Practice Calling On Zoom
Arrange to call a friend or family member using Zoom. Practice using all the features, including mute, screen sharing and raising your hand.
Ask whether your friend/family member can see and hear you, adjusting the lighting and sound settings as needed.
If they report hearing an echo, Zoom has an audio echo troubleshooting guide. This will guide you through how to fix the problem.
Strategies To Prepare For An Audio/video Interview
With so many companies shifting to a remote working environment, its becoming increasingly commonplace to organize audio/video interviews instead of in-person meetings. Audio/video interviews are a lot different from an in-person interview in many ways not only in what regards the required technology setup but also in how the interviewee should frame their message for optimal engagement.
For those new to the process, the prospect can be quite intimidating. Whether its for a job opening or for a virtual industry event, the interviewee needs to be aware of several critical elements when preparing for an interview in audio or video format. Below, 16 experts from Forbes Communications Council discuss the challenges of this particular approach and take a closer look at some of the methods interviewees should consider when getting ready for an audio/video interview.
Members offer their best advice for preparing yourself for an audio or video interview.
1. Relax And Be Yourself
The No. 1 strategy I would use, and have used, to prep someone is to just relax and be yourself. Make it conversational. You are still talking to a person, so ignore the recording devices they are incidental. Focus on the person interviewing you, and treat it as an opportunity to meet someone new. Taking a conversational approach will make the process much less intimidating. – Layla Barbur, Trextel
2. Treat It As An In-Person Interview
3. Build Up Your Confidence
4. Be Clear On Goals And Messaging
Quoting Your Research Participants
If your research methodology involved conducting formal interviews with participants, transcripts of these interviews are typically included in an appendix. You dont need citations when quoting your research participants just mention where the transcripts can be found.
This only needs to be mentioned once dont refer to the appendix every time you quote from it. Similar advice applies to surveys.
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How To Film An Interview Like The Pros Plus Examples We Love
Weve all seen them: interview videos that are hard to watch.
Maybe you can sense the interviewee is uncomfortable or they have shadows on their face or something just seems off. Whether youre a seasoned filmmaker refreshing your memory on how to film an interview or a business owner finally hitting record on your iPhone, this guide is designed to help you embrace the experience.
More than fancy equipment, the way you approach filming an interview and especially the preparation you do ahead of time will make the process and product better all around.
Highlight Your Company Culture
Candidates cant experience your company culture firsthand during a video interview, so make it a point to highlight your culture throughout the conversation. Emphasize your core values and company mission, share stories about team outings, and talk about how your office is structured and the intention behind it.
Paint a clear picture of what its like to work at your company. Above all, infuse your culture into the interview by embodying your core values and treating the candidate as you would a colleague.
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How To Make An About Me Video Or Self
It may be hard to talk about yourself. But making a video about yourself can be pretty easy, even if you donât know exactly where to start.
Weâve written a guide to give you everything you need to make an eye-catching video all about you or your business. Learn what you should include in your video, find a few template suggestions, and get some tips to make sure your video looks its best. Ready to get started?
Taking Part In A Zoom Interview
Zoom offers a clean, easy-to-use interface. The home tab shows an overview of upcoming meetings. From this tab, users can start, schedule or join a meeting.
They can also share their computer or mobile device screen with an existing Zoom Room.
Zoom has a host of useful features:
- Screen sharing
- Record function
- Customizable backgrounds
It is possible to switch off the video function however, recruiters will likely want to see you during a Zoom job interview.
The Zoom app is the most popular way to use Zoom. You can access it from a computer or mobile device. Both Apple and Android are available. You can also use an extension for Firefox and Chrome browsers.
Perform an update to your computer system and ensure you are using the latest version of Zoom. This will avoid having to restart your device in the middle of the interview.
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Live Online Interview Tips
A live video interview is like a face-to-face interview. You’ll have an interviewer or a panel of interviewers ask you questions in real time. It will be on a service like:
- Skype
- Google Hangouts
- Zoom
In a live video interview, if you have any technical problems, let the interviewer know. Dont try to muddle through. Its better to stop and restart than pretend everything is okay.
Why Should We Hire You
Step 1. Figure out what the company wants/needs most. If you want to get hired for a good job, you need to make your interview answers about THEM, not you.
The fastest and easiest way to know what they need is to look at the job description. What do they mention most often? What is emphasized near the top or mentioned first?
Step 2. Now that you know what they want for this job opening, you need to give it to them.
You should tell them that you did some research, mention what you noticed about the jobs requirements, and then highlight your skills and experience that fit best with what they need! Give specific examples if you can.
Lets say youre going to talk about leadership. Dont just say, yes, I led some people in my last job, leadership wont be a problem for me.
Tell them how many people you led, what topics you guided them on, what you learned as a leader. And then remember to show that youre interested in leading, or that you enjoy it as well!
Its important to show that you WANT to be doing the type of work they need. Being able to do something doesnt mean youll necessarily be interested, motivated and happy in the job. To put their mind at ease you need to show excitement and a genuine interest in working with the areas youre talking about!
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They Can Be Repurposed And Shared
Once you’ve got your interview footage, you’ll have a goldmine of content.
- You can extract some short clips to post on social media and create teaser videos that link to the full version of the interview.
- You can include the interview in a blog post.
- You can attach the interview in a company newsletter.
- You can use the audio for a podcast.
- So much more… keep reading to find out.
Whatever the original purpose was for your video interview, you will certainly discover plenty of different ways to reuse and distribute it.
Write Out A Few Notesbut Refer To Them As Little As Possible
Because your interviewer wont be able to see everything you have on your desk , it might be tempting to have a lot of information in front of you for a video interview. But be careful. Turner recommends having only a few quick notes in front of you and glancing at them sparingly. Write down key figures and other small snippets, not whole answers. You dont want to sound like youre just reading, she says.
Meanwhile, Eonnet discourages keeping any notes in front of you at all. The best interviews are conversations and notes can become a crutch, Eonnet says. A huge reason someone decides to hire you is because they feel like you made a connection during the interview, which can be hard to do if youre distracted.
If youd like to have a few sparse notes for your interview, make sure you also have them out during your practice. Not only will this show you whether you can use them without it disrupting the flow of the conversation, the more you read them over, the less youll end up having to refer to them.
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Include The Audience In The Video Interview
Some people tend to just look at each other for the duration of the interview, but that makes the audience feel like theyre left out as the third wheel. Theyre just someone merely eavesdropping instead of someone whos part of the conversation. Make sure you look at the camera frequently to make the audience feel like theyre standing there in the conversation with you.
What Is Your Greatest Weakness
Forget the cliche answers like Im such a hard worker that sometimes I just have trouble turning it off. Hiring managers have heard them all a TON and will not be impressed.
You need to give a real weakness if you want to be impressive on this interview question. With a few guidelines:
1. Always choose something skill-based, not personality-based.
2. Talk about what youre doing to overcome this weakness.
Example: I havent always been very skilled in Microsoft Excel, but as my work has required it more Ive made it a point to organize some tutorials that I can refer back to, and this has improved the quality and speed of my work significantly.
This is going to impress them because youre showing your approach to solving problems or overcoming challenges. That tells them youll do a great job if new challenges come up in this next job, or if they ask you to learn new things.
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Set The Stage For A Distraction
Choose a location thats free from the distractions of children, roommates or pets. Hang a sign on the door asking mail carriers and package deliverers not to ring the doorbell.
Make sure the background is free from clutter and embarrassing items like laundry piles. Set up lighting thats bright but not glaring, illuminating your face from the front. Natural light is best.
Turn off email, text and social media alerts, software updates and other notifications that may pop up on the screen during the interview. Turn off programs that might interfere with the webcam, and close browser tabs.
Is Zoom Highly Technical
Zoom is easy to use. However, it is wise to discover how to use all its features before a pressured situation like a job interview. Therefore, you can use the system with confidence, helping to combat interview nerves.
A quick start guide can be accessed by new users.
There are a few things to learn that could help your interview to run as smoothly as possible.
For example, the personal meeting link and access code for your meeting could end up in your junk or spam folder.
Knowing where to look if the meeting details do not arrive means you won’t waste time or energy trying to find them.
Getting to know the text chat function is useful if you struggle to hear or see the interviewer.
You can use it to let them know what is happening and resolve the issue fast and with minimal disruption.
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Show A Clear Image Of Your Face
Set your webcam up for a test run. Hows the lighting? Your face needs to be well lit, but if you have light skin a direct light could leave you looking ghostly. You may need to bring in a couple of lamps and light yourself from several angles. Keep experimenting until the webcam image is impeccable.
Oily skin can develop a shine on camera, so wash your face before the interview. If you wear makeup, keep it light and simple.
Practise Out Loud And Record Yourself
Video recording yourself speaking your interview answers out loud is a great way to check for any points you may need to correct before the interview itself, such as looking down too much, poor body language, speaking too quietly or speaking too quickly.
It also gives you a final opportunity to test your call settings, the lighting in the room and your body language. You wont want to suddenly become aware of these issues during the interview itself and risk looking ill-prepared and unprofessional as a result.
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Kinds Of Questions To Ask In A Video Interview
Interviews can take unexpected turns, so prepare questions in advance. This will guide your interview and ensure you dont forget any key information. If youre wondering what kind of questions are asked in a video interview, consider the following as a guideline.
- Avoid asking yes or no questions. They arent going to provide any value for your viewer.
- Use warm-up questions to break the ice. Things like name, about the company, and role.
- Make sure theyre relevant. For example, if youre trying to get over the objection of your product being hard to use, you could ask a client, How easy was it for you to get up and running with our product.
- Specific questions will yield specific answers. Prompt your interviewee to provide concrete examples or answers. For example, What are three ways you have developed stronger relationships with your customers?
- Follow up with follow up questions. If your interviewee doesnt provide a clear or concise answer to your question, ask them to clarify further or try to reframe.
- End with a final thoughts question. After youve completed your questions, ask your interviewee if they have any final thoughts or would like to share anything elsesometimes the best soundbites come after the main interview has concluded.
Once you have a list of questions, order them in a cohesive flow. Start out with some easy ones, and then move on to the more in-depth .
Set Up A Good Interviewing Space
Instruct your interviewers to designate a quiet, well-lit space for conducting interviews. The video quality is a huge factor of interview quality if the candidate has trouble hearing or seeing the interviewer, theyre going to have trouble connecting with your company. If your software has a test option, provide candidates with instructions on how to test their audio and video, so theyre confident using the equipment and can focus their energy on preparing for the interview.
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Why Have Video Interviews Become So Popular
With the increasing quality and reliability of affordable video conferencing software and hardware , video interviews have become a common method for assessing candidates.
According to the Institute of Student Employers, in 2018 49% of their members used video interviews as part of their recruitment processes. Thats basically a one in two chance that youll need to take one for each job application.
There are plenty of reasons as to why theyve risen in popularity so much:
With that said, there are, of course, downsides to video interviews. They can be time-consuming to watch back and analyse, and that usually has to be done manually . Also, suitable candidates who are unfamiliar with or not suited to video interviews might be scared off.
Focus On The Conversation
On the day of your interview, do one final check of your technology and make sure your battery is charged. Sit down in your chosen location with at least 15 minutes to spare before you start the interview. Have a glass of water at hand, and a notepad and pen. It can be handy to have your resume or other documents there too but its not a good idea to read from notes. Close any programs that could affect your internet connection or distract you and disable pop-up notifications. Put your phone on silent mode if youre not using it.
Now turn your focus to the interview. Even though youll be answering questions through a screen, its important to think of your video interview as a conversation with another person. It can help to:
- Slow down and take your time to answer. It might feel strange to hear gaps in the conversation. But pausing a second longer before you answer will help to ensure you dont speak over of the interviewer if theres a delay in the video. Taking deep breaths can help you to stay calm as well.
- Look at the camera when you can. Unlike a face-to-face conversation it can be hard to know where to look. If you direct your gaze at the camera, rather than the interviewers face on screen, its more likely to appear that youre making eye contact. Try to do this when youre listening.
- Think about your body language like you would normally sit up straight, and nod to show that youre listening and engaged.
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Advantages Of Interview Videos
Incorporating interview videos into your marketing plan has a number of advantages. Here are a few:
- Interview videos are authentic: B2B buyers may not have the opportunity to book a meeting with the CEO of your company. In this case, interviews with a CEO or internal characters allows them to get information straight from the horses mouth about the product/service.
- Boost customers trust:Providing an authentic testimonial video showcasing past customers that are genuinely satisfied with your product or service quickly boosts customer trust and brand awareness for your business.
- Improves customers understanding of your product: Sometimes, despite your best efforts, customers will still struggle to understand your product/service. In this situation, a video interview can educate your customers about potentially confusing elements related to the product or service.
- Less fuss when compared to other video types: Interview videos are easier when compared to other kinds of content to shoot. Other than preparing your interviewee, all you need is a camera, tripod, and a microphone coupled with a standard one angle set-up, and youre ready to roll.
- It is great for repurposing:You can break your interview videos up into short clips and post it on your social media pages, websites, or even use it as a company culture video.
