Prepare well before you take the plunge

Sanjay Arora

You want to be ready for an important job interview and you don't want to embarrass yourself. So, what's the right way to get enough information about a company to make a good impression? Here's what should you be looking for?

Company website

Go to their website and find out about what products or services they offer. What do they sell and how do they make money? What is their niche? Do visit their 'careers' section. Make sure you're familiar with the job description, and look at the other jobs they're hiring for, too. This is the most important step in the process of exploring a company. It will give you plenty of information you can use in your answers, and knowing more about them will help you explain why you want to join them

Search Google News

This is a short step, but still very important before your interview. Do read some recent developments, look at the press releases to get a sense of what the company is working on. Find one thing they recently did and then ask them in the interview, "I read you recently did ___, can you tell me more about that?" They'll be impressed that you know the latest news about them. Even the interviewer may not know about it sometimes!

Social media accounts

Check out the company's social media profiles (I suggest LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook) to see recent news you might have missed on Google News. You might be able to see some pictures of employee functions and outings, etc. You'll get a sense of the company culture and the type of people who work there. This will give you ideas for questions that you can ask. For example: "I saw on Facebook you recently had a company event. I would like to know what else the company does to facilitate team building?"

Find out about competitors 

If you really want to impress the company with how much you researched them before the interview, go over to a site called similarweb.com. You'll see companies that are similar to the company where you're being interviewed. You will surely find a few key differences and similarities. This will help you show you understand the whole marketplace and industry, not just the company where you're being interviewed. If you do this, most hiring managers will be impressed. If you're interviewing in a new industry, this becomes even more important.

Research employees 

(on LinkedIn)

Do spend a couple of hours on LinkedIn to find about other employees of the company. Preferably, find people in the same group or role that you're being interviewed for. What type of background do they have? You might be able to discern a trend of the kind of person the company likes to hire.

LinkedIn isn't just a great job research resource; it is also a powerful research tool. If you don't already have an account that's active and up to date, you should make one.

Research the hiring manager

You can also use LinkedIn to research the hiring manager. This is a great way to prepare for your interview. You might see something you have in common with them. Even if there isn't much in common, you'll still know more about them than most candidates going in for the interview, which will make it easier to bond and build rapport.

Look up the company 

on YouTube

You can also look for the company on YouTube. Do a quick search and see if they have an account. More and more companies are on YouTube now, so this is a worthwhile step in terms of how to research a company thoroughly before you talk to them. You might also be able to have a virtual tour of the facility in a video which will make you more comfortable when you arrive for the interview. You'll feel like you've been there before.

Here is the checklist:

Who is the CEO?

When/why was the company founded?

Do they have multiple locations?

How do they make money? What do they sell?

Why do their customers choose them?

How are they different from their competitors?

Interviewers are particularly impressed when they see that you have taken pains to conduct your research thoroughly and you ask informed, intelligent questions. It not only shows that you are serious about your career but also demonstrates that you are less likely to just take any job just because you need it.

— The writer is CEO and 

Chief Mentor, Maven