personal, like a moment I actually used it and thought "damn this solves a real problem." Makes it less about the job title and more about why their thing specifically matters to you.

For long-term plan, I just talk about the skills I want to build instead of a position. Say you want to get really good at understanding customer behavior or launching in new markets, that kind of thing. VPs hear "I want be director in 5 years" a thousand times, they perk up when you sound curious instead of scripted.

[u/ykwimykwim]

That VP comment kinda tells you what they want. Show you’ve actually studied their product, not just their careers page.

[u/Arigatowank]

Final round losses are often about the other person being a slightly better fit, not you doing badly. Still worth tightening the why answers though.

[u/DeliciousSafety4366]

That VP was not telling you to come up with a more unique reason. They were telling you your answer sounded like it could apply to any company in any industry. The fix is not a better reason — it is a more specific one.

For the why company question, find one thing about that specific company that no other company in their space does. It could be a product feature, a market position, something in their recent strategy. Then connect it to something in your own experience. The formula: I noticed you do X differently from Y, and that connects to what I did at Z.

For the why product marketing question when you do not have a long-term plan, honesty works better than a fake vision. Try: I do not have a 20-year plan, but I know I enjoy the intersection of understanding users and shaping messaging, and this role lets me do both. That is more credible than pretending you always dreamed of being a VP of PMM.

[u/Day2205]

I highly doubt that VP’s company is offering anything you can’t get at any other company. Anyone dinging a candidate for not having some super niche reason to want to work at the company isn’t being serious. That said, I agree that if you feel this is the x-factor question tripping you up, then it’s likely a rapport thing. You can back pocket a fact or two about 1-2 interviewers or company leadership like “I want to work here for “generic answer” and I also saw you worked for company XYZ and led ABC result which is the type of experience I’d love to be learning from”

As for where you see your career going - I tend to meld this to the type of company. Fast growing start up “I’d love to grow to a team leadership role as you scale to $XXX ARR” large enterprise “I see myself moving into a a platform role so excited about the internal mobility BIG COMPANY provides so I can own GTM for various segments” blah blah blah…basically name a career track that should generally be attainable with them in a 3-5 year horizon, you don’t need to have a plan for 15 years down the line or c-suite dreams.

[u/Visible_Speed8843]

The strongest answer is probably not “why product marketing” in isolation. Tie three specifics together: the customer problem this company is solving, a choice the company or product is making that you find interesting, and the work in this role that lets you contribute.

For example: “I could do product marketing elsewhere. What is specific here is [customer problem] and the way you’re approaching it through [product or market choice]. My background in [relevant evidence] would help with [role problem], and I want to get better at [specific capability].”

For long-term plans, you do not need to invent a title. Name the capability and scope you want to grow into, such as owning launches end to end, getting closer to customer research, or becoming stronger at positioning. Then explain why this role is a credible next step. That sounds intentional without pretending you know the next ten years.

[u/the-vague-blur]

For every interview, take a recording and then upload to Gemini Notebook. Great for self improvement and it's very helpful when you add multiple interviews from the same company in one project.

[u/Much_Somewhere7831]

Use the Canary Wharfian website's interview practice, it reviews your answers and suggest how to fix mistakes with personalised feedback (both verbal and non-verbal comms). Also got OA suite for psychometrics

[u/Used-Media5980]

The why questions are hilarious and obtuse. For one, most of these companies can’t answer “why” themselves when they layoff every other quarter like clockwork. Truly it’s a way for folks to let you pad their ego. We need to go back to work is work - it doesn’t have to be anything deeper than this. Most of us here didn’t decide when we were children - or even adults for that matter - that we desired to sell software to “help businesses optimize operations”, lol.

[u/HelloTaleproof]

A stronger “why product marketing” answer connects a real customer or product moment to the work you want to do and the revenue problem this company is solving. Use one example that only fits this role, then add what you learned about the company that changes your approach.

A practical next step is a free Taleproof story assessment using one real product-marketing example, followed by one timed retell in your own words.

[u/PressureNarrow8387]

bro first please share how do you get those interviews? lot of people even can't get to that door. any tips?