Spotify · Primly Community

Spotify account executive / sales interview: the process, the role play, and what gets you to offer

ops_omar · 4 replies

Wrapped up the Spotify sales interview process two months ago. I'm an enterprise AE with 8 years in, coming from ad-tech. Here's what actually happened.

For context: Spotify's ads business (Spotify Advertising, now Spotify Ads Manager) is a real B2B sales motion targeting brands and agencies. The AE roles I saw were for enterprise accounts, meaning large brands, not self-serve. Very different from the consumer product.

Process: Recruiter screen, sales ops intro, 4 stages with different stakeholders, final presentation.

Stage breakdown:

Recruiter screen was fast. They asked about current quota, quota attainment (be specific, know your numbers), and why ad-tech / streaming specifically. Don't be vague on why Spotify. They've heard "I love the product" a thousand times. Know something about their competitive position against YouTube, podcasts, connected TV.

Hiring manager call: Situational questions disguised as conversation. "Walk me through your largest deal close this year" is not small talk. Have a tight STAR story for your biggest win, your hardest loss, and a deal that took longer than expected.

Role play: They gave me a scenario where I was pitching Spotify's podcast ad inventory to a consumer packaged goods brand. They played the skeptical marketing director. The evaluation was on: did I listen and adapt, did I use real data points (Spotify's audience reach, podcast listener demographics), did I create urgency without being pushy. This is the round most candidates underestimate. Practice it out loud.

Final presentation: I had to present a 30-60-90 day plan for ramping in the role. Standard, but they wanted specifics about the accounts I'd target and why, not just "I'll learn the product and build relationships."

What I saw get people cut: Not knowing Spotify's ad products in detail, vague quota attainment numbers (say the number, don't hedge), and treating the role play like a monologue instead of a conversation.

Offer ended up in a good range for NYC. Base in the $120-130k range, OTE around $220-240k depending on role. Equity also included but smaller than what you'd see at a pure software company.

4 replies

sdr_sky

The role play part is real. I've done two Spotify sales interviews and both had a pitch simulation. The one I passed went well because I asked discovery questions before jumping to pitch. The one I failed I started presenting immediately and the interviewer just kind of let me talk until I ran out of steam. That's the rope they give you.

ae_andre

Exactly. The first question out of my mouth in the role play was a discovery question. The interviewer even broke character briefly to note it positively. They want to see you treat the simulation like a real call.

sre_sol

The OTE range you mentioned sounds right for what I've seen in NY for mid-enterprise AE roles in ad-tech, which Spotify ad sales essentially is. The equity piece being smaller than pure software is accurate too. Worth factoring if you're coming from a high-equity SaaS background.

marketer_mei

Interesting that they test knowledge of the competitive landscape. I've interviewed for PMM roles there and same thing: they expect you to know the streaming ad market, not just Spotify's products in isolation. Makes sense given how competitive podcast advertising is right now.