Scale · Hiring & Recruiting Reps

Generate Sales Interview Questions for an Agency

Generate behavioral interview questions specifically engineered to surface agency-sales DNA vs SaaS-sales DNA.

foundermanagerIntermediate⏱ 3-4 hours
When to use
Use when prepping for an interview loop and the questions you've reused for years feel generic. Especially useful for hiring managers who've made bad hires because their questions weren't actually agency-specific (they were generic SaaS-sales questions in disguise).
The prompt
You are a head of sales at a digital marketing agency who has hired 20+ reps and personally interviewed 200+. You know which questions actually surface signal and which ones reward rehearsed answers.
Agency: [AGENCY_NAME] — [SERVICES] | Role: [ROLE_TITLE] | Seniority: [SENIORITY] | Top risks I'm screening for: [TOP_RISKS] | Interview length: [INTERVIEW_LENGTH] | What good looks like at our agency: [WHAT_GOOD_LOOKS_LIKE]
Generate a complete interview question bank for the hiring manager interview of a [ROLE_TITLE] at our agency.

- No generic SaaS questions (no "sell me this pen," no "walk me through your sales process," no "MEDDIC qualification")
- Every question must test an agency-specific competency: retainer scoping, creative-comfort, scope-creep handling, founder/PM partnership, churn prevention
- Mix of: 5 behavioral STAR questions, 3 scenario questions, 2 probing follow-ups for common rehearsed answers, 2 questions that test for SaaS-DNA red flags
- Each question paired with: what a strong answer sounds like, what a weak answer sounds like, what a red-flag answer sounds like
- DEI-friendly; nothing that disadvantages candidates from non-traditional backgrounds

Group questions by category (Behavioral, Scenario, Probing, Red-Flag Tests). For each question include: Question | Why we ask | Strong answer signal | Weak answer signal | Red-flag answer signal.
Variables
  • [AGENCY_NAME] — Your agency's name
  • [SERVICES] — Service offering
  • [ROLE_TITLE] — Role you're hiring
  • [SENIORITY] — Junior/Mid/Senior
  • [TOP_RISKS] — What you're most worried about (e.g., scoping discipline, retention)
  • [INTERVIEW_LENGTH] — How many minutes the interview is
  • [WHAT_GOOD_LOOKS_LIKE] — What your best AE does that's hard to replicate
Example input
Agency: Northbeam Studio — paid social + creative | Role: Senior AE | Seniority: Senior | Top risks: candidates from SaaS who can't scope, candidates who can't talk creative | Interview: 60 min | What good: AE who reframes vague RFPs into 3-tier scopes and partners with strategists
Example output
**BEHAVIORAL (STAR)**

1. "Tell me about the last retainer you scoped from scratch. What did you push back on?"
 - Why: Tests scoping discipline (top risk)
 - Strong: Names a specific tradeoff, defends pricing, mentions co-creation with PM
 - Weak: Describes a quote, not a scope
 - Red flag: "I just send the SOW template"

2. "Describe the worst creative review you sat in. What did you do?"
 - Why: Tests creative-comfort
 - Strong: Stayed in the room, didn't defend, asked strategist's POV
 - Weak: Left it to the PM
 - Red flag: Sided with client against the work

**SCENARIO**

3. "Client says 'just match the competitor's price.' Walk me through your next 60 seconds."
 - Strong: Reframes to outcomes, asks about budget anchor
 - Red flag: Discounts immediately

**RED-FLAG TESTS (for SaaS-DNA)**

4. "What's the difference between selling a $50K ARR SaaS contract and a $50K/year retainer?"
 - Strong: Names ambiguity, scope, ongoing relationship
 - Red flag: "Basically the same"
Pro tips
  • Always include 1-2 probing questions for rehearsed answers — top candidates rehearse, you need to test depth
  • Ask the same question to every candidate in the loop — comparability beats creativity
  • Tag each question to your scorecard competency so debriefs map cleanly
Works with
ClaudeChatGPTGemini
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