Tips to Answering “How Did You Hear About This Position?”

“How did you hear about this position?” can be an expected question during the interview process. The interview panel is looking for the right fit for the role, and the questions follow. They need to check whether you can perform your role, associated responsibilities, and other vital aspects. 

To achieve the best, you must be prepared beforehand and thoroughly. The question is common, but if you want to win the race, you must come up with a unique answer that is strong enough to throw an accurate impression on the people sitting as panelists. 

Different Versions of the Question

Your hiring managers don’t need to ask you this question directly. There are other forms as well. You need to understand it and act accordingly. So, what are the other probable forms?

• How did you hear about this job?
• How did you find this opportunity?
• How did you reach us?
• How did you come to know about this position?
• How did you find out about this vacant role?

The forms mentioned above are a few of the most common ways to interrogate you with some context and meaning. 

Understand The Question First!

What is the intelligent approach to crack the question? How did you hear about this position? You must start with understanding the idea behind the question. If you get to know what is inside your interviewer’s mind, it will not only be far easier to answer, but you can respond to them with the correct outlook.

Out of curiosity: It is the most straightforward reason! They want to know the reference or the connection that helps you reach them.

To know if you have any internal connections with the company or its employers: It can help them assess your interior or personal relationships with the company’s employers. There can be a particular person who has told you about this vacancy; you can let them know. Your interviewers may ask them about your skills and characteristics. It can give you a competitive edge.

Your motivation behind reaching this opportunity: What is the motivational source behind coming to this interview? It may be the work ethics of the workplace or the success stories of the business. Though it is a secondary reason for asking the question, you can also curate your answer with this idea.

Apart from these pointers, as mentioned earlier, they want to assess your personality and professionalism, including communication and other soft skills, with every question, including this particular one. Be organized!

How to Answer: How Did You Hear About This Position?

Which is the most appropriate way to answer this question? Replying to the question is crucial, but preparation is even more critical. You can never grab the chance to impress them without having the proper plan of action in your mind.

It is not a hit-or-miss shot but a step-by-step procedure. So, what are the necessary steps? Let’s dig into them one after one. 

• Jot Down and Practice

Do not just prepare in your mind. You need to be precise and confident. Make the correct strategy and work upon it as ladder steps. Note down and practice. You can prepare notes on the interview behavior, skills, possible answers, etc. Make your practice deep, especially if you are a fresher. The poorly articulated response can give straight adverse effects. 

• Work on Your Body Language and Excitement

Spread positivity! While giving interviews, be precise and thoughtful. Do not start saying anything randomly, even if it is a fact. Curate your response in a manner that doesn’t raise a question. Learn the gestures of the interview procedures. Also, be respectful and positive. You can try keeping a good smile and showing enthusiasm. It can give the impression that you’re excited to join them. 

• Be Meticulous

It is imperative to be precise and honest. You must not exaggerate your response in any way. Tell them the exact reference that has landed you in front of them. In addition, you must add why you considered this specific opportunity out of others. A pinch of detailed explanation will help you stand out. 

• Avoid Vaguing

We encourage you to be specific, but that doesn’t mean you should give a one-word answer and move ahead. It will not work at all. You must start by giving the reference a bit of detail, explaining why you like to grab this opportunity. Furthermore, avoid getting too personal while mentioning the connection. 

For example, do not start explaining your relationship with the referrer. They may be your friend or a relative. Just drop the name and mention the relation. Do not dive down into details. 

• Don’t Give One Word Response.

It is not a good idea to give a one-word answer to any of your interview questions, including this one. If you choose to respond with a word only, it seems like you’re not interested or maybe lying. It can make your impression as a less knowledgeable or a low confident employee, and employers are not looking for such candidates. They are looking for a candidate who is a complete package, and good communication plays an integral role. 

• Be Genuine

Whatever your source is, be genuine and extremely honest with your answer. We emphasize truthfulness because they will eventually find the truth, and you will lose your image. If you sincerely want to work with them, you must have the dedication and passion for your work.

• Show Eagerness, Not Desperation

While adding to the job source, you must be informative and showcase your eagerness to work. Doing a little research about the company before going for the interview is imperative. It raises the interests of the hiring manager in your candidature if you are well-versed with the company and the offered job role. 

At the same time, avoid desperation. There is a fine line between eagerness and desperation, and you need to be intelligent to understand the difference.

• Follow The STAR Method

The most used and intelligent technique to crack any question is accurate, the STAR technique. It stands for Situation, Task, Action, and Result. You must use this technique, especially answering questions that are primarily competency-focused. Many high-level performers have analyzed and used this technique and suggested the same. 

Simply start by describing the context, and explain your role or task in the specific situation. Act accordingly and explain the result. 

Potential Reasons for The Interview Question, How Did You Hear About This Position?”

OK, there are some probable reasons that you can mention while answering the question, “How did you hear about this position?” Let us discuss some potential reasons:

• A recruiter contacted you regarding the open job opportunity. You cleared the telephonic round and ended up in front of them.
• It is possible that you got to know about this opportunity through a friend or a former colleague. You can mention how you were open to working, and they contacted you.
• You may have visited their website for a service or another reason and ended up with the “Career” page. You have found the offer relevant and simply applied for it.
• You reached them through an advertisement on any job portal and found it relevant.
• The company is popularly known, and you purposely visited their Career page to apply.
• You were actively looking for a job, have applied on the different job portals, and got a revert from the company’s recruiter.

You can mention any possible responses as per your convenience and situation. Be careful while making your answer. Work on it well and give a clear-cut reply.

Do Not Go With The Following Words

• “I don’t remember.” It is a big NO-NO thing to say in your interview. It will make things harder for you and represents that you are not aware of yourself or taking the opportunity seriously.
  
• “I learned about this opportunity through my uncle’s friend.” It sounds unprofessional. You can say just a “relative” or a “known” instead of elaborating it.
  
• “A job portal.” It is a one-word answer that is not an appreciated idea. You must mention the name of the portal and one or two lines regarding the source.

Instead of saying negative words, choose to be precise and move ahead. 

We have discussed every possible and essential aspect of answering the interview question, “How did you hear about us?”. We hope that it helps you in the best possible way. It is the time to go through some examples:

• I was actively looking for a job change as a junior engineer position and updated my resume on several job portals. After a few days, I got a call from your company’s recruiter. She sent me the job description. I checked it, and it clicked me instantly. KRAs were very well drafted to give a clear picture of the responsibilities. I found it well-suited as per my expertise and was glad to notice that I am eligible in terms of qualifications and skills, both, and then I applied for this position.
  
• As a digital marketer, I was always keen to work with this company, being a leading and trending name in the digital media industry. Inspired by your work culture and excellent results, I was waiting for the opportunity. I used to visit your website often. A few days back, I got lucky to have vacancies for a digital marketer and applied within no time. I am a detailed-oriented professional who loves being creative to drive good SEO results. I am sure this opportunity will allow me to showcase my talent and newly-learned skills and give me the right direction.
  
• Being an HR recruiter, I am highly active in my professional life and have excellent connectivity with human resource executives and professionals. A few days back, I saw a job posting on one of the social media portals, and I got connected with it in a minute. The job description was well described, encouraging me to apply. The JD wanted an employee with good communication skills, and All the job responsibilities matched my current skill set. I tried my luck, and I am sitting in front of you.
  
• Maria Hathway, a senior HR in my network, told me about this opportunity in your organization, though she is not a part of it. We are good friends and graduated from the same university, and that’s how I share a nice equation with her. She is well aware of my expertise and skillset. Apart from introducing me to this opportunity, she also encouraged me to apply as I was the right fit for the job role, as she said. I have relevant experience as a cloud developer with the right skills, including API to general programming, scripting, scaling, and networking. That’s how I decided to apply and landed up here.

Additional Read: Why Should We Hire You?