In this article, we are going to talk about a dreaded virtual event and that is the online interview. We are going to look at the simple ways on how you will be able to prepare for your interview and what you have to do during and after.
Before the Virtual Event
Check Your Devices Before the Virtual Event
The first thing you have to do when going to an online interview is to prepare your hardware. Much can be said about having all the technology at your fingertips but if you are not able to make most use of your gadgets, then that is just wasted potential. Before your interview, make sure that you doubly checked your main device and prepare a backup device in case the first one fails. If your device is a laptop or a tablet, make sure that it is fully charged before the actual interview. It will not also hurt to have your powerbank ready in case the power is interrupted.
Checking the main device is one thing, checking the peripherals connected to the main device is another story. If you are using a laptop or a tablet, you have to check the device on the actual software that you will be using for the interview. Checking the devices over a different software may give you a false sense of security. Some device settings may have to be enabled or disabled first before you can be sure that it will actually work the way that you intend it to. If you are using a desktop, then it would be doubly important to check the peripherals as compatibility issues may arise on the actual interview.
Pick A Suitable Location For The Virtual Event Feed
Interviewers usually try to gain as much insight into the interviewee. This means that, other than your credentials, accomplishments and experience, they will also look at your manner of speaking, your attire, and, given that you will be interviewing from a location outside the halls of a building’s office, they may start writing notes about your location from which you are interviewing from. Being able to choose your background is both an advantage and a disadvantage. On one hand you will be able to choose what you want your interviewers to see, but on the other, if you are not careful, they will see something that you may not want them to see instead.
You will basically have two choices here, either go for the bland plain background or you could gamble and choose a background that might actually help you win some points for the interview. One thing that you have to keep in mind though, is that if you are even a little bit unsure of the background or if you may not have total control over what is going to happen behind you, then you may just be better off by just picking a blank background. Having a few ornaments on the wall, may not be a problem though. Just make sure that it will not be distracting for the interviewer.
Mock The Virtual Event
They say that practice makes perfect and it is no different when doing an online interview. Having a practice virtual event means that you will be able to test not just your actual interview skills but the software and hardware that you will be using as well. Ask a friend, or a family member to act as the interviewer and give him or her a set of often asked questions that you think are relevant for the job. To help you prepare, we will talk about some of the more commonly in a virtual setting asked questions and what the best responses are.
The first question that you will probably hear from your interviewer, and indeed in any virtual event, is can you hear me, or do you see my screen just fine. If you have been to countless online meetings, then you may not feel compelled to answer this question as you are used to waiting for someone else to answer. In the case of an online interview, you should be wary that you are the only one there and any hopes of confirming the availability and of your interviewer’s audio and video feed lies solely on your hands. Make sure to answer honestly as well since it may not work in your favor if you are unable to clearly hear what your interviewer is saying.
After the mock interview, ask the mock interviewer to comment on the way you sound or look over the virtual channel. This may give you tips on how to prepare your voice, your appearance and your background as well. There may be no right answer to the question of the best preparation, but at least you can get as close to it as possible by ensuring that you practice.
One mock interview should be plenty but if you feel that you need more ways to prepare, especially if the interviewer is a virtual unknown, then feel free to set up more mock interviews with multiple people.
Prepare For Virtual Event Failures
Despite all our advances in tech, there really is no real assurance that everything will work just fine even if you did all the preparations. A fortuitous event could happen anytime in the middle of the interview which could hurt your chances of landing the job. The answer is, of course to always have a backup plan, but that may not always be enough. Should technical difficulties lead to the virtual event’s cancellation, then you should be able to convey that message clearly to the interviewer. The best case scenario is that he or she will reschedule the interview, or at worst, he or she will not feel offended by your sudden disappearance. Make sure that you have other means of contacting the interviewer be it via mobile, landline or other means. It will not also hurt to warn the interviewers beforehand of possible technical problems that may arise.
