Interviews in Your Communications

WHY video, print, web and other communications can benefit from interviews.  

And HOW to assure you will get the personal content you need.
 
Nothing so animates writing as someone telling what he thinks or what he does – in his own words. His own words will always be better than your words, even if you are the most elegant stylist in the land. (William K. Zinsser, On Writing Well, New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1998: p100)

Audience Motivation – On the surface, content is content, but if your goal is to motivate an audience, what will do that best – a voice-over ("voice-of-god") narrator in a video, or hearing directly from people they respect or can relate to? Actually, some combination of the two may work in many situations, but carefully chosen and directed interviewees can deliver uniquely engaging as well as thoughtful video content. And similarly, interviews will add authoritative perspective to any web or print messaging.

Original Content - Conducting interviews for video or print provides many other advantages. The speakers’ thoughts will often be surprising, bringing up content points or illustrative examples that were never anticipated. And even if much of a recorded interview never makes it into the final edited video or print piece, the information they provide will lend a valuable perspective or testimonial on the key messages that can be blended throughout the storyline. Plus, the words of the interviewee can be used to write any open, close, transitional content or narration, thus making the writer’s job much easier, and more on-target.

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So, once you see some value in making your writing more interview-based, how do you proceed?

• Research - It's valuable to thoroughly research the content and the interview subjects, as practical. “As practical” because inevitably, interviewees may suddenly appear or otherwise not be anticipated. But practiced interviewers know how to maneuver through a recorded discussion to make sure the right questions are asked and the unique perspective of each individual is obtained.
• Prepare the Question or Content List – Write out sample questions that fit the person being interviewed, but understand that these should be a starting point only. Listing out general content areas to be covered may be even better for many situations. Interviews have a way of going unexpected directions, so sticking to a hard set of prepared questions is usually not beneficial. And be sure the interview subjects know in advance if you will be recording an “organic” discussion that will follow only general content areas. If they think any provided list will be strictly adhered to, they may become frustrated by questions suddenly going somewhere else. And another reason to not prepare specific questions and to provide them in advance to interviewees is that you will avoid over-preparation or memorizing on their part. Interviews are almost always more effective if spontaneous, especially if being recorded for videos.
• Organic Discussions – If out-of-the-blue an interviewee reveals something interesting you did not anticipate, then the discussion should evolve to suitably cover that new content. And remember, if plenty of overlapping interviews are lined up, it will not be necessary to cover every detail with every person. Let each tell you what they feel is most important.
• Short Answers – While a good interviewer will be able to hear useful quotes or sound bites that can later be pulled from long answers, short responses to your questions will make follow-up editing easier.
• How Something is Said Can Be Just as Important as What is Said – Video interviews are different than print interviews. Even if written articles and videos both include exact quotes, videos require the speaker to deliver the force of his or her personality to enhance what is said. Experienced interviewers know how get the most out of nervous people sitting under bright lights with a camera glaring at them.
• Transcribing and Organizing the Interviews – When the interviews are done, the work is not. Many people, especially when in a hurry – such as news writers or producers – may not have the time or need to transcribe interviews. But there is great value in doing so, at least for long-format projects. Keeping multiple interviews well organized is critical to assure you are getting the most from these resources. Highlighting useful or key sound bites, collating them into specific content areas, and then reducing what may be a very long list of available quotes to a more practical length, are just a few useful processes. And also, if you later find a need for alternative sound bites or quotes, they will be readily available, rather than having to revisit the full original interviews.
• How The Interviews Are Used – Be creative in how you incorporate interviews into any writing. An occasional quote that offers color or illustrates a point is great. Think about whether you should you use long quotes, or perhaps a series of short ones. Or maybe merging interviews from multiple people might tell the story better.

These are just a few practical considerations. If you wish more detail or have specific questions, please ask. Most importantly, remember that incorporating quotes or extended interviews in your communications can bring them to life. And often, the quality of the interview, as with the quality of the final written piece, will improve with the preparation or experience of the person doing the interviews.

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