6 Expert Tips to Prep for a Phone or Video Interview

When I worked for my school’s career services office, we had a workshop every semester on video interviews called, “You have to Wear Pants.” Yeah, that’s the number 1 question we got about virtual job interviews: Do I actually have to wear pants if they won’t see them?

Yes, you do. But, that’s not the only thing you need to know if you have a video interview coming up soon!

These 6 tips will help you prep for any online job interviews! Let’s dive in!

Dress professionally

We started talking about this a little already (wear pants), but I want to expand on it. Dressing professionally isn’t just about how you look to the interviewer. Clothes also affect how we communicate, verbally and nonverbally.

Aka, when you’re dressed professionally, you tend to sit up straighter, speak less casually, and carry yourself formally. Which is how you make a great impression in a video interview!

So, before your interview, get dressed in an outfit you’d also wear to an in person interview. Yes, that includes shoes! Again, even if they don’t see them, wearing professional shoes during your interview will affect how you hold yourself. 

Also, one more job interview tip: style your hair so you won’t touch it. You can wear it down if it’s long, just pin it so it won’t fall in your face and you won’t be tempted to play with it if you get nervous.

Even though they might not see your entire outfit, it’s still important to dress professionally for your video interview. It affects how you speak, move, and communicate!

Check your background

This is another big one for a video interview: make sure your background is appropriate and not distracting.

If you live in a small space or don’t have a ton of areas with good lighting, then you might have to move things around to make it work. You want to make sure you’re not backlit and your background is as plain as possible.

YOU are the star of your job interview, so don’t let the background distract from what you’re saying. It helps to set up your computer like you’re doing your interview, open the camera, and check your background.

BTW make sure you’re doing this a few hours to a day before your interview. This isn’t something you should put off until the last minute!

 

Take notes

When you’re prepping your video interview space, make sure you leave room to take notes off screen. One of those big yellow legal pads would be helpful: you can plan your questions and examples on top and take notes on the bottom.

Remember not to focus too much on taking notes during your interview, either. Again, you don’t want to be distracting, so only take them when it makes sense. Like if they’re answering one of your questions or explaining how something at the company works. 

You can even give them a quick heads up that you’ll be taking notes, so they’re not wondering what you’re doing.

Also, try to keep as much eye contact as possible when you’re taking notes. It’s okay if they’re messy during the interview- you can always clean them up as soon as it ends.

Gather important documents

Along with a way to take notes, it’s helpful to have a few other things off screen during a video interview.

Have a copy of the resume and cover letter you used next to you, in case they reference it. You can even keep a short bulleted list of examples you want to use to answer their questions. And, like I mentioned before, have a list of questions ready for when they ask.

Again, reference these subtly and without breaking eye contact for too long. They’re there to quickly jog your memory, not to be a script for your job interview.

 

Prepare for anything

“Hoping for the best, prepared for the worst, and unsurprised by anything in between.” Maya Angelou said that- probably not about job interviews, but it does apply to them too!

When you’re getting ready for a video interview, you want to prep for anything that could go wrong. Charge your computer before and plug it in during the interview, just in case.

Also, tell your roommates or family when you’ll be in the online interview, to stay away from your space, and be quiet. If you have pets, kennel them or keep them out of your room. Make sure you also shut any doors and windows, so outside noise doesn’t interfere with your job interview.

Your goal is to avoid as many distractions as you can, because YOU are the star here! 

Speaking of stars, check out my formula to answer almost every question during a job interview!

Yes, this means being a liiittle paranoid, but it’s worth it to have a seamless video interview- trust me.

Test, test, test!

Finally, test everything. Once you’ve prepped your background, sit down in front of your computer to check it one more time.

Then, test the video and sound on your computer by opening the video interview platform on your computer and using their testing function. You can also check it by quickly video chatting with a friend in the exact set up you’ll be using for the job interview. Ask them how your background, sound, and video look, and make sure your internet connection is strong.

I know this sounds extensive, but you worked hard to land this job interview! Make sure they know how amazing you are by taking the time to prep and test your distraction free environment.

While a video interview isn’t totally different from an in person job interview, there are a few key things you’ll need to prepare. First, yes, you do still need to dress professionally. You also want to make sure your background is plain, you’re well lit, you have a way to take notes, and you have your important documents nearby. Also, prepare for anything and test everything before your virtual interview, so you can be the star!

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