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As the job market grows ever more global, more companies are relying on video interviews to screen employees. It makes sense too — increase the size of the talent pool that companies can pull from, without having to buy tons of plane tickets for candidates that ultimately won’t be right for the position.
From a potential employee’s standpoint, however, video interviewing can be daunting. Sure, it’s from the comfort of your own home, but the practice is relatively new and the pitfalls numerous.
To try and figure out how to ace a video interview, we reached out to a couple of experts for advice. The below tips come from Spark Hire, makers of video interviewing software that's used by thousands of companies, and Dave Mayer, Founder and CEO of Technical Integrity, a Denver-based professional placement firm.
Eye Contact, Not Screen Contact: Making eye contact with the camera, and not the screen is critical. Pretend the camera is a person and act like you normally would in an interview. If you’re an animated person, be an animated person. Body language is critical to showing confidence.
Prepare The Setting: Where you choose to have your video interview is important. Make sure you’re in a room that’s not too dimly lit, or in front of a bright window. Test out the lighting in your room, and maybe even have a test-run with a friend before your interview.
You probably shouldn’t be lying in bed – or God forbid the bathroom – for your interview. While this shouldn’t come as much surprise, it’s super important to make sure you have thought about how your camera will pick up the background.
Be Punctual: Same thing as in a real interview – be early. You don’t want to wait until the last minute to start prepping for your interview, as there’s a good chance you’ll encounter some sort of technical issue. Just imagine how capable and professional you won’t look if you have to make your interviewer wait while you download a plugin – or worse, can’t get the video software to work at all.
Remove All Distractions: Put the dog outside, turn your phone on silent, and tell everybody else in the house that you’re going to be on a super-important video call.
Would you hire somebody who has a cat walking across his or her keyboard during an interview? How about somebody whose roommate is yelling about happy hour in the background?
Clean Up: Check out your interviewing company’s ‘About Us’ page and figure out what they dress like – then copy. Just because the interview is from your home, you should still dress like you were going into the office for the interview. Keep in mind that patterns and colors are often distorted through video – stick to solid, staid colors.
Settle Down: Prepare yourself for questions that are likely to be asked, that way you won’t be caught off guard. If you think there’s a chance they’ll ask it, be prepared for it. Also, avoid drinking a Vente Latte before the interview in the hopes of being super-sharp. Just because your interviewer won’t be shaking your clammy palm, they’ll still be able to see if you’re glistening with sweat or your eye is twitching.
Have a tip for us or know of a company that deserves coverage? Email us via [email protected]
