There are different types of interviews. They can be part of a referral marketing strategy or an enrolment conversation that leads to sales. This post is about interviews that convey information.
Some aim to draw out information from clients or prospects that can be used in a marketing campaign. Others to interview you about your business and you need to convey what it is about effectively.
Interviews of Clients or Prospects
The great thing is you have control over the questions asked! This does not mean you necessarily ask the questions. You could ask a consultant to interview your clients or prospects on your behalf. This way you would discuss what you want to find out with the consultant and then leave them to it. The advantage of using a consultant is your clients may be more willing to open up to them than they are to you, especially if they are still in a working relationship with you.
The important thing to remember is you will record this interview and published it. The way you use the interview needs to be negotiated with the interviewee, even if they are happy to collaborate and want to help you.
Possible Uses for Interviews of Clients or Prospects
- The interview is recorded on video or audio and then displayed online. There may be a camera or sound recorder in the room or the interview can be online. For marketing purposes, the interviewee must give consent not just in general but to the recording they make. If there is a part of the interview they are not happy to broadcast, edit it out. Remember, recording can be done by taking notes and these still need consent if you intend to publish.
- You plan to display extracts from the interview on your site. You still need consent and there may be an issue about how you attribute the extract. It is a good idea to get permission even if it is not attributed, if the source is sensitive you must make it impossible to work out who said it. Usually you will want to do this for social proof and if so a name, designation and photo all help to convey this is a genuine person. You can ask someone for a testimonial, however there is value interviewing someone in-depth, as they will often contribute helpful comments even ones they haven’t thought about before!
- Using interviews to inform your marketing strategy. You may find some people would be willing to be interviewed for this purpose because there will be no direct quotes from them on the site. No-one need know they were ever interviewed. This purpose can run alongside your search for social proof. See my posts about testimonials for more information.
- Finally, interviews can help you find accessible language for your site. Many website owners write in fluent jargon and would benefit by translating their offer into words their market actually uses!
Interviews of You
Much of the above applies to you too! An interview can be used in similar ways and might draw out of you new and surprising ways of describing your offer. I want to consider three types of interview you might encounter.
The main thing to remember is answer the questions. I know politicians never answer the question but you have a business or cause and you do yourself no favours by seeming evasive.
Friendly
This is where you arrange an interview for your own purposes, perhaps so you can display a video on your website. You choose someone who knows about what you’re doing and is willing to sit down with you, plan the questions and guide the interview to the conclusions you want.
This is not to say the friendly interviewer can’t be tough with you. It is best to allow them some space to ask follow-up questions because they might draw new insights from you. Unless you’re live, you can edit out the worst moments!
Incompetent
This is where you might consent to an interview, perhaps on local radio or TV, and discover the interviewer has not been properly briefed or has no understanding of your field. You need to be ready for this happening. As soon as you are in the hands of a third-party, you have less control over what they do.
Prepare for the interview by rehearsing answers to some basic questions. This equips you to sound as if you know what you’re talking about, even if the questions are not terribly helpful.
Try to help the interviewer by explaining, as soon as you can exactly what you do and the benefits of what you offer. Hopefully, most interviewers will then get on track. You may need to feed them ideas, especially if they struggle to find sensible questions.
Don’t assume your interviewer is incompetent. The reality may be they have not been properly briefed. Once they understand what you are talking about they may start to ask more searching questions. Remember, they may conduct several interviews every day and not always get the briefing they need.
Hostile
Most of us dread the hostile interview and tend to think just about any third-party interview is likely to be hostile. Most interviewers want to give you an opportunity to talk about your topic and they are not trying to catch you out. Take any opportunities you can to discuss the interview beforehand and all should be well.
Hostile interviews are rare. They may happen if you are accused of something. If so, your aim will be to either clear your name or else apologise and explain what happened and what you are going to do about it. Either way this nightmare scenario can sometimes be turned to your advantage.
The reason I mention it here is to make the point it is unlikely. Your interviewer is more likely to be either friendly and competent or friendly and incompetent. Either way you can make your business or cause better known.
Have you experiences of interviews that have gone well or been disastrous?