How to Ace an Online Job Interview
Since the Covid-19 pandemic, online interviews have become more common, making perfect sense. The technology has now been proven to work, and the vast majority of workers now have a level of skill in using it. If someone had been looking to devise a way to upskill a large proportion of the population to be able to use this kind of technology, they couldn’t have done better.
Online interviews tend to be much less nerve-wracking for job applicants, as they can do them from the comfort of their own homes rather than have to attend a busy and unfamiliar location. This is a big benefit and allows people to be much more at ease with the interview process. To benefit fully, though and ace the interview, some things are essential to remember:
Remember Why You are There
Although the interview is online and you are at home in relaxing surroundings, remember that you are still in a job interview and should behave accordingly.
Minimise Interruptions / Distractions
You should ensure that interruptions or distractions are kept to a minimum level. This means turning on airplane mode on your phone if you are interviewing on your computer so that it doesn’t ring. If you still have a landline phone, you can also unplug that for the duration.
If you live with other family members, make it clear that they are to stay out of the room you are doing the interview in until you tell them that it is completed. This also goes for pets, so if you have other family members around, make sure that they know not to allow the pets to come into the room that you are in. Everyone loves to see people’s pets on Zoom calls, but this mostly applies to informal chats with friends, not job interviews.
Dress for an Interview
You are attending a job interview, even though you aren’t leaving your house, and you should make as much effort with your appearance as if you were going to a physical appointment. Wear a smart suit, ensure your hair looks great, and wear the make-up you usually would. It is essential to show that you are treating the interview with the correct amount of seriousness and respect.
If you don’t show up looking well put together, it sends the signal that you are not interested in the job, and it immediately makes the interview more difficult for you, as you have fallen at the first hurdle.
Test Your Technology
Be sure you know how to use the program you are using to connect to the call. If the program is used by anyone else, check that there aren’t any inappropriate usernames attached to the account and if there are, change them. The last thing you want is for the interviewees to believe they are receiving a call from someone with an inappropriate sexual or comic username.
Ensure you have the link to join the meeting and know how to use it. It is also essential to make sure that any computer updates are already installed and that the meeting won't be interrupted to do so.
A lawyer became famous for fifteen minutes during the lockdown as he was on a Zoom call with the court and was heard to insist, “I’m not a cat”, as a realistic cat filter obscured his face, and he couldn’t get rid of it. Filters are great for comedy value, but he wouldn't have gotten it if he had been applying for a job. Ensure that all filters are off, except for any high-quality office background ones that you have.
Set Up Your Shot
It is important to set up your shot and make sure that the camera captures and frames precisely what you want it to. Hide any dishes off to one side, or even better, inside the dishwasher and ensure that you are well-lit on-screen. Ensure that the camera gets enough of you and that you aren’t going to have to constantly readjust the image for the people interviewing you to see you correctly.
Ensure that your internet is fast enough and that your device has enough charge to run for the course of the interview. You should ideally sit in the middle distance where you can be seen and heard well.
Do Your Due Dilligance
When investigating a company before a job interview, it is usually possible to be quite thorough, checking their last accounts on Companies House and any planning consents through local authorities. You can also take a look at the LinkdeIn profiles of those who will be likely to interview you and find out a bit of background information on them.
Read up on the company as much as possible, as this will help give you confidence and an edge in the meeting.
Role Play Job Interviews
Most people aren’t very good at job interviews because they have to attend relatively few of them. If you want to be successful at a skill in any other walk of life, what do you do? You practice until you are better at it. This is precisely the same principle for job interviews, whether online or offline. You just need to have some good practice under your belt, and it will come to you like second nature on the day.
Ask a friend to do an online interview with you and have them play the interviewers with an appropriate set of questions about the job. Ask them to give you practice answering “tell me about yourself?” and “Do you have any weaknesses?” as these can be two of the most influential questions that you are likely to be asked.
Consider what else might be asked and ponder the information you gleaned about the company. Try to absorb as much as possible, and if you can’t remember everything, keep a notepad or a second screen out of the shot during the job interview. You should also ensure that you have a glass of cold water nearby in case you get a dry throat or start coughing.
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