With the rise in popularity of video as a tool to convey your organization’s mission and values, chances are that at some point, you’ll have to sit down for an on-camera interview. Recently, we shared 5 tips to help you prepare for your interview, and we wanted to delve a little deeper into one of the tips. In our opinion, this is the number one mistake you want to avoid….

Never, ever read from a script during your interview. 

The more nervous an interviewee is, the more they will try to read from a script, consult with notes or recite pre-rehearsed statements. The irony is that doing any one of those things almost guarantees that your interview will suck. You’re going to sound scripted, stilted and appear even more nervous than if you simply spoke from the heart. You’ll also be distracted, and that will be apparent in your voice (which will sound robotic) and it will come across in your facial expressions and overall body language. 

Reading from a script is the number one way to make sure you don’t connect with your audience in a branded content video. People can see and hear when you’re not being authentic. And they will tune out.

By all means, write up notes for your interview and read them beforehand. Rehearse some answers in the bathroom mirror. Review your talking points with colleagues and get their feedback. But when you sit down in front of the camera, trust yourself to get it right and focus on connecting with your interviewer and speaking, authentically, as YOU, and only you can.

Another point to consider: if you don’t know the subject matter well enough to answer questions about it without a script or notes, you’re probably not the right person to be interviewed on camera. That means your job isn’t to prepare for the interview. Instead, figure out who at your company is the right person to talk about the topic.