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Ace Your Interview With a Temp Agency

10 Tips to Ace Your Interview With a Temp Agency

Temp agencies are great places to get your foot in the door if you are in the market for a new career. They provide short and long-term positions, which can lead to permanent jobs and build experience for your resume. When submitting your resume to a temp agency, you will want to prepare for an invitation call to the interview step. Here are some ideas to help you ace your interview and secure employment through a temp agency.

10 Tips to Succeed at a Job Interview

1. Present Your Resume

The first impression a staffing company gets about you is through your resume. Resumes allow you to share information about yourself and show off your accomplishments, achievements, and career or educational growth. As you design, format, and write your resume keep in mind that temp agencies are looking for many jobs to fill, so they will be interested to see your various skills and experiences. Make your resume clear, concise, and easy to understand.


Have a professional email address, education information, employment history, and references ready. Add your social media information where needed, and ensure that any platform with your resume has the exact same details as the one you submit.

You can bring a professionally printed copy of your resume with you and present it to the interviewer. Not only does this refresh the interviewer’s memory of why they called you in, but presenting a copy of your resume shows that you are prepared and thoughtful – great features for a future employee!

2. Bring a Portfolio of Work Samples

Similar to bringing a copy of your resume, you can increase your chances of securing a position by bringing a portfolio of working samples to the temp agency’s interview, depending on the job. Showcasing your work gives interviewers a clear understanding of your abilities to complete the job. Graphic designers, writers, and photographers will all benefit from sharing their best work at interviews.

3. Research the Temp Agency and Hiring Company

When applying for a temp agency job an excellent employment tip is to research the company and learn about its standards, clients, future opportunities, and how they work with the community. Reviewing their website allows you to see the job positions they specialize in hiring for, like administrative assistant, warehouse, etc. Check various websites to see what others have to say about their experience with the hiring agency. Gathering insider information will help you know what to expect and feel comfortable during the interview process.

If you are provided with the prospective company name, research them. You should be familiar with the company and ask specific questions in the interview. Learning about a company before an interview is an easy way to win a few bonus points from recruiters.

Take time researching the staffing agency’s recruiter who will interview you. Look up the recruiter on LinkedIn to find out about their career and honors. Knowing about your interviewer will allow you to connect immediately with an icebreaker and show that you took extra time to prepare.

4. Mock Interview Questions

Find general and job-specific interview questions to review before speaking with the temp agency. Write out the answer to the questions for yourself first. Then, meet with a friend and practice a mock interview. A friend interview will allow you to discuss the questions with someone you are comfortable with before speaking about them to a stranger. Make sure you can give a concise and clear answer to each question when asked.

5. Dress Nicely

Take time to prepare your dress attire for the interview. Even if the interview is for a warehouse position, it is important to show proper hygiene and appropriate clothing. You may not need to go out and buy a suit for your interview, but wearing nice slacks, dresses, skirts, etc., will give you a clean, professional appearance. Dressing up also boosts confidence and makes you feel good going into an interview with a staffing agency.

6. Be On Time

Timeliness is vital to acing an interview with a temp agency because they look for responsible employees to fill their client’s positions. Tell yourself that being on time for an interview means you are ten minutes early. Plan your route and prep time to allow for a few extra minutes. It’s better to overestimate traffic than to underestimate and be late.

7. Know Your Past Experiences

Sharing your past experiences in a meaningful way during an interview can be very beneficial. For example, the temp agency could ask how you handled a team conflict at work.

A great way to explain a previous situation is to use these steps:

  • First, take time to think about the question and formulate your answers. Even if you’ve already prepared an answer to recite, taking a moment to pause shows the interviewer that you are putting thought into their question.
  • Describe the situation clearly and talk about what fundamental skills you used to help the team build unity during the conflict.
  • Finally, discuss the outcome and how the team arrived at the result. Focus on what you did specifically that helped achieve the success. Speak confidently about your participation, but don’t brag.

Always remember to keep names confidential and don’t speak negatively about previous co-workers or employers.

8. Ask Questions

Throughout the interview, ask the staffing agency recruiter questions. Asking questions will show that you are interested in the position and want more information about the job, agency, etc. Ask probing questions throughout the interview and end the conversation with a few strong follow-up questions.

Good follow-up questions include:

  • What are the job expectations for me?
  • What are the biggest challenges in this position?
  • How long will this assignment last?
  • What are the working hours?
  • What are the next steps in the interviewing process?
  • When this assignment ends, what else can I do with your agency?

9. Smile

Smiling and having a friendly attitude for your interview are essential. Show your enthusiasm, appreciation of the recruiter’s time, and desire to be there when you walk through the door with a smile. Give the temp agency a reason to hire you with an engaging attitude when sharing about yourself, details of your work ethic, efforts, and accomplishments.

10. Thank You Email

The best way to follow up on an interview is to send a thank you email to the temp agency for their time in considering you for the position. It is a nice gesture and will place your name in front of them again. A simple two to three sentences of gratitude will work for this part of acing your interview. If there were multiple people who are involved in the interview process, make sure to include all of them.

Ace Your Interview

Interviews are exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time, but with these tips, you will feel confident and ace your temp agency interview. One of the most important parts of interviewing is having fun with it. Regardless of the outcome, you will share a piece of your working career with someone new. Enjoy the interview time, journey, and future job with a staffing agency!