The first stage was applying with my CV and a cover letter online. Two days later, I was contacted via email and asked to complete a digital interview. This was done through Hirevue, which comprises a set of questions shown one-by-one on your screen. You film your answer to each question - it gives you a time limit - and submit it, then move on to the next one. I had roughly 7 questions, which were all very easy to answer. I actually stressed out about this far more than I needed to; the practice questions available on Hirevue are a lot harder than the questions in the actual interview! It did feel awkward recording my answers sitting alone in my kitchen, but it wasn't difficult. After that, I was invited to the next stage, which was an interview with two account managers at their London Bridge office. This was really informal and relaxed, and they try to help you feel as comfortable as possible. They asked me about why I wanted to go into PPC specifically, as opposed to other digital marketing specialisms, and some background questions about my education. There was a short logic assessment task, in which they wanted me to show my working and talk them through what I was doing on paper. For fairness I won't disclose the details of the logic task, but I think mostly they want to see how you work through a problem anyway. My mental maths was laughably bad, but it wasn't an issue and we worked through it. Subsequently, I was contacted later that afternoon to invite me to the final stage. This was scheduled for five days after the last interview, to give me ample time to prepare a presentation. I was asked to design a mock PPC campaign and present it to two senior account managers. I found this task actually really fun, and it gave me a lot of scope to try to impress them with my knowledge of PPC and ad campaigns. The presentation went really well, and afterwards they went back through it with me to ask further questions. There was one point at which it became very clear that I'd made quite a big mistake with my ad groups, and it took me ages to figure out what they wanted me to realise. I felt like a fish out of water, trying to understand what it was that I should have done, but they were extremely patient with me and took me through it slowly. When I finally got it, we moved on swiftly so that I couldn't dwell on the mistake. Once we'd finished going through the presentation, they asked me more about my motivations for applying and what I enjoyed most during my degree - things that were easy for me to talk about. I also got a chance to ask them some questions I had about the company and to address a concern I'd had earlier on in the interview process. They were very easy to talk to, which was such a relief, as I'd read other reviews which said they found the final stage very challenging. Just over a week later, I was offered the job, and given a short window to respond. I accepted the offer, and my start date is later this year. Overall the process was relatively easy, so my advice to future candidates is to relax. If you really know your stuff about PPC and you really want this job, you have every chance of success. The people are simply lovely, and they will do everything to ensure you feel comfortable and well-treated throughout the process.
