The Muse Sales Development Representative Interview Questions
& Process

It was a 3 round process. First, an interview with HR. Second, an interview with a current SDR for culture fit and then the manager. For this round, I had to prepare a sales email and do a role-play sales call during the interview. Lastly, a final round with 6 people from the company. They gave me their LinkedIn bios beforehand and I found out who each person was. It was mostly behavioral.

I applied online and heard back from HR, Amanda, who was really great and helpful. She set up an initial call that was more like a casual chat about my background, why I was interested in The Muse, and the SDR role. After that, I got an email pretty quickly to interview with the VP of Sales. I was given some reading material beforehand. That interview lasted about 45 minutes, and I wasn't sure where I stood afterward. Then, a few hours later, I was asked to do a phone pitch. This involved calling a manager who pretended to be a client and pitching The Muse. They provided a lot of info to help prepare, and HR was available for questions. However, on the day of the pitch, the person I was supposed to pitch to was changed last minute, and then the timing was adjusted right before it started (and eventually cut short). This meant I didn't get the full prep time I was expecting, and the pitch was rushed because the manager had another interview. I got some feedback, and they said I'd hear back about a final round in a few days. The next day, I got an email saying they went with other candidates. It was an okay experience overall, but I wish the pitch day had been more organized and ran according to plan.

This interview process felt pretty intensive, like 10-15 hours total with prep and interviews, which felt like a lot for a job I wasn't getting paid for. The people were nice and friendly, but I got the vibe that there's a lack of 'scrappiness' compared to other startups. If you want super innovative, ambitious, and quick-witted people, this might not be it. First, there was a phone screen that took almost an hour, mostly asking about your sales aspirations and why you're interested in The Muse. Then, you have an in-person interview at the office with the VP of Sales for about an hour. They give you some articles to read beforehand. After that, there's a 45-minute role-play sales call where you share your screen and pitch the Muse site to the VP, who pretends to be a client. This needs a lot of prep - you gotta know the website, history, and pitch it smoothly while keeping it friendly. It took over 6 hours to prepare for. Finally, there's a 2-3 hour in-person meeting with a bunch of people like the CEO, COO, Editor in Chief, and sales managers. They want to see your prep, if you'll fit the culture, if you're moldable, and if you like getting feedback.