This tip is very, very simple, but you'd be stunned how many experts screw this up when doing an on-camera interview. We're talking about where to look.

If you are doing an interview, maybe at your business or somewhere else, and the reporter is going to use a quote from you for a story she is producing, she will tell you exactly where to look.

Almost always, you will be looking at her, off to the side of the cameraman, and not directly at the camera.

Most experts do fine here.

The bigger problem with not looking where you should occurs during in-studio interviews or on remote interviews, where you are being interviewed by Zoom or Skype.

Let's start with in-studio interviews.
In-studio TV interviews
With these in-studio interviews, you are looking at the host/reporter - whoever you are having the conversation with. Yes, I know you are trying to communicate with the viewer. But it is a conversation with the host. Look at him or her almost the entire time.

You don't have to stare. You can occasionally look down for a second, maybe while you think, but generally look at the host, especially when he or she is asking you questions.

You do not look at the camera while you answer. Again, you are having a conversation. When you have a conversation in real life, you aren't looking somewhere else while you respond to someone.

Also, one mistake people make in this setting is that they look at the monitor.

In TV studios, you will almost always be able to see the monitor that shows what the audience sees. Don't look at it. That's even worse than looking directly into the camera, as the monitor is usually below the camera. So you aren't looking at the host, and you aren't even looking at the viewer. It makes you look nervous, and it looks unprofessional.

Now there is one small exception, and that's in the beginning of the interview.

The interview will always start with the host introducing you. Depending on the feel of the show, you might be able to - and you might want to - look directly into the camera just for a second, smile, and then focus on the host for the rest of the interview.

Some people discourage even that quick look at the camera. I believe if you do it well - and that's something you will have to watch for when you watch your interview later as a way to improve - then it's the way to go.

The other area I mentioned is the remote interview.
Remote TV interviews
This is where experts are just awful.

With COVID-19, TV studios were mostly closed to the public, so all interviews were done remotely, even on network cable news and top 5 TV markets.

But with the pandemic, Zoom and Skype, and even FaceTime, became key methods of doing these interviews. And because studios found them easy and cheap to do - no travel, can be done quickly - they will be here to stay.

But just watch a news show anywhere for 30 minutes and you will see this mistake.

The expert is looking at his or her computer screen. That sounds fine, except that when you watch it, it looks like he or she is looking down at the floor or close to it.

With a remote interview, you want to look right at the camera.

We will talk about equipment for remote interviews and studios in your home or office and setup and more in future episodes, but for today's purposes, let's just say you are looking at your webcam.

It's tricky to look at the webcam when the screen shows you and the host. But don't do it. Practice this on Zoom calls for work. Look at the webcam directly - the entire time. You can even get sticky notes in the shape of arrows. Try those and put them on your computer so that they point to the webcam.