How To Succeed On A Phone Interview

Focus On Your Language And Voice

How to Succeed with Phone Interviews

You have only the power of your voice in a telephone call. Speak clearly, stay upbeat, and use positive language. Smiling will help.

Dont trash anyone, not even the former boss who was such a jerk!

Try to take cues from the interviewer , and modulate your own tone and word choice to make a positive impression.

The mirror will help in staying positive, but you must remember that the words you choose and the motivation you put forward will help determine your outcome.

How To Start A Phone Interview

Employers commonly use phone interviews as a way to screen job candidates to find out if they meet the job requirements. This method can be beneficial for finding and inviting only qualified candidates to attend additional in-person interviews. If you are anticipating a phone interview, the way you answer the call and start your conversation can impact the interview’s overall success. In this article, we discuss effective ways to answer the call and begin a phone interview, along with tips to start the conversation and increase your phone interview success.

Be Happy And Confident:

While talking on the phone might not come naturally to you, you can take some comfort by having an interview without the pressures of sitting in front of three or four members of the company all staring at you. If you relax and smile as much as possible while speaking, it will allow you to give positive answers and sound confident which is much more likely to impress your employer as it emphasizes your enthusiasm.

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Get Prepared For Your Phone Interview

Even though you are not meeting in person, it can still be crucial to get prepared for the phone interview as you would an in-person interview. Research the company you applied to ahead of time, practice how you will greet the interviewer and how you will answer the interviewer’s questions, and keep your resume nearby during your interview for quick reference. Also, it’s a good idea to write down their name in your notes to keep as a reference throughout your interview.

Additionally, write down some questions that you plan to ask the interviewer during the phone call. For instance, write down any questions you have about job duties, required credentials or any other information you would like to know more about.

Tips For Acing A Phone Interview

Tips for a Successful Phone Interview (Part 2)

Follow these tips for a successful phone interview:

Create a checklist. Review the job posting and make a list of how your qualifications match the hiring criteria. Have the list available so you can glance at it during the interview.

Have your resume handy. Keep your resume in clear view so it’s at your fingertips when you need to answer questions.

Be prepared to take notes. Have a pen and paper handy for note taking.

Don’t get interrupted. Turn off call waiting so your call isn’t interrupted. Put your cellphone on “Do not disturb” so you won’t hear beeps or buzzes from apps, text messages, and so on.

Reschedule if you have to. If the call wasn’t scheduled, and isn’t at a convenient time, ask if you could talk at another time and suggest some alternatives.

Clear the room. Evict the kids and the pets. Turn off the stereo and the TV. Close the door.

Use a landline. If you have a landline, use that instead of your cellphone. That way, you’ll eliminate the possibility of poor reception or dropped calls.

Dress For The Job Or Company

Today’s casual dress codes do not give you permission to dress as “they” do when you interview. It is important to know what to wear to an interview and to be well-groomed. Whether you wear a suit or something less formal depends on the company culture and the position you are seeking. If possible, call to find out about the company dress code before the interview.

Prepare A Cheat Sheet And Take Notes

There are some benefits to phone interviews in comparison with in-person interviews. Namely, neither participant can see the other. This means that it is possible to keep a cheat sheet on hand with answers to possible questions and information on the company. Additionally, taking notes during the call can allow for callbacks to previous questions or given information. This shows interest and initiative. However, the interviewer can still hear everything that happens on the other line, so limiting paper rustling is essential.

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How To Succeed In Your Next Job Interview

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Where your work meets your life. See more from Ascend here.

Making a good impression during a job interview requires preparation and practice. But what specifically should you say to sell yourself? Tori Dunlap, entrepreneur and finance educator, lays out three crucial talking points to help you stand out as a candidate.

Transcript

Here are some of my favorite questions to ask:

What Are Common Second Interview Questions

How to Succeed at a Phone Interview… [sort of]

Here are some interview questions that often come up during a second interview and that you should be ready for :1. What is it about this job that interests you?2. What do you want from your career and how does this job fit into that?3. Can you give an example of your problem-solving abilities?4. Can you give us what you think are your three most important qualifications for this position?5. Why should we hire you?

Recommended Reading: How To Get Prepared For A Job Interview

Tips For Great Job Interviews

From researching the company to handling certain key interview questions, make sure you make a great impression and ace your next job interview by following these 20 tips.

Want to ace your next interview and land thatopen job youve been seeking? Here are 20 tips to help you prepare.1. Research the industry and company.An interviewer may ask how you perceive his company’s position in its industry, who the firm’s competitors are, what its competitive advantages are, and how it should best go forward. For this reason, avoid trying to thoroughly research a dozen different industries. Focus your job search on just a few industries instead.

Have Your Job Materials Nearby

You should feel comfortable and ready to discuss your background and skills confidently during a phone conversation. Have a copy of your resume nearby, so that you can refer to it during the interview. Also have a copy of the job posting and a copy of your cover letter if you sent one.

Consider creating a draft email or a new Word or Google file with all of the relevant information. That way, you’ll have all the detailsnotes on the company, key points you want to emphasize during the interview, your cover letter, the job posting, and so onin one spot.

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Take Care To Answer The Questions

When interviewers ask for an example of a time when you did something, they are asking behavioral interview questions, which are designed to elicit a sample of your past behavior. If you fail to relate a specific example, you not only don’t answer the question, but you also miss an opportunity to prove your ability and talk about your skills.

Find A Quiet Environment

11 Useful Phone Screen Interview Tips That Will Help You ...

Find a quiet space where youll be able to hear the interviewer loud and clear. This will make sure you listen to everything they have to say and that you get all of the information you need.Turn off the television or music, and close the door to the space youre using for your interview. Remove any background noise and interview in a quiet space to demonstrate your professional courtesy and let your interviewer know youre taking this job interview seriously.

Do You Know How To Make Your Case To An Interviewer Follow These 10 Interview Tips To Boost Your Chances Of Landing The Job

10 interview tips to boost your chances of landing the job.

The day has come: You found an awesome job on Monster, applied, and got a call from a real-live human being who wants to meet with you. Congrats! But your work has only just begun. Right about now, you need some interview tips. Lucky for you, we’ve got a few good ones.

Even the smartest and most qualified job seekers need to prepare for their job interview. Why, you ask? Interview skills are learned, and there are no second chances to make a great first impression. These 10 interview tips will teach you how to answer interview questions and convince the hiring manager that you are the one for the job.

Phone Interview Tips That Will Land You A Second Interview

By Jeff Gillis

Congratulations!

Your resume is stellar, your application was impeccable, youve caught a potential employers attention and now they want to get to know you better.

In years gone by that would have meant an in person interview but in todays increasingly busy digital world, many preliminary and some final interviews are being held in a wide variety of mediums including on the phone.

A phone interview? As in, we talk on the phone and not actually in person? As in, they have NO idea what Im actually wearing during the interview!? This is AMAZING!

Great, right?

FREE BONUS PDF CHEAT SHEET: Get our “Phone Interview Questions & Answers Cheat Sheet” that gives you word for word sample answers to the most common phone interview questions that you can use in your next phone interview.

Nothing like an interview for your dream job where you can lounge around in your pajamas, secretly watching TV out of the corner of your eye and, gasp, maybe even surf the web at the same time and update your status to Kickin it in my footie jammies knockin out my interview!

Nothis guy isnt ready for his phone interview!

Not so fast. Yes, its true, your future boss might not need to know that youre on the other end of the line in your favorite Scooby Doo flannels, but that doesnt mean that you shouldnt treat the phone interview as seriously, if not more seriously, than any other standard interview.

But..butbut

No buts.

More seriously? Is that even a thing?

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Send A Thank You Note

Do this, and do it soon after your call! The same day is ideal, but a day after at the latest. There are several boxes youll want to check:

Thank them for speaking with you
Highlight conversation topics that stuck out to you
Reemphasize your passion for the role and company
Keep it short and sweet

Heres an example:

Hi Jen,

It was great speaking with you over the phone today. I really enjoyed learning more about The Muses mission to help people find companies and careers they love, and especially enjoyed discussing your vision for expanding the consumer product. Id absolutely love the opportunity to join your team.

I look forward to hearing from you about next steps, but please let me know if theres any other information I can provide in the meantime.

All the best,Alyse

For an easy-to-use template and more examples, read this article on writing a thank you email after an interview.

Golden Rules To Overcome Interview Nerves Forever

Interview Skills – How to succeed at telephone interviews!

To help calm your nerves, follow these overarching guidelines which have been found to be highly effective.

15.Proper Preparation

It is facing the unknown that instils anxiety. If we are about to be thrust in front of many strangers to deliver a speech we should likely feel more trepidation than if we had to give that same speech in front of a group of friends. We know subconsciously that we can expect a favourable and forgiving response from friends, but with strangers we cannot tell what the result might be. Thus a scenario about which we have prior knowledge or is familiar is easier to deal with.

The key to making an unfamiliar situation like the interview into a familiar one is to prepare effectively and this includes:

Research the recruiting company
Complete the MPOWER 6 step plan to smart preparation
Practice answering questions using the Answer Builder and Interview Me modules in InterviewGold
If feasible, visit the offices where the interview will be held
Carry out a mock interview at home
Make sure you have the right clothes and accessories to make a great first impression
Ensure you have all the right tools and information ready for the big day

All of these will help you prepare mentally and help you feel that you are coming home when you arrive at the interview.

16.Avoid Rushing Arrive Calm

17.Use Body Language

18.Positive Mental Messaging

19.Use the AWARE technique for anxiety

A:W:A:R:E:

20.Deep breathing for relaxation

Try this simple exercise

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Ask About The Next Steps

Asking your interviewer about the next steps in the interview process is a good way to express your continued interest in the role and the company. While some employers might be ready to offer you a job, others might have you come in for an in-person interview as they narrow down their candidate search. Knowing the answer to this question will give you an idea of what to expect so you can prepare for the next steps.

Icipate Fully In The Conversation

The interview is your chance to show your positive attitude and your communication skills. These suggestions can help you shine:

Use a pen and paper to make notes, rather than a laptop or other device.
Follow the interviewers lead. Even unusual or what you think are irrelevant questions get asked for a reason.
Listen closely to the questions so you can answer them accurately. If you dont understand a question, politely ask the interviewer to rephrase it. If you dont know the answer, say so.
Take a moment to think before you answer a question. You can also ask to come back to the question later in the interview if you need more time to think about your answer.
Take initiative if you need to. While its a good policy to follow the interviewers lead, sometimes the best approach is to gently guide the conversation to make sure the employer sees how your qualifications relate to the job.
Be pleasant, sincere, and direct.
Stay on topic.
Avoid answering with only yes or no. Try to figure out what the interviewer wants to know and answer with that in mind.
Follow up after the interview. Send a thank-you note or email. In it, emphasize 2 or 3 reasons why youre the best person for the job.

First impressions matter. Following these 4 Ps will help you look confident and capable and show that youre a good fit for the position.

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Filling In Missing Information Or Clarifying Details

You might have created already your shiny CV thanks to our top tips, or optimized your cover letter in English. Nevertheless, sometimes the interviewer or hiring manager thinks the candidate might be a good fit, but certain elements are missing and the interviewer has difficulties figuring them out. Therefore, a phone interview will be scheduled in order to give the interviewee the opportunity to explain himself or herself.

Direct Them To Your Personal Branding Website

How to Succeed in a Phone Interview after an English ...

Say whaaat? Personal branding website?

Oh what, you didnt know one of the best new strategies that all the best job seekers are employing?

Its true, having your own personal branding website can be one of the most powerful tools you use as part of your job search.

Why? Well there are dozens of reasons, but most importantly, a personal website will allow you to impress hiring managers, differentiate yourself from your competitors, increase your visibility online and create a hub for your personal brand online.

Not to mention it lets you show off so much more of your personality than your resume or cover letter can. And this is absolutely HUGE for someone having a phone interview, when the name of the game is standing out and being memorable.

What do you think is more memorable? Someone who submits their resume and cover letter and then answers a few questions over the phone or someone who does all of the above and then directs the hiring manager over to their website, allowing them to receive the many benefits I listed above?

Its a no brainer and heres a little secret.

Its not that hard.

Especially since I made a blog post for you that shows you exactly how to do it, How To Set Up Your Personal Website In Under 15 Minutes. This blog post will hold your hand through the process and make it brain-dead easy for you, even if you are terrible at using computers.

Answer The Call In A Professional Manner And Introduce Yourself

To make sure you sound professional when answering the phone for your interview, start out by stating your name in an upbeat tone, and when the interviewer states who they are, confirm that you were anticipating their call. This way, the interviewer will know who you are and that they reached the correct individual. Additionally, check that your voicemail greeting is professional and clear in case you are unable to answer the phone.

Example:“Hello, this is Gemma Rutherford. I’ve been looking forward to speaking with you, Ms. Anderson.”

Know The Common Types Of Interviews

Employers often conduct multiple rounds of interviews during the hiring process, and its very likely that some of these will be done over the phone. As you try to get past each round, it will be important to know the audience and purpose of each kind of interview to be successful.

In an interview with a recruiter, the interviewers purpose is to validate that your résumé is accurate and that you are capable of fulfilling the position.
In an interview with ahuman resources associate, the purpose is to expand upon your résumé and discover the potential risks and gains of hiring you.
In an interview with thehiring managerandkey decision makers, the purpose is to find out what your unique value is and if you are a good fit for the organization.

As you prepare to interview, make sure you tailor your Power Statements and a Me in 30 Seconds statement for each of the above audiences. And at the beginning of each interview, make an effort to find out who you are speaking with, including their names and positions, so you know how to individualize your answers according to their purposes. This strategy is especially helpful during a phone interview when there are several people on the line.

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