How would you describe your ideal brand ambassador? Engaging? Knowledgeable?Passionate? Us too. We all agree that it’s critical the person representing your brand in face-to-face interactions embodies your brand’s personality. But how can you find this unicorn? It’s all about asking the right questions.

Not sure what to ask? Try these!

1. What is something you are passionate about? If your candidate doesn’t light up when they answer this question…they never will. And if they can’t muster the energy to tell you about one of the things they are most passionate about, how will they be able to share their passion for your brand with consumers? The answer is – they won’t. And your experiential marketing events will be uninspiring, even with the best product and display.

As the candidate is answering the question, ask yourself, “Do I believe their passion?” Pay attention to their body language here. Do their words and their delivery match? Do you find yourself wanting to learn more about the story, topic, or cause they are telling you about? If so, your consumers will probably feel the same way about this brand ambassador when they talk about your brand. If you feel genuine enthusiasm here, your candidate may be able to share a similar enthusiasm about your product with consumers.

2. What do you think makes a good demo/experiential marketing campaign? There are a lot of “right” answers here. Some people will focus on finding products they align with personally. They feel their personal passion will make the event successful. Good answer. Some will focus on building strong connections with consumers. To them, it’s all about getting to know the consumer and creating a meaningful connection between their needs and your product. Another great answer. Others will focus on effective planning and communication. If the event is well-organized and everyone is clear on their roles, an experiential marketing event will be successful. We agree!

But there are also some red flags that can come up in the candidate’s answer. If you don’t know what to watch out for here, you may miss these. You don’t want a candidate who focuses on high-dollar giveaways if your brand isn’t offering that. Or what if you’re doing product sampling at a grocery retailer, and they say it takes a big flashy set-up to build a successful demo program? Hmmm…they might not be the right fit.

Some candidates will say they don’t really know. If this person is representing you at an event, especially if they are working solo, you want them to have an idea of how to make the activation successful.

3. What do you know about the product you will be working with? You may re-word this question to be a little more on-brand for you. For example, “Tell me about your experience with kombucha.” Or “We are a running brand. You mentioned you are a runner. Tell me a little bit about your running life.”

Basically, you are trying to cut through the half-truths on their resume. They may have said they LOVE kombucha but didn’t realize it was fermented or had probiotics…and
actually, now that they think about it, they just tried it once. Cut through the façade and find out how knowledgeable they really are about your product/service.

If you are a brand-new product or service, you may not expect them to know much
about your brand, or category. You can still use this question to find out if they are going to connect with your target consumer. Let’s say you’re a new app designed for moms. You can ask the person how they would use the app. If they immediately “get it,” they may be a good fit for your activation.

We know finding people can be tough. But, trust us, it’s better to have no one than the wrong person. We hope these questions help you find passionate, knowledgeable, engaging brand ambassadors!

What are your go-to interview questions?