By Chelsea Babin

A phone interview is often the first step in the interview process, but preparing for a phone interview isn’t exactly the same as preparing for an interview. While you should still do your research ahead of time and find a quiet, controlled location, there are several other things you can do to set yourself up for success in a phone interview. If you want to move to the next step in the interview process, use these 5 helpful phone interview tips!

1. Speak Clearly and Conversationally: It’s absolutely essential that you speak clearly so that your interviewer can understand everything you say during your phone interview. But, just as important, is to keep the phone interview feeling conversational. That natural back and forth will help them picture what you might be like to work with every day. Because they have yet to put a face to a resume, keeping it conversational will be the best thing you can do to help them picture you in the position.

2. Make Yourself a Cheat Sheet: The best thing about a phone interview is that the interviewer can’t see you and, therefore, can’t see if you have a cheat sheet next to you! If you have questions you want to remember to ask, accomplishments you want to make sure to bring up, or even a few prepared answers to common interview questions you can use them to make a cheat sheet that you keep nearby during your phone interview. Having this to reference will keep you calm, cool, collected, and on track.

3. Project Your Optimism With a Smile: Because you don’t have any body language clues when you’re on the phone, you need to project your optimism and enthusiasm for the position in a different way. Although you may not know it, smiling can change your tone. Seriously, people can hear you smile and it makes them think positive thoughts about you and smile too. Make sure you project your optimism with a smile throughout the phone interview.

4. Keep Your Resume and the Job Description Where You Can See Them: Remember, the person interviewing you can’t see you and all they know of you so far is what they’ve seen on your resume. Similarly, all that you know of the position thus far is what you’ve read in the job description. To clear up any miscommunications and to have a general idea of what you and they know so far, keep your resume and the job description where you can see them so you can reference them during the phone interview if you need to.

5. Ask What the Next Steps Are: As the phone interview is ending, the best thing you can do to help move to the next interview step is to ask what the next steps are. This not only shows that you’re truly interested in the position but that you’re thinking ahead and trying to prepare for every possible eventuality. When you seem like the kind of person who prepares ahead and thinks about the future, you’ll be a more enticing potential hire.

With the help of these 5 phone interview tips, you will be able to easily move on to the next steps in the interview process and, eventually, secure the new job you really want. Good luck during your phone interview!