Finding a quiet room and charging your phone might not sound like obvious ways to get ahead, but this is paramount to make sure the phone interview goes well. To give yourself a better chance of impressing the recruiter, read over 10 ways to prepare for a successful phone interview.
1. Conduct your research
A phone interview is like any other interview in that you’ll need to do your research beforehand. That way, once you’re on the call, you’ll be able to demonstrate how much you know about the role and the company.
First of all, browse the company website to get a feel for their products, services and values. The website should have a staff page which you can use to gain deeper insight into individual roles. Then, search for your interviewer on social media and extract anything you can bring up in conversation. This is a great way to come up with insightful questions and show how much thought you’ve put into your preparation.
By conducting your research, you’ll gain plenty of knowledge to help you when you pick up the phone.
2. Find out who’s calling who
The logistics of a phone interview could differ between companies and as such, you’ll need to clarify who’s calling who beforehand. After all, you wouldn’t want to miss the interviewer’s call because you’re ringing them at the same time.
Check over your confirmation email and make sure it states who’s ringing who. If you’re in any way unsure, double-check with the company before your call.
Determining whether your call is incoming or outgoing might not sound like a deciding factor, but get it wrong and the interviewer could think you’ll struggle to process instructions in the future.
3. Plan answers to common interview questions
A phone interview could last for between 15 minutes to an hour, so you’ll still need to go over each of the common interview questions. In doing this, you’ll boost your preparation and tell the interviewer what they need to know.
Common interview questions can cover topics such as strengths, weaknesses and why you applied for the job. As such, be sure to think of examples of how you used your skills, and frame your answer so the recruiter knows you fit the job spec.
4. Record yourself to practise your professional phone demeanor
In a phone interview, you won’t be able to use body language and facial expressions to enhance your points like you would in a face-to-face scenario. So, practise your professional phone manner beforehand by recording yourself to make sure you’re nailing your pacing and diction.
When recording yourself, we recommend talking about your career and focusing on your speed, intonation and volume of speech. Remember you’ll be in a professional scenario, so you don’t want to speak as if you were ringing your best friend. When you record yourself, ensure you talk at a suitable pace and sound calm and at ease.
This is also a useful way to notice verbal ticks such as ‘um’ and ‘er’. Using too many utterances in a phone interview could make the recruiter think you’re nervous. So, make sure you cut down on these during your practice.
5. Drink water beforehand
Before a phone interview, you might begin to feel nervous because you’re about to enter the spotlight. Your nerves could then give you a dry mouth, which obviously won’t lead to a confident verbal performance!
So, take a few sips of water beforehand and just like an in-person interview, feel free to take a drink during the call whenever there’s a suitable break in conversation.
6. Print out the job description
Our next piece of advice is to print out the job description and write notes on it to keep in front of you during the call. That way, you’ll have all your best qualities listed in front of you before your phone’s even rung.
Once you’ve printed out the job description, write down next to each duty why you match the criteria. By noting everything down, you’ll drill deep into the required qualities, while you also won’t run the risk of forgetting anything in the heat of the moment.
However, bear in mind there’s an art to using notes in an interview—use notes as a guide, not a script; and make sure the interviewer doesn’t hear you rustling around with your papers!
7. Charge your phone
One of the cruelest quirks of a phone interview is that technology can occasionally work against you. You could be talking away and winning the interviewer over, but if your phone cuts out because you’ve run out of battery, you won’t have an alibi. Always charge your phone beforehand to make sure this doesn’t happen.
If your phone cuts out, the interviewer could interpret this as a lack of planning on your part.
8. Put on your interview outfit
You might not think looking smart makes a difference in a phone interview. However, putting on your sharpest interview outfit could kick you into professional mode and help you achieve success.
After all, bringing out your work attire could remind you of achievements you’ve made in your career and leave you feeling brighter. Lounging around in your pyjamas while talking on the phone might seem like a great idea, but it won’t help you get in the zone before your moment to shine arrives.
9. Decide on an appropriate quiet space
Finding a quiet space to take your call is another way to help you plan for a phone interview. So, if you’re sitting at home, avoid taking the call in a room which people will be walking through, and let anyone in the house know they’ll need to stay quiet.
Background noise is your enemy in this scenario. The interviewer won’t be impressed if they hear a TV blaring in the background.
Alternatively, if you’re out of the house, find a quiet spot such a cafe or a park, and make sure you’ve got strong signal. Better still, if you’re out driving, park somewhere safe and take the call in your car.
10. Get your headphones ready
Finally, we also recommend finding headphones to use during your phone interview. This is another quick trick that will make sure your hands are free to take notes. Of course, you don’t want to risk dropping your phone because you’re trying to scrawl something down!
So, now’s your time to take our advice and ace your planning. As long as you hone your phone manner, plan the logistics of the call and think about why you match the job description, you’ll have a good shot at progressing. In the meantime, also read our guide to multiple stage interview processes.
