Image courtesy of Dave Landry
The days of differentiating yourself from the rest of the hireable crowd using a paper resume, placed on top of another stack of possible candidates is so past tense. Putting your important stats on a certain type of high quality paper, using a “special” color with a unique texture, is from our grandparents’ era, not ours.
Welcome to the 21st century!
Paper is passe and today, technology is king. Faxes are antiquated, emails are usually simply scanned or overlooked altogether, rarely opened and quickly filed into the “trash” folder without even being reviewed. Live interviews, especially those found on the Skype platform, are where your potential employers will find the most qualified candidate they’ll see today.
But how can you put your best foot forward and be that candidate?
Turn In The Rest and Put Out Your Best
During the early stages of the hiring process, potential employers will ask for these types of outdated applications, but on a more technological scale, such as a resume submitted online, including where you’ve studied, your references, and contact information. They may want other online information such as your Facebook profile and LinkedIn information, but here’s where you can offer something more valuable instead – an individual, up-to-date, and realistic, face-to-face meeting on Skype.
Here are ten tips on how to make sure this meeting goes off without a hitch:
1. Speaking of hitches, if there are technical difficulties, stay professional and don’t panic.
2. Do a practice run with a friend or family member. Look for possible problems before you go live with a potential employer.
3. Dress for success. Not that you have to wear a tuxedo, but look professional.
4. And wear pants! Just because you’ll only be seen from the waist up doesn’t mean something unexpected might happen that will make you get up for some reason.
5. Make sure you have a professional username. There’s nothing wrong with using your full name or even your initials and your last name. This will also help to remember who you are in the real world.
6. Consider your background. A cluttered or junky looking backdrop is no way to make a first impression.
7. Wear a headset. This shows that you’re not only well-equipped, but this will help lessen the occurrence of unnecessary background noise.
8. Avoid unnecessary interruptions. Close down your email and social media notifications, and turn off the sound on your phone. Make sure other people in your household are aware you’re unavailable and not to be bothered during the time of your interview.
9. Maintain eye contact and be yourself. While you’ll want to remain professional, you don’t want to be so tightly wound that you come off frigid or unfriendly.
10. Don’t avoid using Skype. If this is the platform a possible employer wants to use, go with it and don’t make excuses. Even if you’re more comfortable on the phone or prefer an interview in person, accommodate their request.
Using today’s technology is what employers are expecting and you should treat a Skype interview the same way you would a face-to-face meeting. Good luck on your online interview!
This article was contributed by guest author Dave Landry.