FT recruiting is in full swing, which means it's the season for lots of phone calls, emails, and info sessions. As a recruiter in management consulting (MBB), I've interacted with a lot of candidates, and seen a lot of good and bad things. Here are a few general tips to help your conversations with recruiters go smoother and help you make a better, lasting impression.
Be confident in your body language and voice.
This is extremely important. A candidate who is visibly and audibly confident will strike me as much serious than a candidate who is slouching, or saying "umm" a lot, or just looks plain scared. This is true even for email and phone conversations; recruiters can distinguish the confident candidates from the scared ones. However, don't overdo it and overpower the recruiter -- that is a definite turn-off for the recruiter and will not play well to your favor.
Have a list of questions and comments in the back of your mind, and use it when appropriate.
I know this seems very obvious, but it's crucial. I've had too many conversations with candidate where I finish answering a question, and there's an awkward silence when I wait for the candidate to respond or ask another question. Remember, it's your job to direct the conversation. The recruiter is there to answer questions that you have, not give you a presentation or a guided tour -- so you need to be prepared to fill all the gaps in the conversation and make it seamless.
Play to your strengths and market your unique brand.
Recruiters talk to so many candidates that it's easy to forget most of them. You need to emphasize something about yourself that will stand out. Everyone has something interesting that can be marketed as that individual's "brand" -- it could be a cool project you worked on during an internship, or a unique hobby, or maybe something in common with the recruiter. Be sure to talk enough about it so that the recruiter remembers you, but not so much that he or she is going to think "oh god, this kid" next time you talk.
At the end of the conversation, ask if you can contact the recruiter for future questions.
The end of the conversation is perhaps one of the most important parts, because it is the last thing the recruiter will remember about you. Asking permission to contact the recruiter for questions you may have down the road will do two good things: 1.) it will prompt the recruiter to give his or her contact info, and 2.) it will demonstrate that you are serious about the job and you will be actively thinking about it. This is a very good sign for recruiters.
These are just a few of the tips I could think of. Let me know if you have any questions, and good luck out there!
