The phone interview is an increasingly popular HR technique used by companies all over the world. It used to be that a phone interview was primarily used to screen long distance job candidates to avoid paying for travel, or for positions where the employee would be spending a lot of time on the phone. However, the phone interview is more commonly used now as the first step in the interview process by many companies.

To get ready for a phone interview the first thing you must believe is that a smile can be heard over the phone. It may sound a bit odd, but it is true that a smile and a pleasant demeanor translate very well over the phone and your interviewer is looking to hear that smile come through in your conversation.

If you decide to make notes during the interview, make them quickly and quietly. Do not disrupt the flow of the interview by asking the interviewer to stop so you can make notes unless they have asked you to write something down. Avoid using computers to take notes, as the sound of a keyboard being used can be distracting.

Be sure to schedule your phone interview at a time when you will be able to focus on the phone call. If certain times of your day involve distractions and full house of loud people, then that would be the worst time to schedule the interview.

When you are on a phone interview, there is no more important phone call at that moment. If you have call waiting and someone rings in, let them go to voicemail and call them back later.

Sometimes it can be difficult to understand a person when they are talking on the phone, so if you did not understand something the interviewer said then ask them to repeat it. It's okay to ask for clarification!  If the interviewer is speaking too quickly for you to understand them, then ask if they could slow down a bit. Talking on the phone is much different that talking in person, and an experienced phone interviewer will understand that.

Finally, if the interviewer calls in and it is a bad connection on your end then ask them to hang up and try the call again. An experienced phone interviewer will know that a bad phone connection can make things difficult to hear, and calling back would be no problem.

The main thing to remember is to be natural. Treat is like any other important phone call where you are trying to share and obtain information. Be cordial, and don't forgt to thank them for their time.