Interviewing Tips - How to Conduct a Professional Interview

Here are some guidelines for conducting interviews on behalf of the Guild, in order to protect the integrity and reputation of both the Guild and the interviewer. These guidelines will help to assure a measure of consistency, and help interviewers to gain an increased understanding of the interview process, as well as maintaining the high standards of the Guild. Interviewing is an art. As with any art, it takes time and practice to perfect. The better prepared you are before you start an interview, the more likely a positive outcome.

Interview Basics

• Schedule a time that is convenient for the subject.
• Find out up front how much time has been designated in their schedule for the interview and stick to that time frame.
• Be on time.
• Dress the part - business casual (no jeans).
• Take a tape recorder.  Ask the person if you can record the conversation.
• Avoid lunchtime interviews if possible. Lunchtime interviews frequently mean that you get to eat while the subject talks and looks longingly at his rapidly-cooling entree while the tape recorder turns. Sometimes this cannot be avoided, just be prepared.
• Relax and be calm. If you appear to be an idiot, you will be treated as such. 

Before you interview

• Do your homework. Find out as much as you can about the person or company before you do the interview.
• Write down your questions.
• Review the questions you have written down and make sure they are relevant and interesting.  A famous or well-known person will be unlikely to haved posed to them a question they have not encountered before. Often, the real chore behind an interview is the subject making the journalist feel special, not vice-versa. Accept this, but do not be defeated by it.
• If you are interviewing with another person, work out ahead of time who will ask each question so you are not stumbling over each other.

Doing The Interview

• Get a history of the company or person.
• Ask their opinion about the industry in Texas.
• Ask what it is like working with the Ad Agencies.
• Ask what projects they are most proud of.
• Ask what projects were most challenging and how obstacles were overcome.
• Your readers are most probably less accomplished, so be sure to ask your subject, how did you get to where you are, from dream to reality? Answers ranging from broadly philosophical to mechanically specific will no doubt be of interest.
• Find out what questions are facing the subject; engage his/her passion.
• Ask them if they can give some advice for students entering the industry.

After the Interview

• Write the article as soon after the interview as you can, while it is fresh in your mind. This is the most common failure of students who have done this in the past.
• If you question a particular point as you are writing up the interview, ask the subject to clarify, but remember final editing is up to you and your inhouse staff. Even though we are in some respects show-casing local companies and artists, your word must have credibility that cannot be dissolved by association or allegiance. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. IT IS THE ONLY THING YOU HAVE; IT CANNOT BE BARGAINED FOR OR BARTERED WITH.
• Ask Guild staff to review the interview as soon as it is done, or sooner if you would like additional help with it. 
• Publish (post) the interview as soon as it is finished. If you don't post the article in a timely fashion (or at all), people will feel that you wasted their time, and may actually be quite angry. They will also remember and tell their friends.