People hire those they know, like, and trust. This doesn’t mean you have to know someone before you walk into an interview. But there are things you can (and should) do beforehand to put yourself on the call-back list.
One of the best interview tips I give my clients is insight into what I call the know, like and trust (KLT) factor
It simply means that employers hire people they
know, like, and trust.
The good news is you don’t have to only interview with people you’ve known for years to take advantage of this truth. You can actually build this factor into your job search strategy.
There are several ways of doing this, but the one I would like to outline here is research.
Research is a critical component of finding your dream job.
The first aim of research is to find a company (or companies) that you would be excited to work with.
Once you have found a company that seems like a good fit for you, the research focus will be on that company, and more specifically on the department or position you are interested in.
Good research provides you with a means to present yourself as a perfect fit for the position.
Zooming your research in one more notch is the point where you can potentially build the KLT factor. This is thanks to social media.
Once you know the name of your interviewer, a good place to start is their LinkedIn profile. Learn a little about their job history. At the bottom of the LinkedIn profile, there is a section on personal interests.
This is where the juice is, so to speak.
If you find they enjoy some of the same things you do, bingo!
You have a point of connection.
Now you can, at an appropriate point in the interview, mention that you share similar interests. It’s a great way to place a foundational brick in the KLT structure. Now, your interviewer has a personal reason to remember you!
