Amazon Brand Specialists strive to improve the customer journey at every turn. Tell me about a time when you went above and beyond to deliver exceptional service.
Amazon places a significant focus on customer service, and they consider the company to be 'customer obsessed.' Customer obsession means acting beyond what is expected of you as a Brand Specialist. It also means that you actively seek out the opportunity to deliver more than the standard at every opportunity.
Amazon's 1st Leadership Principle is 'Customer Obsession.' This principle states, 'Leaders start with the customer and work backward. They work vigorously to earn and keep customer trust. Although leaders pay attention to competitors, they obsess over customers.'
The interviewer wants assurance that you are the type of person who will go out of your way to thrill and delight a customer! This question is phrased as, 'Tell me about a time when,' which means that your response requires storytelling. Amazon asks that when you answer behavioral interview questions, you try to follow the STAR answer method. STAR is an acronym for Situation, Task, Action, Result.
- Situation: Provide the contextual information the interviewer needs to know to make sense of your story.
- Task: Continuing to set the stage, give the interviewer an idea of your role and responsibilities in this story.
- Action: Next, offer a detailed description of the steps you took in this story.
- Result: Last, talk about the specific, measurable outcomes that resulted from your actions.
Choose a real-life example of when you went above and beyond in the name of serving others. If you have related work experience, it's best to provide an example from your professional life. If you are new to your career and have never been in a customer-facing role, consider an example from your post-secondary education, a team sport, volunteer commitment, or a club-based activity.
"(Situation & Task) While completing my Bachelor's Degree in Marketing, I was offered an internship with Company XYZ as a Marketing Assistant. For 3 months, I was accountable for phoning customers who recently canceled their service with Company XYZ. The marketing team wanted to dive deeper into the reason behind customer cancellations to increase conversions and extend lifetime customer value. I recall one customer who seemed very on the fence, and I remember thinking I could most likely turn this customer around with an approach that felt personal and customized. (Action) I had a pre-determined set of discovery questions to ask; however, I felt compelled to go slightly off-script in this situation. I asked this customer what we could have done differently to exceeded their expectations. I openly recognized that the customer seemed to feel neutral about their experience. I expressed that we would love a second chance to tailor their experience if they were not truly elated. (Result) The customer began to open up with detailed feedback on how Company XYZ could improve the customer journey. I thanked the customer for their time, and I asked them if they would be open to trying us again once we made improvements. The customer agreed. I was excited to take the suggestions to the marketing team since the recommendations were simple to implement and would significantly improve the customer journey, sales cycle, and conversion rate. Two months later, I called the customer back, excited to share the improvements we made. I was able to win their business back, and it felt like a great success. While preparing for this Brand Specialist interview, I studied the job description and Amazon's 14 Leadership Principles. I understand that there is a significant focus on working diligently to improve the customer journey. I appreciate that Amazon is customer-obsessed and that the company believes that leaders start with the customer and work backward. If I am offered this role with Amazon, I too will obsess over our customers, and I will work vigorously to earn and keep customer trust."
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