Congratulations! You have finally got a date for your telephone interview. However this can be where the worries set in, what will it be like, what should I do, and what shouldn’t I do? This section will take away your worries and give you the confidence to get through the interview professionally and without any errors. You will learn the strategies for dealing with problematic questions along with impressing the interviewer and ensuring a positive outcome. Great, so let’s begin preparing you for the big day: your telephonic interview.

Recheck Interview Instructions

Prior to the telephonic interview date and time ensure that they are correct as per specification from the interviewer. If the interviewer is calling from abroad match your local time with their time zones. It is advisable to set a reminder in your calendar in case you have other appointments. As soon as you take the call greet the interviewer politely and use their full name, Make sure you know the correct pronunciation of the interviewers name, you can check the pronunciation here https://www.pronouncenames.com

Do a check of your laptop and internet to make sure they are working so the interview will run smoothly without interruption. Position yourself in a quiet place to avoid background noise & disturbance, furthermore let people know you are holding an interview and not to disturb you.

Research About Organisation

Before taking an interview you must research about company background, maximum people ignore about this critical information, Read about company founder, what services they have been offering, what’s revenue, name of the company clients, Mission and Vision of the company and so one. Interviewer asks these questions to know how much well prepared and serious about your job, they love hearing about their company. Just as you would do for a face to face so, you just got yourself invited for a telephonic interview? Bravo! However, if the idea of making an impression from distance gets you feeling worries, do not be anxious. We have got your back!

Prior to the telephonic interview date and time ensure that they are correct as per specification from the interviewer. If the interviewer is calling from abroad match your local time with their time zones. It is advisable to set a reminder in your calendar in case you have other appointments. Do a check of your laptop and internet to make sure they are working so the interview will run smoothly without interruption. Position yourself in a quiet place to avoid background noise & disturbance, furthermore let people know you are holding an interview and not to disturb you.

Resume is the Mirror of Skills

The very first question asked in telephonic interview is “Tell me about yourself” Resume is the mirror of your skills and work experience, so speak the same way as you crafted your resume, So it is a good idea to keep your resume handy with you to avoid missing crucial points of your achievement.

Make a Cue Sheet

Although a telephone interview may seem rather intimidating it does have one great plus point, you are not face to face with the interviewer. So, preparing a cue sheet is worth considering, a cue sheet is a set of standard questions used in interviews and you write a few key words and points for each one, this will solve the problem of forgetting to mention something important, like some experience or example you have related to your career path. You can look for model answers to questions on the internet and adapt them to fit with your profile, but a word of warning DO NOT copy any answer you see, interviewers know all the tricks and they will realise if you try to cheat which will almost certainly mean you will miss the chance of getting your dream job.

Watch, Practice and Improve

Before taking real telephonic ask your friends or family member to do monk up telephonic interview once your telephonic interview is scheduled, while doing rehearse telephonic interview record conversation and later one listen , make list of mistakes and try to improve upon. Now in digital age there are various apps available on mobile app store, which help you doing recording and listening. There are also various plugging are available on internet, where you can listen recording of others mock-up telephonic interview to get better idea for doing practices.

How to Face Difficult Questions

As we know no one no everything so if in telephonic interview if interviewer ask difficult question, do not panic. Take a long breath wait a moments and think. You may use your cue sheet or look around in your notes or laptop for reference before answering. However, if you cannot get answers, politely say no to interviewer, it’s better to say no instead of giving wrong information.

Ask Question Regarding Profile

It is always win-win situation to ask couple of questions to interviewer regarding the job profile, learning opportunity, career growth & Company culture, etc. It will show your interest and definitely impressed your keenness, confidence and positive mind set for joining the company. It’s also good idea to ask the recruiter about the right time to get feedback for interview feedback right time & right person. Before asking these questions make sure if it is right time to ask. However, do not rush too to ask for these questions. This is an important point that is often ignored by many. A call waiting can easily cause distraction and break the flow of your conversation. Do not forget to turn off call waiting on your phone when getting ready to take the interview call.

Make sure not any possible Interruption

This is a no-brainer. You cannot have a smooth conversation with sounds playing in the background. Check that your television, music, etc. are turned off. Get to a quiet and comfortable area with no possible interruptions. Furthermore, if you live with family or friends, inform them about the call beforehand, so that no one interrupts you in between and maintain silence.

Be a good Listener

Want to impress your interviewer, if yes be a good listener besides speaking, listening is very crucial as it allow understand better interviewer if you want, be a good listener. Don’t interrupt interviewer, while he is speaking, listen carefully for deeper level of understanding

Important Points

Make sure you start your interview with note book and pen, as we forget vital information because your brain busy with interviewer question & their answer so it’s good idea to Note down important point & if any question you want to ask to interviewer,

Be polite and impressive

• Being polite always win the situation in your favour, Greet interviewer softly and use formal words
• By Saying Good Morning/afternoon/ evening/ night, Thank you, pardon & sorry.
• So your willingness for interview like saying, passionately waiting for the interview.
• Use ‘Mr. ‘(or ‘Mister’) for Male and ‘Mrs.’ or ‘Ms.’ For Female
• ‘Mrs.’ for married woman, Ms. For unmarried Female.
• Use Modals instead of tenses like  
• Instead of give me… use could you pass me
• Excuse me or pardon. Vs What
• Can or could you hold, please instead wait or hold on.
• Instead of Stop use would you mind…?

Holding it all together

It’s essential that during the interview you don’t start feeling negative if perhaps you lose confidence. Always try to handle the situation in a calm un-hurried way, look on the bright side, you haven’t failed until you’re rejected. So keep your head, take a deep breath and keep talking. Having control of the tone of your voice will help you if you feel negative, don’t let your feeling be apparent in your voice. Speak slowly and clearly, this will enable the interviewer get a clear idea of your positive attitude and skills.

Thanks go a long way

Just as is always said that making a good opening impression is important in the interview, the same can be said of the end of the interview. Thanking the interviewer for the opportunity and for their time will go a long way to helping you be remembered. In addition you can ask for feedback on the interview and when you are likely to hear the result, always be polite and don’t sound over confident or arrogant, equally though don’t sound too humble like you are begging.

• Finally some Dos and don’ts in a telephonic interview
• Finally a few obvious things you definitely should not do in a telephone interview
• Don’t change the time or date of your interview unless it’s a real emergency.
• No eating or drinking while the interview is in progress.
• Remember this is about your professional life not your personal life.
• Keep your language formal, it’s not a chat with a friend.
• Make sure you conduct the interview in an appropriate place
• Not while you are out and certainly not when you are driving or on public transport.
• Ensure that the interview is your priority, don’t as the interviewer to wait while you take another call or do something else.
• Don’t lose your cool, keep talking.