So you’re excellent at your profession, have extensive experience, and a fantastic Resume. This alone will not get you past the difficult eCommerce interview process and into that ideal digital marketing position (but it is a good start).

You must be able to effectively explain your experience and skill to a potential employer – the only opportunity to do so is during an interview, which often lasts an hour. It’s difficult to come across as well as you’d like in such a short period of time, and most individuals don’t get much experience.

eCommerce is an industry that is rapidly expanding. There is a need to hire into the industry as competition grows and responds to changes swiftly.

You may not have prior experience in the business, but having a general idea of what is going on and some professional interview tactics will help you stand out in an eCommerce job interview. Join a thriving sector and explore where your career can go.

How to Prepare for an eCommerce Interview?

The good news is that you can boost your chances of success by doing a number of things both before and during the interview.

• Research, research, and more research! You’d be shocked how many individuals simply do not take the time to properly prepare, and by doing some simple research, you’re already ahead of your competition.

Here is an example.

“We once had someone interview for the position of Director of Multi-channel for a well-known store. He shopped online for various products the week before the interview, evaluating the entire buying experience as he went. He ordered on his phone, then called customer care to alter the purchase and delivery address. He then went back to his local high street store and asked to exchange one of the products for a different size. Essentially, he examined as much of the customer experience as possible, revealing both the strengths and limitations of that multi-channel firm. This impressed the interview panel and gave them enough to speak about – it was no surprise that he won the job.”

Research the company

• Spend some time on the website and become thoroughly acquainted with it. Try it, evaluate their ecommerce and digital marketing operations, and identify what you like and what may be improved.
• Can you visit a place, call customer support, or look at any apps/mobile sites they may have if they are multi-channel?
• Who is the company’s owner? Is there a sister organization? If they are a public corporation, what is the share price and what has been the recent trend? If they have VC funding, who is it from and when was it made?
• Who’s the CEO and what’s their background? Who else works in the company that you can research?
• Who’s interviewing you? Can you find out about them online, career history, press quotes?
• What other ecommerce and digital marketing jobs are they advertising on their website?
• What are people saying about the company in the social media space?
• Have you read the last few press releases or media stories?

Other Preparations

Read through your CV: When was the last time you read your own curriculum vitae? Study it thoroughly and make sure you have a slew of compelling examples of your most successful projects ready to go. Prepare some strong narratives that can be used to answer frequent ecommerce recruitment questions and emphasize your achievements – it’s easier to conceive of these before the interview than it is to think of them on the fly.

Read Also: How Can I Grow my eCommerce Business With Digital Marketing?

Know your numbers: Check your analytics dashboard before going to the interview if you manage an ecommerce website. Additionally, make sure you have historical facts and numbers in your head so you can discuss things like sales growth over time, conversion increases, email open rates for campaigns, and so on. In a commercial setting, nothing talks louder than numbers; by knowing what yours are and how you have improved them, you will inspire genuine confidence in your skills.

Dress to impress: Being well-dressed and smart will make you look and feel the part. You want your interviewer to be focused on you and not distracted by your appearance. As a general guideline, it’s better to be wiser than the person conducting the interview than the other way around, and avoid anything overly distracting – if in doubt, go smart.

To help you prepare and practice for your interview, here are 10 e-commerce interview questions and sample answers:

1. Share a professional challenge you encountered and how you handled it.

This question may be asked by an interviewer to learn more about your problem-solving abilities. Normally, they want to know how you deal with problems and how quickly you identify answers. When responding, it’s critical to provide a particular example from your previous experiences to demonstrate how you dealt with a real-world situation.

• Example: “I discovered that my consumers were not always returning for more purchases. I wasn’t using consumer feedback surveys at the time, which made determining the cause more difficult. As a result, I created a survey for customers to complete after receiving their product. Using this method assisted me in identifying the problem: my website was not user pleasant. I used the input to improve the navigation of my e-commerce site.”

2. Tell us about accomplishments you’re proud of from your e-commerce experiences.

Interviewers may ask you to discuss your previous achievements. These could be formal honors and prizes, or measurable results that you are proud of. Depending on your personal experiences, the number of successes you mention may vary.

• Example: “With my e-commerce experiences, I’m particularly proud of two key triumphs. The first was when I used pay-per-click advertising campaigns to boost the consumer base of my online store by 20%. The second time I worked on an e-commerce site for a client, I increased their repeat customer rate by 18%.”

3. How do you typically use e-commerce technologies?

During an interview, you may be asked about the e-commerce technology you utilize the most. This enables your interviewer to comprehend how you employ specific tools to your advantage. They may also want to know if you use these tools in the same way that their organization does. You can provide many instances of how you typically employ e-commerce technologies in response to this question.

• Example: “Typically, I use e-commerce technology to ensure that the sites I manage are mobile-friendly. They are also used for online transactions and website maintenance. I’ve discovered that employing these technologies helps me provide better shopping experiences to my customers.”

4. What do you believe are the core features of strong e-commerce platforms?

If the interviewer is interested in learning about your viewpoints, you may be asked opinion-based questions. They may want to learn more about your point of view to see if it resonates with the company’s e-commerce ideals. While answering this question, you might highlight each aspect and provide a brief explanation of why you think it is significant.

• Example: “I feel that strong e-commerce platforms have several key characteristics. The first is website branding and usability, which ensures that the site is immediately identified with a firm brand and that customers can navigate it quickly. User engagement is also vital since customers are more likely to return to e-commerce sites that provide interesting experiences. Another critical fundamental component is online security, which protects client transactions and creates a solid link between an organization’s online and physical shop experiences.”

5. Explain the benefits you see in e-commerce versus traditional retail stores.

To assess your ability to advocate for e-commerce merchandising, an interviewer may ask you to explain the benefits you see in e-commerce. This is especially significant if the company is offering e-commerce for the first time. Consider discussing and describing many benefits to demonstrate your advanced understanding of the significance of e-commerce.

• Example: “One of the big benefits I see in e-commerce is the possibility for corporations to save money. E-commerce provides numerous chances for this, such as the fact that businesses do not need to rent physical space or pay for in-store displays. Another advantage I see is that businesses can sell their products more simply without regard to geographical limits. If a corporation had a physical store, it might exclusively sell to people in that area. If the corporation, on the other hand, has an e-commerce store, it can theoretically sell to everyone in the globe.”

6. Is your e-commerce experience in business to consumer, business to business or both?

Understanding whether your e-commerce experiences have been for businesses to consumers, businesses to businesses, or both can help interviewers determine whether your experience fits the type of sales that their company makes. If you have only worked in one of these categories of e-commerce, explain how that experience can be applied to the other. This can assist you in communicating transferable components of your experiences.

• Example: “My current e-commerce experience is entirely business-to-consumer. But, I am confident that the abilities I have acquired will help me flourish in business-to-business e-commerce environments. For example, I can apply my expertise of customer experience to deliver meaningful e-commerce experiences to organizations who do online business with other companies.”

7. What do you typically measure when managing e-commerce operations?

You may need to share the many success measures you employ while managing e-commerce operations. This can demonstrate to your interviewer how you define success and use analytics to your benefit. You may go over specific metrics that you’ve used.

• Example: “When managing e-commerce operations, I often track website traffic, page views, and transactions. This, I’ve discovered, can provide useful insights regarding customer interactions with the site. I also look at where customers are when they reach the site and how much time they spend on each page while on the e-commerce site.”

8. How do you stay up to date with current e-commerce trends?

An interviewer may want to know where you get your industry information. They may use this question to compare your sources to theirs or to gauge your enthusiasm for the industry. To respond to this question, provide many examples of sources you cite.

Read Also: How do I Register my eCommerce Business?

• Example: “I attempt to stay current by reading articles and blogs about new techniques or developing best practices. I also look at what competitors are doing and how their customers are reacting. This assists me in determining how my brands can imitate and perfect what competitors are attempting to do. In order to learn from other industry specialists, I occasionally attend e-commerce conferences and seminars.”

9. How might you market to existing customers to encourage them to purchase again?

Your interviewer may be interested in how you re-target existing customers. This is especially important if they are looking for someone to increase customer retention. You may include particular examples of strategies and tactics that you have used or could employ.

• Example: “When marketing to existing consumers, I strive to gather information to discover where I can contact them the most effectively. I’m specifically referring to metrics that show where each person came from and their location. Then I use this information to decide where to buy marketing ads, whether online or through social media platforms.”

10. How do you usually monitor customer experiences?

This question may be asked by the interviewer to better understand your abilities to identify areas where e-commerce improvements may be required. They might be interested in responses pertaining to analytics or consumer feedback forms. If you have a specific method for monitoring client experiences, please explain it in your response.

• Example: “Typically, I track customer experiences by gathering feedback on a regular basis. When a consumer makes a purchase, I include a survey link in their automatic confirmation email, asking them to provide feedback on their experience. I also like to include another survey link in their automatic delivery email to ensure I’m collecting feedback at various phases of their customer experience.”

These pointers will assist you during an eCommerce job interview. This industry is rapidly expanding, therefore now is an excellent moment to join and advance within it. Several changes occur quickly, therefore being able to adapt to change and challenges will keep you satisfied in this industry. There’s so much to learn and so much to do in it.