Price Benowitz Interview Questions
& Process

This company is rapidly growing, expanding from 16 to over 50 employees in its locations. My first interviewer spent about 20 minutes telling stories before asking any questions. He recounted how he negotiated with a cable company, delaying payment for three months and eventually getting a free sports package by talking to the CEO. Then he told another story about buying a BBQ grill, where he negotiated the price down from $380 to $240 by only offering the amount of cash he had. This made me uncomfortable, as it felt like he took advantage of people's time. This was after an hour-long metro ride with rail construction. During my response to a question, he impatiently checked his watch and stated he was the owner of a multi-million dollar company. I learned the Administrative Assistant role pays $11-$13 per hour. The company has micromanagement but offers opportunities to branch into areas like photography, IT, office administration, marketing, and paralegal work. The second interviewer was better. I asked about parking, and she said it's horrendous. She also mentioned that the company has a nice, youthful group of interesting people. However, the overall office atmosphere felt wrong. I saw a lawyer drop folders on a secretary's desk without explanation. She did offer me water. The vibe felt off, and it seems like you need to stand up for yourself even when part of a team.

I applied for a legal intake role via Craigslist. About two days later, I got a call and went to their main office in DC for an interview. I met with Bryan, a Senior Client Manager, who asked me some really general interview questions in a big conference room. The owner stopped by, made some jokes about my past bike shop experience, and said hello. The interview felt pretty relaxed; they were upfront about what they were looking for in a candidate, and it seemed to align with my personality. Afterward, I was shown to the client management team area, where about six people were working. Seeing one person in a baseball cap and button-up shirt confirmed my impression of a relaxed environment. The next day, I received a call offering me a paid training day to see if I was interested, emphasizing a required two-year commitment and giving me a chance to experience the job firsthand. I thought this was a great approach, like a test drive. The training day, which I did on a Saturday, went really well. On Monday, HR called to offer me the job, and we then negotiated the contract. I think the hiring process overall is pretty solid.

I went through 3 interviews that spanned 2 weeks. The first was a casual chat with 3 people. Then I had another interview with the team I would be working with, which showed me more about how that part of the firm works. The last interview was pretty strange; the interviewers were on their phones a lot and seemed uninterested, making it an uncomfortable situation. But the first two interviews were good enough that I'm happy I got to meet the firm's employees.

I was first contacted for a quick phone screening and then had a Skype interview the following week. The posting I applied to didn't mention SEO at all, so I was surprised that the interview heavily focused on SEO skills rather than the editorial skills that were highlighted in the original post. The recruiter was very professional and managed the process well, though I didn't hear back after the interview.