What Are Your Weaknesses:
- I tend to be over-friendly with clients. However, I try to get rid of this weakness and be professional in my work. It’s improving.
- I have a tendency to be impatient. I always try to close the deal and work as fast as possible, what is not always the best option. However, I work on my patience and at the moment I am much more patient as I was five years ago.
Your desire to improve is crucial…In both answers, you should notice one thing: The job applicant for a bank teller position always mentions how he tries to improve himself and get rid of the weakness. In fact, this is what interviewers want to hear. They do not expect to hire candidates without weaknesses. They expect to hire someone with acceptable weaknesses, who works on the improvement of himself. Can it be you?
What Are Your Strengths Interview Question:
The interviewers are clever. In five minutes time, in an interview, they can clearly see what your strengths and weaknesses are. Despite of that, they like to inquire you about it, in order to see if you can evaluate yourself and the others.
There are definitely some good strengths to choose in an interview for a bank teller position. Amongst them the following:
- communication skills
- ability to uncover the needs and desires of a client
- good sales skills
- responsibility
- good organization skills
- high motivation for work
- true understanding of the job and what is expected of you
Say less, show more
Before you start to prepare a perfect answer with five strengths, I want to warn you. It’s always better to say less and impress more than to say a lot but prove a little.
You know, interviewers are not stupid. If you fail in a role-play exercise, they will hardly believe you have good sales skills. What is even worse, they will consider you as a liar and not won’t put a real trust on the other answers… Therefore, it’s sometimes better to be humble in your answer to what are your strengths interview questions. Pick just one or two strengths, but present yourself in a best possible light in an interview. This is the recipe for success…
What Do You Know About Our Bank:
(Note that the exact answer depends on the bank where you apply for the job. The following examples are from the interviews done at Bank of America. However, other banks may have other advantages, and so you should think about it deeply before your job interview...)
- This is the most a popular bank in the US, in terms of number of clients. It is widely recognized for its leading online banking services, top notch customer service and friendly tellers. I hope to become one of these tellers.
- Bank of America is well known with its friendly working culture, good possibilities for career growth and fair system of benefits. It’s also my dream place of work . That is what I know about the bank.
As you can see, the answers are simple and positive. The interviewers should simply like what you are talking about and you can be 100% sure they will like this one. So, do not hesitate, study a bit the website of the bank where you apply for a teller position, find out in which aspect it is unique and present it in the interview. A good answer to this question can win you hearts of many interviewers and recruiting consultants.
Have You Ever Worked at a Bank Before:
This question is easy for someone who worked at a bank, isn’t’ it? Well, if it is your case, all to mention is the place and the job and maybe add a description of some of your principal duties and/or achievements. However, what to do if it is your first experience with working at a bank? Well, you should definitely be honest. But at the same time, you can mention other related roles you had (customer assistance, cashier, sales person). It is just good to mention some roles that should help you to develop skills needed for a good bank teller. Or, you can say, that despite you have not worked at a bank before; you know what is expected from you.
If nothing else, you can mention the “experience” from “the other side of the table”, being a client of a bank where you apply for the job. From this “position”, you can observe quite well what the bank teller do and it can help you to be better prepared for the job.
Let’s have a look at three answers, each suitable for different situation: Practical examples of an answer for applicants with different background:
- I have worked on the teller position at Wells Fargo for 2 years. I really liked my job there, but our branch was closed. That’s the main reason why I apply for a job here, as I would like to continue my career in the same field. I have only good memories on this job and the collective in a bank.
- I have never worked at a bank before. However, I have a related experience. I worked for two years as a customer assistant in a shop. I believe I gained there the required customer assistance and cash handling experience. I also improved my communication skills there. I believe this places me for a good position to be a good bank teller, at least I will try my best to be one if I get a chance.
- I have never worked at a bank. In fact, this is the first job I am trying to get. However, I visit Bank of America quite often in a position of a client. Using my observation skills, I know what is expected from a good teller at Bank of America and believe that I can become one. I am also a quick learner, so I am sure I can be very good at my job, although I have no experience on this position.
Talk about a Successful Sales Experience:
The best strategy is to recollect your past working experience and try to find a demonstration of your sales skills. If you can’t find it, I suggest you to use a sales experience from personal life. Let’s have a look at two sample answers:
- In my previous job at Boots, I was the most successful sales person. I always talked to customers, tried to give my honest opinion and advice additional items to purchase. It worked pretty well for us and my sales kept growing each month. I realized that proactive approach is the best one in sales and plan to stick to it in my teller career.
- I have never worked in the department of sales before. However, I had to use my sales skills when my children were choosing a college. They both wanted to study teaching, what wasn’t really the most perspective field. I tried to sell them my idea of studying business and management – which is a field I wanted to study myself, but never did. I explained them all the benefits this degree could bring them later in life. Finally, I was able to sell them my idea and they both applied for the Business and Management College. (*You should choose similar experience from your own life, when you succeeded to sell an idea)
Bank Teller Interview Questions (Part II)
Source: Bank Teller Interview Questions