I had a 20-minute phone call with a hiring manager who was very nice but didn't give me a ton of information. Immediately after our call, they asked me to complete an assessment which was an entire campaign idea and roll-out for a current client of theirs. I was a little alarmed by such a forward request so early into our interview process, I followed up by agreeing to do the assessment, once they told me the expected salary for the position. I wasn't about to do free labor unless I knew the salary they prepared to offer was at least worth it. They only could give me a range of 70 - 90k. With my years of experience, I replied that I'd only be comfortable accepting the higher end of that spectrum and that I'd still be happy to complete the assessment if they could narrow down that range a little more. They ghosted me after that. DO NOT complete any free work they ask for until you know how much they'd be willing to offer for the role!

After one quick call the team requested that I complete an assignment for one of their existing clients. Red flag- they just want to steal your ideas for free. Assignments can be fine, but when they ask for that before actually investing time in getting to know your experience, they don’t have good intentions.