How to be your best during a Video Chat

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As the October 5th and 6th live days at the Virtual Job Summit approach, you probably have a few thoughts in mind. How can I best take advantage of these live days? How do I make a stong impression in a video chat? Here are X steps that can help.

Visit the Summit in the week before the live days. Examine which employers interest you, and mark down their Office Hours in your calendar (remember, the hours are listed in the Eastern time zone). Then, and this is the important part, do a thorough examination of the materials, links, and listings at the virtual booths of the employers of interest.
Prepare your materials with the jobs and employer you have in mind. Adjust your resume and cover letter to address their needs and interests. The most customized your presentation, both written and verbal, the better your chances. The written pre-work is a very valuable preparation for the verbal.
Arrive at the Employers virtual booth for Office Hours as early as you can. Recruiters will be less anxious about getting to everybody.
Dress just as you would for an in person interaction. Being neat in your dress and grooming is just as important over the video camera as it is in person.
Check to see how many people are in the booth with you. If you are alone, you can afford to take more of the recruiter’s time. If there are others in the booth, you need to be mindful to keep your time with the recruiter to 3 to 5 minutes.
Click on the Chat Icon when you are in the booth, and request a chat. The recruiter will be with you shortly!When the recruiter comes to you, present your interest in their company and some of their specific job openings first. This will help the recruiter to frame the coming match of your skills. Then, present your background and skills and show the correlation between you and their opening.
Have a couple of relevant questions about the positions, skills required, company culture, or hiring process ready to stimulate the conversation. You want to make the impression of being bright, curious, and informed.Then, close with handing your documents over (this is easily done by sending it as a “message” to the recruiter.As with anything, practice makes perfect. Find a friend and practice your pitches a few times to find the word combinations that work best. Time yourself to be sure you are within the 5 minute threshold.

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Good luck on the live days. Remember, the recruiters are excited to meet you. They’re here looking for top talent like you. But, they’re busy, so they’re depending on you to help make their job easier for them by giving them information about how you fit their open positions.