With video interviews, you do not have the fear of actually facing the interviewer in-person. You don?t have to worry about how you walk, how you sit, how you cross your legs. Video interviews might have an advantage over in-person interviews for many people.
The rise of startups and remote working culture is making video interviews more common because they are more convenient and make the most sense considering many of the employees are from different geographical regions.
While they can be easier than in-person interviews because you aren?t exactly in the presence of the person, they are still interviews and you need to make a good impression. Having a problem with your audio, video, the background should be the last thing that creates a problem for you.
Here?s how to set-up your video interview perfectly.
Choose a Plain and Neutral Background
Too noisy or dark background can distract the interviewer. You want the attention to be on yourself. Do not choose your bedroom if it has a lot of posters. Position yourself against a plain and neutral background for the setting to have a professional feel.?
Choose a quiet place so that you can better hear your interviewer. You do not need the noise distracting you, it can make it difficult to focus on the questions and your answers. Avoid going to public places such as cafes, malls, or parks for your interview unless you know that it isn?t going to be crowded and won?t interfere with your interview.
Test Audio and Camera Quality
Test your audio and camera quality beforehand to make sure that the interview goes smoothly. You don?t want to be testing the audio with the interviewer where you both have to repeat yourselves, nor do you want to be connecting and disconnecting again and again.?
It will stress you out even before the interview begins because it will set the tone for the interview. It will also show a lack of preparedness on your part if your microphone doesn?t work and you didn?t check it before.
Check the Lighting in the Room
It doesn?t matter if you have the best quality camera, poor lighting will do no justice to it. Make sure you are in a well-lit room so that the interviewer can see you and you can portray the best version of yourself.
Elevate Your Laptop?
This is one of the underrated tips. People usually forget that you have to be looking at the camera to make eye contact with the interviewer when in a video interview. The camera not being at the eye level doesn?t help. If the camera is too low, then you will be slouching to look at it, and the limited body language that can be read through video isn?t going to be good.
Place your laptop at eye level to make it easier for you to look into the camera and avoid your posture from not being confident. Avoid staring down into the camera, place your laptop at a desk to look straight ahead. Your laptop should be in your line your vision when you look straight ahead; this will help you have a proper posture and maintain eye contact during the interview.
Final Thoughts
Keep these tips in mind to not run into a technical difficulty when giving a video interview. Other than that keep the interviewer?s number in hand to call if the connection breaks and you will be all set.
