Advice to Prospective Interviewees

I am a second year Analyst at an EB in their M&A group. I've interviewed >100 prospective bankers during my time and have a few pieces of advice; very simple, but seemingly overlooked by many interviewees. 

Why Banking?

The most common answer I receive: I want to work in a fast paced environment on interesting projects with smart people. 

In my opinion, this is a cop out answer and tells me absolutely nothing about you as a candidate. The best answer to this question is typically some form of "I fucking love finance. I love banking and want to do deals." This answer tells me you'll have no problem working late nights, will become a good bullpen member, and have a thirst to learn. 

Why our bank? 

Common Answer: Bank X has a great reputation and has worked on these 2 big deals that everyone knows.  

I'm asking this question because it matters - Why us? I don't just want a candidate that wants to break into banking at any cost. I want a quality candidate that knows which banks are interesting to them for supportable reasons. Also, being able to reference information SPECIFIC to the group you're interviewing for is a huge plus. 

Last thing: The one characteristic, outside of a generally nice person with a positive personality, I look for in candidates is drive. In the interview, find ways to convey to the interviewer that you are a driven individual, as these personalities typically do well in banking.