A telephone interview is a common stage in the application process. However, they can be a little uncomfortable as you can not judge the other person’s reaction, good or bad! Here are my tips on how to perform at your best and have a strong phone interview.
Sit somewhere you feel calm. Even a coffee shop will do, as long as you are calm and relaxed, this will help you.
Walk or stand if possible. Sales people do this for a reason. Walking or standing gives you positive energy and changes the tone of your voice to sound more confident.
Have notes in front of you. The great thing about a phone interview is that you can’t be seen, so you can have answers for potential questions written down.
Have a the profile of the interviewer in front of you. If you have their LinkedIn profile up, it will help you visualise that person and help you build report with them.
Have questions for them, that are more personal than usual. Instead of asking more about the role, ask about their career history or what they like about the company. This personal touch will really help build that rapport you need, but than can be hard to get over the phone.
Have a good phone signal. This is essential. Nothing puts an interviewer off more than an interview that has to keep stopping.