You just got an interview for a position. If it’s your first interview, you’re probably bouncing off of the walls with excitement. If not, you realize that getting an interview is not a guarantee that you have the job.

So, what do you do when you have an interview?

First off, you’ll receive an E-Mail alerting you that someone wants to interview you. If they searched for you and invited you to the job, then you’ll just follow the link in the E-Mail and accept the interview request. If you applied for the job, then you don’t have to “accept the interview” because it’s assumed both parties want to communicate.

The first thing you want to do is to read the message that the buyer sent to you. It should be somewhere in the middle of the E-Mail, and it will contain the information you need to start the interview. Sometimes, a buyer will ask for more examples of your work or to complete a small test-project to see if you’re able to complete the project at hand. If they ask you to do any significant portion of the project they are hiring you for, then you should be very wary! At times, shady buyers will try to get you and the other applicants to do all of the project in sections for free. If they want you to work on the actual project before hiring, then that’s probably the case.

If they just want some samples or other simple information like that, reply to their E-Mail address (or contact them via IM if they have it listed and want you to do so) to state a few times that you will be available for interview.

Here are the three main types of interview you will encounter and the best practices for each:

E-Mail Interview

The E-Mail interview is one of my least favorites because it is so slow. You could send a message today and get a response immediately or next week depending on how often they check their account.

Regardless, that’s how some buyers want to communicate, so to increase your chances of getting hired, follow these guidelines:

• Thank the buyer for the interview in your first E-Mail and offer up any other contact information you have if they want to communicate in another manner.
• Throughout the interview, remain polite and professional as buyers do not want to work with people who “rub them the wrong way.”
• Make sure to spell-check all of your E-Mails and to write them in standard English.
• Send them a list of questions you have about the project as well as any samples that will show your skills for the particular job.
• Respond quickly to any E-Mails you receive so that they don’t have to wait on you.
• Try to cram as much information as you can into a small space without sacrificing the quality of the message or making it too long-winded.

The rest you can figure out between the two of you.

Phone Interview

I’m not crazy about the phone interview as I don’t really enjoy talking on the phone. However, if a buyer asks you for your phone number, then it’s a good idea to give it to them. In the initial E-Mail reply to the interview, you should list the times you are available to talk and offer up other contact methods. Here are the tips for the phone interview:

• Before the call comes, make a list of questions and speaking topics to address while talking on the phone.
• Make sure you are in a place where you will not be distracted and where no other noises will be present to disrupt your call.
• Do whatever you can to not let the call go to voicemail unless you’re absolutely not in a position to take the call.
• When you answer, state, “Hello, this is (your name here).”
• Keep a pen and paper near to take notes about what is said over the phone.
• Speak clearly and at a slightly slower pace than normal.
• Pace the buyer by speaking in the same manner as them: if they’re being completely professional, then you should reflect the same manner as them; however, you should always maintain a basic level of professional manner so that you don’t appear incompetent.
• Schedule the next call while you’re on the phone, and make sure it fits well with their schedule.

 Instant Message Interviews

My personal favorite type of interview is through IMs. There, I have access to all of my records on my computer, I’m able to send them examples immediately, and it’s more like speaking in person without the conflicts of doing so. If you have to step away for a minute or two, you can see what they said by scrolling up. Also, you can save records of the conversation by selecting it in the chat window. Here’s the best practices for IM interviews:

• NEVER use l33tsp3ak or terms including: lol, rofl, wtf, omg, brb, ttyl, and so forth.
• Always type in complete, grammatically correct sentences with correct spelling; if you don’t know how to spell a word, look it up real quick before you use it or use a different word.
• Keep a professional attitude about the conversation and stay on topic.
• Don’t attempt to send any files over IM unless the buyer requests them.
• Don’t use a series of short sentences in the form of a series of posts if you can form all of it into a coherent paragraph as it will spam their screen.
• Always save the conversation for later reference and set up a time to speak with them again.

With some clients, I use all three methods to communicate with them. I always start with an E-Mail reply to thank them for the interview and their consideration. In that E-Mail, I offer my IM contacts and tell them that I’m almost always available. If they request it, I also put my phone number into that E-Mail.

Usually, the client will respond with their preferred method of communication and I follow through on that. If it’s IM, I add them to my list and speak with them the next time I see them online. If it’s phone, I add their number to my cell and wait for the call. If it’s E-Mail, I try to respond to every message I get ASAP.

Really, the main thing to keep in mind is that you need to be confident and clear in all of your communication. If you sound like you know what you’re doing, then people will trust you with the job.

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