Can you imagine asking an architect to show you a draft of a design for a house built to your specifications so you can see if you’d like to work with them? Or asking a doctor to conduct a small surgery for free before you commit to paying them for a more complex procedure?
Of course not!
Yet I kept seeing posts on LinkedIn about marketing hiring managers requesting extensive unpaid projects and presentations from job candidates and then not hiring them (or anyone, for that matter).
I was curious if this was just a perception being fed by the algorithm my feed had created. So, I reached out to a dozen recent marketing job seekers to find out what their experiences have been like over the past few months. Here’s what they shared, both on the record and anonymously.
Are All Companies Requesting Free Work from Marketing Job Applicants?
“None of the companies I interviewed with required me to create any new content or strategic plans,” said Ameya Deshmukh. The same was true for Ben Rome, but with a twist, “That’s because I avoided any posting that indicated there would be some kind of test (outside of a writing test),” he said. “My time is valuable, and they need to pay for it if they want access to my creative content side.”
In contrast, almost every role marketer Amy Higgins applied for required a project or pre-work. “Almost all of the companies required homework as part of the interview process,” she said. “The ones that didn’t were usually early-stage startups (series A or B). The type of homework ranged from ‘edit this blog post’ to ‘give us a full content strategy on X.’”
I talked to multiple other job seekers who had to do small projects for the first round of interviews. Others had to make detailed strategic plans to present in late-stage interviews.
All the candidates understood that the hiring managers want to make sure the new hire is a good fit for the job. But, many applicants felt some of the requests went too far.
When Does Skills-Testing Become Requesting Free Work?
In my in-house and fractional content leader roles, I’ve conducted writing and editing tests for my final job candidates. My favorite editing test is asking for edits to a really terrible first draft of something we’ve published. I have the candidate provide specific edits for correctness combined with feedback on how to make it a better piece. This gives me a sense of their editing skills, their editorial process, and their ability to provide constructive feedback.
In situations where the candidate didn’t have the type of writing samples we wanted to see to make our decision, I tried to come up with easy requests. For example, I’d provide a press release and ask them to turn it into a blog post. The important factor I always communicated with this kind of test was that we weren’t going to use the output anywhere.
When my budget has allowed it, I’ve commissioned paid content from top job candidates. Similarly, I’ve had clients hire marketers as consultants or freelancers before hiring them for full-time jobs. In both these scenarios, the candidate feels valued and treated fairly.
When The Requests Overstep
In contrast, several job seekers shared some pretty big unpaid asks:
- A comprehensive content strategy targeting four new enterprise personas they planned to market to in the next year
- A multimedia communications campaign channel strategy in support of a new initiative they’d just announced through a press release
- A social media strategy deck that improved upon their current efforts and expanded their reach
Yes, these are great projects to understand a content leader’s approach to content strategy. But they are also exactly the type of content strategy consulting engagements I do. Depending upon the scope and existing research, they start at 10 hours of work and can easily become 40 hours or more, as one candidate shared.
How Job Applicants Really Feel About The Free Work Requests
“Throughout my career, most of these requests were pretty reasonable, and I understood that the hiring manager/team wanted to get some insight into my thought process,” said Evelyn Chea. “For example, one hiring manager asked me to write a whitepaper on whatever topic I chose because I didn’t have any long-form writing samples in my portfolio at that time. She hired me.” [Editor’s note: in full transparency, I was that hiring manager. And Evelyn was an AMAZING hire I couldn’t have made the case for without that writing sample.]
Unfortunately, not all requests are as well-received. The candidate who was asked to create the detailed content strategy mentioned above said, “I understand making a bad hire is costly; however, the companies with ridiculous asks and long interview rounds should really rethink whether they’re driving away the best talent. I suspect they are in most cases.”
The candidate who thought they nailed the interview with their communications campaign shared, “After that, the organization ghosted me, and I saw some of my strategy being used in the next few months. Needless to say, I was incensed and vowed never to accept those requests again.”
Unfortunately, they weren’t the only candidate who was ghosted after a significant project. Another marketer said, “After one test, I was ghosted. That was a bad experience, but was probably ultimately revealing of the value this company placed on content marketing.”
Another candidate noted not minding tests in theory, with one exception, “I was only really upset about one because I felt used.”
For many candidates, requests for free work are even now seen as indicators that a company may not be serious about the role. “I’ve since learned to steer clear of any companies that have such a requirement because it’s likely a red flag—a symptom of toxic exec leadership or exec leadership who really don’t know what they’re looking for.”
Those companies noting they expect unpaid work in their job listings may weed out candidates who’d be great fits for the role. While other companies who aren’t upfront about their expectations may lose late-stage candidates who were great potential hires. It’s critical that companies find a better middle ground.
What Are The Best Ways for Companies to Assess Marketing Applicant Skills Other Than Requesting Free Work?
As content marketing leaders, these candidates were all seeking out jobs where they, too, would need to assess content marketing skills. They had a number of solid ideas potential employers could borrow to evaluate candidates’ content marketing strategy skills without making them feel taken advantage of.
“I had one company request for me to present—at a panel interview—a program that I was very proud of doing, a case study really,” said Higgins. “I found this very helpful for me to showcase my expertise while giving them the opportunity to ask questions. BONUS too… I could use that deck as a case study for other potential employers, or a talk at a networking event.”
“When I interviewed for my current role, the CMO booked an hour-long deep dive call with me,” said Deshmukh. “He asked me to prepare a presentation of my best work, and we interrogated it together to uncover my thought process and approach to marketing. I think this is a great way to interview a marketing candidate for a role.”
How to Make the Most of Your Content Marketing Hiring Process
“Asking for an assignment should convey serious intention on the part of the employer,” said Yariv Rabinovitch. “It’s a lot of work and should not be requested casually.” He adds that an assignment has the opportunity to give the potential employee insight into the role of content within the company. “I came across a lot of job listings where the content marketing strategist was also expected to execute with minimal resources. An assignment that took resources into consideration could help set expectations.”
Ideally, hiring managers will use the assignment as a dialogue starter, not just an item to check off your hiring process checklist. “If you ask for homework, ALWAYS give feedback,” Higgins said. “It’s disheartening to deliver hours worth of work with only a ‘thank you, no thank you’ or a ‘thank you, let’s schedule your next interview.'”
Perhaps, instead of being prescriptive about assigning projects to prospective content marketing leaders, we’d be better off asking them to share a highlights reel of the work they’re most proud of, or anonymized examples of the plans they’ve devised. As marketers, these are things we should proactively be creating and sharing anyhow!
Or, as Deshmukh said, “When you’re interviewing for a marketing role, you need to remember that you’re a marketer and your product, in this case, is yourself. Taking the time to market yourself effectively by creating content showcasing your thinking and skills is something every marketer should be doing.”
He goes on to note that while candidates shouldn’t have to do free work for the jobs they are interviewing for, expecting to get hired off a resume alone isn’t realistic either. “Especially for a content role, you need to have a portfolio of relevant work that’s appropriate to the seniority level of the role you’re applying for. As you gain experience, the documentation you provide in your portfolio should showcase strategic planning and your project management process in addition to examples of content you’ve created.”
How has your organization found the balance between assessing candidate skills and driving away potential new hires by asking for too much free work? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments.
