We all know how nerve-racking an interview is – someone asks us a ton of questions to figure out our areas of expertise, our personality, and how well we work with a team.
But what about those times when we’re on the other end – when WE are the ones interviewing someone else for a video, a news story, a blog post, or a company feature? We get to be more creative and have fun getting to know someone, highlighting their strengths, and writing all about it.
I recently interviewed the musician Lights in a totally calm and professional, fangirl kind of way. Our conversation was a phone interview, so I maintained my composure. Okay, so maybe I practiced my opening lines a few times before the call. 10 times. Or maybe it was 20 times? That’s not excessive.
I waited for the call, sitting in a hotel business office (I felt so official!), as I was traveling on a family road trip. We were in Kentucky, I had just seen snow for the first time, and now I was going to interview Lights?? It didn’t get much better than that! I prepared for the interview a few days before with the following tips to keep in mind!
Research the subject.
Read as much as you can before interviewing your subject. Review what they’ve been up to, familiarize yourself with their latest projects, check their social media accounts.
Conduct a Google search to read the latest articles on your subject. Make sure you know the latest information so you don’t repeat any questions – and so the interviewee knows you’ve done your research. This will help you create a much more compelling story, engaging both the interviewee and your audience.
Create questions revolving around the story’s direction that will highlight the subject.
Review questions. Outline the interview.
Review your questions leading up to the interview in case you need to make any last minute changes. It helps to know how the questions will sound. Then, create an outline of your story (i.e. your news story or your blog post) so you know your main points.
Ask yourself, will this question add value to the story?
When I interviewed Lights, I prepared a good 20 questions for our call. I planned for a one-hour interview, the normal time frame for previous interviews.
When her team confirmed an interview time and date, they told me we’d have 20 minutes to chat; I freaked out! I’d never conducted such a short interview for such a lengthy feature.
So, I kept my questions as they were, but I created an outline to focus on the questions I preferred Lights to answer, in case we ran out of time. Luckily, I wound up asking everything on my list.
Be friendly and fair.
Make the subject feel comfortable. Start off with light questions to allow your subject to warm up to you. Ease into tough questions later on.
As writers and interviewers, we need to gain trust before asking personal questions. It makes the conversation flow better too.
Going back to the Lights interview, I started out highlighting her accomplishments – Congrats on the new music video, the new album, and I asked her to share the inspiration behind personally illustrating a comic book album concept. As we went further into the interview, we spoke about her family life and how she keeps a positive attitude, even when depression gets to us.
Listen.
Listening is SO important!!! The interview is about the subject, not the interviewer. Let the conversation breathe. It’s okay to leave space in the conversation with pauses.
Nodding and responding with “uh huh” and other short responses indicate we are listening and understanding the speaker.
Asking follow-up questions related to their responses also shows we’re engaged and interested in what they’re saying.
Take a minute to put the pen down, put our own thoughts away, and listen to what the person is saying. You’ll notice their body language, their voice inflection, and the meaning of their words.
With an in-person interview, take notes, but maintain eye contact.
To put the interviewee at ease, I always let him or her know I’m going to take notes before we begin – if it’s an in-person interview. That way, they’re not staring at my notepad during our entire conversation. It takes the pressure off when you’re upfront with them, and then they’ll relax as you’re speaking.
Put the focus on the subject. Listen, take notes, maintain eye contact. Nod and show you’re listening without interrupting the speaker.
Try to look up every so often to maintain eye contact. Let’s not get creepy by staring at the person, but show them you’re interested in what they’re saying.
Of course, if it’s a phone interview, responding with “yes” or “uh huh” is crucial so they know you’re still listening on the other end. Remember to keep an outline of questions in front of you, and plan for the best!
Interviewing people is so much fun, as long as we’re prepared! Let me know if you’ve got some interview tips of your own. I’d love to hear about them in the comments!
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