Strategic People

It’s all about the video interviewing nowadays so it’s important that you get yourself up to speed on those little tips and tricks that you don’t think of when you’re preparing for your interview. A first impression is a lasting one, so with our guide you should be bettering your chances of getting that offer.

Your Setting

Make sure that there is no clutter, laundry, or any other items that can ruin your potentially new employer’s first impression of you. As well as this, you need to ensure that when you speak on the video interview that there isn’t an echo. You need a quiet and distraction-free environment, we also recommend using headphones to ensure you can hear your interviewer and they can hear you more clearly using the microphone on your headphones.

The Lighting

Sit infront of a window where there is natural lighting, but ensure that there are no shadows on your face from the blinds, or window frame. You could even use a Ring Light which you can buy for a few quid online, these can be useful if you don’t/can’t sit at a window with natural light.

Internet Connection

We all know how annoying it is when you lose connection on FaceTime to a pal, or when your youtube video is buffering. It’s essential that you make sure that your internet connection is working. It’s more reliable to plug your computer into a wired internet connection cable rather than using wifi. If you have to use wifi, it is a good idea to disconnect any other devices from the wifi to ensure that your laptop is receiving the best connection. You can also use handy internet speed tests online such as https://www.speedcheck.org.

Test Run

It’s a good idea to do a test run with a friend or family member once you think you have everything set up ready. This may mean that you have to download the video conferencing software or the app onto your laptop (however most of them are pretty straight forward to use from a browser). You can get familiar with the platform in your test run so that there isn’t any time wasted on the big day of your interview. You can even record your test run and watch it back to see if you are repeating yourself or if you’re missing vital bits of information out. Ensure that you have checked out your interviewer on LinkedIn, look through their profiles to see if there is anything you have in common that you could comment on to build rapport. When practicing, ensure that you’re looking at the camera rather than the screen (this is harder than it looks). On the day of the interview, ensure that you are logged into the call early. 

But What To Wear?

According to research, the clothes you wear has a physiological effect on you and your thinking. As we know, business attire has taken on a new meaning and every organisation has different standards as to what they perceive as ‘work attire’. A shirt & jeans combo is a good balance between smart and casual (although if your lockdown snacking has got out of control, then your ability to fit into your jeans may be compromised).

A final tip for on the day, is to try and mirror match your tone and pace to mirror match your interviewer, this way you can build rapport.

By following these steps, you can ensure that there are no false starts on your big day and everything will be running as smoothly as possible. If you’re thinking about your next opportunity, contact our friendly team for a chat today! SP//

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