Looks like I got to this thread a little late, but I'm a manager at a Gamestop. If anyone else is wondering, here's what I can tell you about the interview and the job itself:
- You have to know video games. If you're on this forum, that really shouldn't be a problem. Know what the buttons on an Xbox controller are called, know who made the Dreamcast, and know the names of all of those little kid anime shows that spin off new games every other week (Pokemon, Dragonball Z, and Yu-Gi-Oh! for those out of the loop).
- Know how to sell. You don't really have to hard sell anything really, but management does track the number of reservations and magazine subscriptions that you sell. If you're mortified by the thought of selling anything to anyone, put the application in the trash.
- In your interview, be articulate and forthcoming, but not overly anxious with your answers. You'll answer interview questions the same way you'll answer customer questions... if you blurt out the first thing that pops into your head, that's a bad sign.
- Be prepared to make minimum wage. For "salary requirements," either put $5.15 or something slightly higher. Applicants who demand $10/hr or more are generally passed over for interviews. Your local Gamestop might pay more than $5.15, but let that be a pleasant surprise and not an expectation. Face it, you're interviewing for a job at a video game store. Gamestop could pay their employees a dollar an hour in store credit and still have a stack of applications six feet high.
- Dress and act professionally. Be in slacks and a button-down shirt for your interview, but also when you pick up your job application. Come in, get the application, and leave. Don't fill it out in the store, and don't pick up an application after playing five games of NCAA 2005 on the demo Xbox. Put your application in the hands of a manager, don't drop it on the counter or hand it to a cashier. Make eye contact, have a good handshake, make a good impression. It's cool to be a gamer geek, but don't come in dressed like you're coming off the tail end of a 16-hour guild raid.
- Understand that you, yes you,
WILL be working on the day that all major games are released. That means Grand Theft Auto and Halo 2, guys. If you planned on taking November 9th through 12th off for an intravenous Halo 2 festival, you should wait until afterwards to hand in your application. Today alone I had two people
hand back their applications when I told them that they'd be working a shift on 11/9 (Halo 2 release date). You'll be working the day after Thanksgiving, and on the day after Christmas. No, you will not be able to get time off to go home for two weeks when school lets out (college guys). Your local Gamestop may have enough employees to let some of them have the holidays off, but seasonal employees are on the bottom of the food chain as far as time off requests go.
- This isn't an office job, you're working in a store with a very limited number of employees. Don't come in on Tuesday and ask for Friday off (won't happen), and don't call in sick to work so you can watch football. Every shift you miss has to be covered... and the flipside is, you can expect to get a call every now and then asking you to come in on short notice when someone else calls in. I've been a manager at the store I'm at for about three months, and I've only had one employee call in one time (and had one no call/no show).
- For your interview, be ready to answer the following questions (and not just for this job, this goes for every job you ever apply for):
1. What is your greatest strength as an employee?
2. What is your greatest weakness as an employee?
3. Have you ever taken anything from a former employer without permission? (the answer is no)
4. What do you think is the most important part of a retail job?
5. What does "customer service" mean to you?
6. Describe one instance at a previous job when you disagreed with a company practice or policy, and how you handled the situation.
Best of luck to you. I speak as a regular person here, not as any kind of spokesman for Gamestop or any of its affiliate companies. I have to specify that, because you'll also sign a form saying that you will not attempt to represent the company on internet forums or other public venues without written permission. So everything in this post is my personal opinion and experience, and does not reflect the opinion or practice of Gamestop, Inc. or its subsidiary companies.
And one more thing. You get to check out one game at a time, for free, as often as you like (stock permitting). I've got a copy of Tony Hawk's Underground in the PS2 that I'm bringing back in tomorrow
