Ten steps for engaging interviews

Some interviews make you feel inspired or happy, while others make you feel sad or angry. Listening to or reading interviews arouses different feelings, and you need to know how to interview someone in an interesting way to keep your listener engaged. 

The following tips will teach you how to make interesting interview questions.

Blokk og papir
Blokk og papir

1. Understand what you are producing

What is an interview? It includes one person (the interviewer) who asks the questions and another who answers them (the interviewee). The goal is to get as much interesting information as possible.  

Anyone reading, listening to, or watching the interview should get to know the person being interviewed well.

Ung kvinnelig journalist intervjuer en ung mann
Ung kvinnelig journalist intervjuer en ung mann

2. Who and why?

Who are you going to interview and why? What do you want your story to be about?

How you start the interview is up to you, you can start with whichever question you want. If you are going to explore a topic, you will need to interview a person who knows the topic well. You may also need an expert on the topic who can be your source. 

Perhaps you will do a portrait interview. The goal of this type of interview is to know the interviewee better. 

Blokk og papir
Blokk og papir

3. Draft an interview agreement

When you know who you want to interview and why, you need to contact the person. You have to explain why you’re making contact, what the interview is about and where it will be published. Let them know if you will take pictures or record their voice. If you do this the right way, the interviewee will trust you.

Gjøre en avtale over telefon
Gjøre en avtale over telefon

4. Be prepared! 

You need to prepare before an interview. Everyone prepares themselves, even journalists. Your preparations should include the following:

Choose your genre.

What kind of interview are you doing? Get to know the type and think of what you should learn. 

Identify your focus group

This is important. When you know who you are writing for, it will be easier to decide how to do the interview.

Research the interviewee’s background

It is important to know some basic facts like the person’s job and if they have done something special. With some facts, you will feel more sure of what you do.

Research your theme

You also need to know facts about the theme. Collect as many facts as you can.

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5. Prepare your questions in advance

You need to ask interesting questions. This will make the interview better and more interesting. 

For example, if you are interviewing an artist, do not ask questions like how many songs they have written or other questions that you know the answer to. Instead, ask questions that you couldn’t find the answers to, for example: 

“Why did you choose to become an artist?” “What is the most exciting experience you have had?” “What type of relationship have you had with your friends since you became famous?”

Ask questions that you are curious about, and also think of what the readers or listeners would like to know. It is better to have too many questions than too few. 

Do not ask yes-no questions. Instead you should ask open-ended questions using WH words: who, what, where, when, why, and how.

Have your questions in an order, so the easy questions come first, and the more difficult ones come last. Asking the person you are interviewing, “Why did you break up with X?” would not be a good start. Questions like these should be saved until you have built up some trust.

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6. Be yourself

Interviewing another person can be scary. It is up to you if it goes well or not. But remember that it will go well if you have prepared for the interview. It is normal to be nervous, and it can be a good thing.

Finally, don’t forget to smile! A smile can go a long way.

Radiointervju
Radiointervju

7. Take notes and make a voice recording

It is very important that the person you are interviewing is cited correctly. Everything they say must be quoted in the right way. It can help to record the interview, so that you can go back and listen to it again. In this way, you can use your notes to describe body language and your own thoughts.

To make sure that everything is correct, the interviewee can read it over to see that everything is correct. Also send the final product for an overview.

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8. Ask clarification and follow-up questions

When you have answers, you can dig deeper by asking follow-up questions. It will make the interview more interesting, for example asking, “Why (or how) did that happen?” and “Can you tell me a little bit more about that?” This will make your final result better.

9. Create a manuscript

It can be difficult to write everything down. But if you have prepared, you have a good start. You will need an outline where you include the following:

  • Title: Information that makes the reader want to read. 
  • Introductory paragraph: A short but interesting paragraph.
  • Credits: The journalist’s and photographer’s names along with the names of any other participants.
  • Introduction: Information to present the person being interviewed or the theme.
  • Main body: Build your story by writing the items discussed during the interview.
  • Conclusion: Write the conclusion after you have finished the rest. Sometimes you need to change things along the way.
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10. Write as you have never written before!

When you write, follow your script as much as you can. But changes can be necessary along the way. It is up to you, it is your interview. 

You need to describe as much as you can about the setting. Where the interview was and what clothes the interviewer was wearing can be helpful. By doing this, you paint a picture for the reader who wasn’t there at the interview. 

Always read through your text several times to make sure that you have everything correct. 

Tastatur laptop
Tastatur laptop

Sources:

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