Today, companies often prescreen candidates on Skype before bringing potential employees into the main office for an in-person meeting. Others use Skype to connect remotely with colleagues in different locations. Observing job-seekers on Skype made it clear to me that many people don’t know how to use this technology to their best advantage.
Here are 6 Suggestions to help you use and interview effectively using Skype:
- Test the equipment before a meeting or interview. Make sure your Skype connection is working properly. Five minutes before the start of a meeting is not the time to find out that you do not have any volume.
- Use a nondistracting background that is clear and uncluttered. Make sure your location has good lighting. Be careful if you have a window behind you. If it is bright outside, you will appear as a dark silhouette. Run a test with a friend or colleague to make sure you look good in your surroundings.
- Practice. Remember you are creating a snapshot of yourself. Practice so that you know how you come across. People tend to over gesture. His behavior is distracting when you are on Skype.
- Make sure your clothing is appropriate. Just because you are not meeting in person does not mean the interviewer or business associate cannot see what you are wearing. And don’t assume only your upper body is showing. Dress professionally from head to toe.
- Smile. Let your personality shine through. Speak audibly and clearly. Talk to the camera—keep in mind that when you are looking at your computer screen, you may appear to be looking down; when you look directly at the camera, you will appear to be looking your Skype partner in the eye. And just as in any interview, be prepared for the questions.
- Control interruptions. Make sure in advance that there will be no phones ringing and no people walking in and out of your room.
Barbara Pachter is an internationally renowned business etiquette and communications speaker, coach and author. She is also an adjunct faculty member in the School of Business at Rutgers University. She holds a BA and MA from the University of Michigan and majored in Education and Communications. To learn more read her book The Essentials of Business Etiquette and go to her website www.pachter.com