Improve your Zoom game — at least for important interviews.

(Photo by Anna Shvets on Pexels)

If you haven’t had a lot of experience using a video conferencing platform for work, you may have questions, like “Can I really just wear pajamas?” or “Do people really go pants-less in Zoom meetings?”

(The answers are no, and if they do it right, no one will ever know.)

With remote work remaining popular, even as some companies are moving back to the office, your next company might not be located locally, making Zoom (or Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet, etc.) the way you’ll likely speak with your potential new employers.

When it comes to a virtual job interview, there are three main considerations: the company’s workplace culture, your personal Zoom environment, and basic on-camera tips for looking professional.

If the job is corporate, you can’t go wrong dressing business professional, with a suit or jacket and tie. And no, you don’t have to worry about going all out on a skirt or slacks, but you do need to wear something other than pajama bottoms in case you have to get up suddenly for some reason.

If you know for a fact that the company’s office culture is casual, you still might want to go more professional than you would in the office, or follow the general rules of business casual, which is different from casual casual.

Ultimately, always look for cues. If you receive a pre-interview email and it says “We are strictly casual, no suits ever!” then that’s the guide you follow.

(And workplace leaders, remember: Any written dress code policy should be gender neutral.)

If you’re new to video calls, you’ll want to consider where you’re going to set your laptop for the interview, including your surrounding environment.

A blank, neutral wall is safe — maybe a little bit bland, but safe. It might take some rearranging of furniture to get such a wall behind you if your desk ordinarily has your back facing a room, but it’s worth the trouble if it means not standing and holding your laptop or phone. That isn’t going to work, and it definitely won’t look professional.

Ideally, you have a corner of your space where you can curate a background – maybe a bookshelf or a piece of art behind you. That adds just a little bit of your personality, without exposing too much. Just don’t overdo it to the point of distraction (and check out Room Raters for inspo).

If you have no choice but to have a full view of a room in your background, make it as uncluttered as possible. You can also use Zoom’s blur feature for more privacy, or a simple, neutral Zoom background.

If you don’t feel good about your space, you might look into using a free study space or a meeting room at your public library (reservations usually required), community center, school or coworking space.

Unless you use Zoom frequently, you should do a test run by yourself or with a friend before the interview, checking the to see that everything is ready to go for interview time.

Once you get this down, Zoom interviews and meetings will start to get less stressful. Just watch out for Zoom burnout once you get the job.