After completing the application and submitting video responses to their questions, I was invited to an interview with one of their designers. The interview went smoothly, and the designer was both friendly and approachable. A few days later, I received an assignment that took me three business days to finish.
The task involved creating four META ads—two each for two separate brands—in static and video formats. Concepts and designs, along with strategy and the creative process, had to be presented in a pitch deck.
I promptly submitted the completed work to the HR representative but have yet to hear back. I even sent a follow-up email, but there has been no response.
What’s interesting is that they assured me throughout the process that they would keep me updated at every stage. However, this communication stopped after I submitted the assignment.
After reading recent reviews, I realize that this pattern is quite common. It raises concerns that they may be using recruitment tasks as a way to gain free labor, which, if true, is highly unethical. This, unfortunately, is not uncommon in our industry.
I’m glad I took the precaution of submitting my work as a password-protected link to the pitch deck. If you're interviewing with this company, I highly recommend finding a way to protect your work as well. As creatives, when situations like this occur, we often assume we weren't good enough. However, after reviewing some of the work from their designers, I can assure you that objectively, this was not the case.