Telephone Interviews: 

This was such a great article...I didn't want to let it get away with a deadlinks problem down the road.  It's worth a read.  Credit Lora Meisner at thingamajob.com.

The Telephone Interview: Handling the Unexpected

By Lora Meisner
thingamajob.com Staff Writer

Take a few seconds to prepare yourself. If you're at work, put the caller on hold in order to close your office door or to take the call in a more private location. If you're at home, make sure that children, pets, or other distractions are away from your interview area.

Be Professional, Be Prepared
Companies are using telephone interviews as preliminary assessments of candidates. Be sure to have a folder readily available that contains your resume, a list of your professional accomplishments, "success stories" that relate to your competencies, a list of questions you want to ask the interviewer, and information about the company.

Candidates should approach a telephone interview with the same seriousness as they would an in-person interview. Consider standing while you talk. This can improve the quality of your voice. Also, smile when you talk and be careful of "ums" and "ahs." Speak slowly and clearly.

Since you will not have the visual clues from the interviewer to guide the conversation, keep your answers concise. If you need a moment to think about an interviewer's question, say so. Long silences can be especially uncomfortable over the telephone. Be sure to have a pad of paper in order to take notes and to get the correct spelling of the interviewer's name and other relevant information. During this (or any other) interview, be upbeat, enthusiastic, and forthcoming, but, do not dominate the conversation.

In addition to your success stories and list of accomplishments, be prepared to answer the "tell-me-about-yourself" question early in the conversation. Since many jobs involve conference calling as well as other forms of telephone work, the interviewer will also be assessing your ability to be professional and credible on the phone.

Due to the lack of visual cues, remember to intermittently interject short responses such as, "That's interesting," "I see," "Good idea," to acknowledge the interviewers comments. Also, "check-back" with the interviewer with phrases such as "Does that answer your question?" "Is that what you're looking for?" This keeps the dialogue on track for you and the interviewer.

School Never Ends… Do Your Homework
It's important to show that you've done your homework by asking intelligent questions based on information you have on the company and the job opportunity. Before the telephone interview, it's helpful to become familiar with the company by gathering background information; including their mission, size of the organization, competitive companies in the market, and recent press releases. If the company is public, finding such information is simple. For example, Hoovers offers statistics, brief history information, and current employment and profit records. In addition, referring to the company's web site is always resourceful.

Sell Yourself
The goal is to be invited in for a face-to-face interview with the employer. To be successful, assume the role of "seller" during the interview by effectively referencing your skills and abilities. Describe the contributions you can make to the company.

At the end of the interview, feel free to ask questions about the next step in the process. However, this is not the forum to ask about salary, training, holidays, or other details. Remember the telephone interview is usually the preliminary round.

If you feel the interviewer is impressed with you, do not be afraid to "close the deal" by asking for a face-to-face meeting. Here's an example, "(Ms./Mr. Interviewer's name) based on the information you have given me, I am very interested in pursuing this opportunity and would like to schedule a time for us to meet in person. What looks good for you?"

Next Steps
If you're invited to an interview, make sure you write down and repeat back all the details-it's easy to misunderstand or forget information when it is conveyed over the phone. Even if the interviewer begins to close the interview with the line, "We'll be back in touch" an immediate follow up is appropriate with either a thank you note or e-mail. This also gives you the opportunity to mention a skill or ability that you may have failed to mention during the interview. Even if the job doesn't sound right, go the interview; it can give you another opportunity to practice your interviewing skills. You might even discover a more suitable opening elsewhere within that company.