Most corporate videos rely heavy on a filmed interview. Seeing a key individual of stakeholder on camera speaking directly to the audience about a certain can help to lead credibility to the topic being discussed and establish the individual that’s speaking as an authority. Between these high production value filmed interviews and the video chat meetings that we are all very familiar with now, being prepared for a video interview in advance can go a way to making the process smooth and successful. Read on for the 5 steps that we use with our clients to be prepared for a video interview.
Step 1 – Outline your Key Points
The most important step before an interview is to know what you’re going to talk about. In some cases, someone else will be asking you questions, but you should always go into an interview situation with a good idea of the key points that you want to deliver on camera.
Your key points should just be in bullet point form. Don’t worry about writing a lengthy script… Many times when people write out a script that they want to try and delivery verbatim they find themselves too locked-in to that script and will then mess up on camera if they don’t deliver the scripted language exactly as they had planned.
Instead, make sure to be well-informed about the topic that you are discussing and try to project confidence. That, with the bullet point list to make sure that you stay on track, will help to make you an effective on-camera interviewee.
Step 2 – Check Your Key Points with Stakeholders
If you are just giving an interview for your own purposes, this step may be less important, but if you represent a large organization and/or are in an industry that is heavily regulated (like finance) it is imperative that you check your talking points with your key stakeholders like your legal team, marketing team, upper management, etc. It is important that every member of the team is on the same page with the communication coming out of the organization and that nothing will be said on-camera that is not authorized by these key business partner teams.
Assuming you have full authority to discuss the key points you’ve selected, keep in mind that you may want to get a release signed by your team so that the production team or media outlet has full clearance to publish what you’ve said on camera.
Step 3 – Determine Interview Length
In many cases, interview length will be determined by the person interviewing you. Whether this is for an interview that is being broadcast live or you are working with a production company to develop a video, they will often dictate how long your segment is. Make sure to consider this when putting together your key points.
Generally speaking; shorter, more powerful statements work better than long drawn-out thoughts or speeches. Although you may feel that you have A LOT to say about your topic, the reality is that most audiences want just the highlights so that they can gain a basic understanding of your topic, but not full mastery of that subject. This can also help when trying to draw in an audience, give them the high-level basic pieces first, and then later offer a “deeper dive” if there seems to be interest there.
As an easy way to remember the best way to structure your interview length and subject matter, just remember the saying “Be BOLD, Be BRIEF, and Be GONE!”
Step 4 – PRACTICE
Practice really does make perfect. At least for me, in my younger years I was more open to practicing something. As I’ve gotten older I have tended to adopt a feeling of “I’m great, I don’t NEED to practice!” In reality though, practicing helps me to clarify my key points and to clear up my head before an important interview. Although I can’t speak for everyone, I feel that practicing your interview will help you a ton in making sure that you are polished and ready for anything that might be thrown at you during an interview.
Step 5 – Wardrobe
How you look on camera is very important. Period. When choosing your wardrobe for an on-camera interview, make sure that you follow the following points:
- Pick an outfit that matches your subject matter and position. If you are being interviewed for a construction magazine, you should probably not be wearing a tuxedo. Conversely, if you are the CEO of a Fortune 500 company being interviewed by a major news outlet, you probably wouldn’t wear a tank top.
- No crazy patterns. Solid colors work best, but basic patterns are ok. Try to help yourself stand out on camera by not picking the same color as your background. IE if you are being filmed in front of a dark background, choose a lighter top… if the background is bright, go with a darker color. If you don’t know what the background is going to be like, a dark color would probably be better.
- Hair Care. Make sure you’re looking fresh with a clean haircut and styled hair.
Conclusion
As you can see by these tips, the common theme to helping have a successful video interview is to PREPARE AHEAD OF TIME. Do these things and you’ll be well on your way.
If you want some additional help preparing for an on-camera interview OR if you need someone to help you film an interview or corporate video for your business, please reach out to us! We love helping businesses use video to grow and optimize their operations. Get in touch with us by emailing info@chromaticdc.com or by filling out any of the contact forms that are found on our website.
