COVID-19 has created an extremely unique job market where remote recruiting and hiring has become the new normal. There are definite advantages of hiring through video recruiting, but since it’s new to many job seekers, you may feel you’ll struggle to shine in this digitized recruiting process. Here are the steps you can take to ensure that your recorded interview stands out to recruiters and hiring managers.
I have over a decade of experience as a hiring manager. Here are my recorded video interview tips on how to grab the attention of a hiring manager.
Tip# 1: Show your personality.
Hiring managers are going to be watching dozens, if not hundreds, of videos and this is not even the final stage of the recruiting process. That will get tiring — so the more you showcase your own personality, the better chance you have of them remembering your application. Do you have a favorite book that influenced your career? A piece of artwork that’s especially important to you? An inspirational yet simple recipe for a mean guacamole? Highlight those things to stand-out and use a visual cue! Make sure that 90% of your video is dedicated to answering the application questions, highlighting your skills, and talking about your experience, but the other 10% should be memorable!
Tip #2: Brand the whole image.
If you’re interviewing for a very professional environment, consider keeping the background simple, but if you’re interviewing for a creative role or know that the company takes a lighter approach to hiring, use the background to your advantage. Let the background tell the hiring manager something that they wouldn’t glean from your resume. Pick out a picture or image that’s relevant to you and the hiring company. This should highlight your creativity as an individual. This also shows that you took the time to research the company culture and values.
Tip #3 Don’t stare at the image of yourself.
Set some sort of visual cue like a small post-it tab next to the lens to remind you to look at the camera. When recording a video for hiring, it’s very tempting for candidates to watch themselves answer a question, which can be problematic. Not only can it appear you’re not making eye contact with the interviewer, but candidates tend to overanalyze their own image and begin tripping over their answers.
Tip #4 Do the research.
Companies want to know that not only are you interested in the role, but you’re interested in the company, too. So make sure you do research on the actual company. Some questions to consider are:
- When was the company founded?
- What can you find about the company culture?
- Is there anything unique about the founder(s)?
- Has the company recently won any awards?
- Who are their main competitors?
- What’s their flagship product?
Find something noteworthy or interesting about the company and then showcase it in your video. It doesn’t have to be fancy, just illustrate that you’ve done the work!
Standing out in a one-way video interview can make or break your ability to make it to the next step in the hiring process, but if you follow these steps your chances of being a standout candidate are that much higher!
About the Author
Jordan DiPietro is the Managing director of The Blueprint, a business and tech venture by The Motley Fool. Jordan has been working in the financial industry for 15 years and has spent the last decade as a marketing and growth specialist at The Motley Fool. He has a passion for creating quality content and building scalable products that focus on serving individuals, entrepreneurs, and investors.
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