5 Tips to Make Candidates Feel Comfortable During a Job Interview

Job interviews can be stressful for your company and the candidate. To ensure candidates can effectively demonstrate their skills and want to work for your company, make them feel comfortable.

We will share 5 easy-to-implement tips to help you cultivate this welcoming job interview.

1. Ask Proper Interview Questions

The last thing you want to do is turn the job interview into an interrogation! You will only make the candidate anxious and leave a bad impression.

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Instead, you need to focus on the number of questions you ask and their nature. You should have a mixture of general and specific questions. A common job interview practice is to start with general open-ended questions such as the candidate’s college degree and industry experience. Then getting more specific and asking about particular projects and how they demonstrated certain skills such as leadership and critical thinking.

When asking job interview questions, make sure you give the candidate enough time to answer. Don’t pressure them to answer right away.

Also, don’t be afraid to prod the candidate to get them to expand on their answer if you feel it was too brief or off-topic. If you feel like you are going too far into interrogation mode, break up the questions by talking about your own work experience.

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By asking the right types and number of questions, you will get the candidate to open and effectively highlight their expertise.

2. Create a Positive and Inviting Atmosphere

Some companies’ job interview process involves ushering candidates into a soulless and windowless room, where they are then bombarded with questions by an unfriendly HR manager. It may seem like common sense, but so many companies fail to realize that they also need to sell themselves to the candidate.

Many candidates have multiple job interviews lined up and are not desperate for your exact position.

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To ensure a candidate wants to work for your company, you need to make the job interview a positive experience. Here are some ways to enhance the job interview experience:

  • Pick a location – Does your office have amazing views? Why not host the job interview there! Or maybe you know a great little coffee place close by. The right location can help you connect with the candidates and make them feel relaxed.
  • Offer them a drink – A small little gesture can go a long way! Every time you meet with a candidate, you should offer them a glass of water or a coffee. When a candidate is trying to decide between multiple companies, these little moments can sway their decision.
  • Give them a little gift – Nothing shows appreciation like a little souvenir. It doesn’t have to be anything extravagant, but giving candidates a company keyring or pen is a great way to establish a connection, and thank them for their time.

3. Create a Good First Impression

If you want your candidates to be relaxed and ready to perform, you need to get them in a comfortable headspace, and it starts with the very time you meet them. You should greet all candidates with a big smile and handshake.

You want them to feel your positivity and not be scared. Before the interview, you should start with some small talk to establish rapport with the candidate and warm them up for the interview.

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It is common for candidates to be nervous and a little stiff. By getting them talking about general topics, you can get them relaxed and more fluid.

Just before the start of the interview, you should offer a few words of encouragement to the candidate, such as “you will do great” or “I know you will smash it.” Also, give some helpful advice, such as telling the candidate to take a deep breath and take their time.

During the interview, you should continue to offer words of encouragement, especially if they have trouble answering certain questions. Don’t make the candidate feel bad for making a mistake, and encourage them to keep going.

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4. Don’t Forget to Talk About Yourself

Remember to start the interview by properly introducing yourself to the candidate, even if you will work in different departments in different offices. A detailed introduction is great for building rapport with the candidate and allows them to get a better feel for the company.

Also, it signals to the candidate that they are being interviewed by a professional.

During your introduction, you should discuss your exact role in the company, why you are conducting the interview, and your relationship if they accept the role. Starting the interview with a detailed introduction gives the candidate a chance to sit back and relax and just listen.

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The candidate also feels like they are being interviewed by someone they know, which helps them open up and give in-depth answers. You should prepare your introduction before the interview and make sure you focus on things like daily tasks, company structure, and corporate culture.

This introduction will help the candidate get key insights on what it is like to work at your company, which will influence their decision on whether to accept the role.

5. Hire an Effective Recruiter

It doesn’t matter how many scented candles you put in the interview room or how many drinks you offer; if the candidate does not have the skills or aptitude, they won’t pass the interview. Therefore, to avoid wasting your time and the candidate’s time, you need to find recruits who can thrive during your interview process and are suitable for the role. The best way to do this is by hiring an effective recruiter.

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A skilled recruiter can pre-screen candidates based on your current interview process. This not only increases the quality of the candidate you will interview but also ensures they won’t be overwhelmed by your process.

Finding candidates who possess all the skills you are looking for is never easy. Fortunately, recruiters know where to find and can leverage their extensive and locate candidates that you would never have been able to find through basic job ads.

Before you decide to alter your job interview process radically, consider that your interview setup may be perfectly fine, and instead, you may have a candidate problem. To test this theory out, contact recruiters and get them to find particular candidates and vet via your job interview process.

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If your job interview process is still failing to deliver you amazing employees, it is time to alter your process.

Conclusion

Job interviews are not easy, and having vacancies can cost your company a lot of money. To help you quickly find ideal recruits, you need to ensure your candidates are comfortable and ready to perform at their best during the interview.

You also need to make a good impression to make candidates want to work for your company. By implementing the tips mentioned above, you can quickly supercharge your job interview process and start finding incredible employees today!

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