It was a trend long before the pandemic, a timesaver and an efficiency move:  do the first round of interviews for an open position via video.  No need for travel, hotels, parking, reimbursable expenses, time spent in transit – you get the drill.  Interview from the comfort of your own home.  Everyone wins, even if you don’t get the job.

Then of course the pandemic meant that either organizations had to stop hiring altogether or become fully virtual.  Economic hardship did shut down a good deal of hiring, but for those companies that were still growing – or had a sudden need for new employees because of the pandemic – video interviewing became the only viable option.

So if you are looking for a new job, the high probability is that you will be interviewed via video.  How do you show up successfully in that strange format, ace the interview, and get the offer?  Following are five tips for successful online interviewing.

Remember the (unspoken) purpose of an interview.  Hirers interview in person to see if they get a good feeling about the job candidate.  They may have specific things they are consciously looking for, but unconsciously it comes down to trust.  And we tend to trust people most like us.  That’s why implicit biases are so destructive to fair hiring practices.  If you’re the candidate, then, you are best served to work hard to find commonalities with your interviewer.  At minimum, mirror the speech patterns of the person on the organizational end – repeat phrases, find areas of agreement, use the person’s name, use the word “we” as much as possible.  You can also mirror the physical movements of the interviewer to an extent, but that will be somewhat limited due to the reduced visibility of even a high-quality video connection.  Typically, you can only see the other person’s head and shoulders, for instance.  So focus on mirroring the words and messages.

Show up with enthusiasm.  Video interviews are even more nerve-wracking than the face-to-face kind, and so you need to avoid the tendency to shut down that sometimes accompanies nerves and instead amp up your performance to about 120% of normal.  Get a little more excited, a little more enthusiastic, a little more present.  Get those hands on camera and wave them around to show some animation.  Move your head, smile, keep your face mobile and expressive.  This is not the time for a poker face.

Have a good story to tell.  A video connection, even though it can look like you’re in the same room, is actually a two-dimensional version of a three-dimensional event.  As such, it is simply less engaging than being there.  Physical presence matters.  So compensate by having a good story to tell about your connection to the organization you want to join.  The story should have emotion, an arc, and action – just like any good story.  That will help you and the interviewer stay engaged past the ten-minute mark, when Zoom calls start to feel long.

Make sure you stay on message.  There’s nothing worse than a story that goes on way too long, so keep it crisp and have a list of 5 short messages (or so) that you are going to get across no matter the questions asked.  Messages that highlight your qualifications, that demonstrate your understanding of the role and the organization, and that show how you can solve problems the organization has.

Make use of the digital.  Interviewing online has one distinct advantage that face-to-face interviews lack:  you can look up the answer to just about any question.  You shouldn’t have to be stumped, or tongue-tied, or at a loss for words.  The Internet is full of them, those words, and they are at your disposal.  But it’s not just about having a crib sheet for the test, either.  You can prepare slides, visuals, fact sheets, and so on that you can share with the interviewer in real time if it seems appropriate.  Being online means never having to say, “I dunno,” at least to questions that have concrete answers.

I’m going to assume you’ve thought about wearing proper clothes and having an uncluttered background without piles of laundry in view.  And that you’ve got a good mic and bright lighting.  Those are the basics for looking like a person who is not in the witness protection program.  Beyond that, follow these tips for a successful online interview, and good luck!