What is a good response for the question why do you want to work here?

Answer 1

An honest answer.

If you find yourself eating at Taco Bell every day because you love the food, and the people hanging out there seem to share your interests and music taste and night owl eating habits-- that's why you want to work there.

But it's hard to come up with an answer if you hate the food and the people are weird and the music sucks. So don't apply there!

The point is, apply where the answer to your question is obvious.

Answer 2

The best advice is to go with some variation on "I like to (whatever the job involves doing), so I think this is a good opportunity."

You may need to modify that. "I like to pump out septic tanks," for example, is going to make the interviewer think you're either lying or really weird. If the job is something that it would be strange to actually enjoy, then pick some aspect of the job that seems more normal: "working outside" for the septic tank job, for example.

You should also address the "sure, mucking out septic tanks is great, who wouldn't like that, but why here?" aspect of the question. If you've gone to an interview without researching the company enough to be able to rattle off two or three reasons why it seems like it would be a good place to work (and why you'll fit right in), you don't deserve to get the job.

Another good thing to do is to research the company and find out what sets it apart, and then emphasize that in your answer. Maybe your job can be done in thousands of companies, but you want to work at that particular *company* for a specific reason... you see that they are successful, you like how they treat their employees, etc. Everyone enjoys being complimented, and often complimenting the company helps, and they know that you have done your research and actually know who they are.

Answer 3

The best way to answer the question is to point to specifics of what you like about the work. You may enjoy specific responsibilities of your job, or the company of your co-workers.