Interreg BSR interview manual
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This document provides guidance on conducting interviews to gather information and stories for a communications program. It recommends treating the interview as a conversation rather than a formal interview to make the person more comfortable. It suggests starting with light, open-ended questions to get the person talking before drilling down into more specific details. The goal is to get beyond top-level responses and add human interest by understanding how the project impacts real people. The interviewer should have key facts readily available but avoid jargon and explain any technical terms to make the story accessible. Short, specific quotes that capture the essence of what was said are most effective for communication.
Interreg BSR interview manual
- 1. Interview Guide 1 | 2 Starting the conversation Think of this more as a conversation than a formal interview. It is likely to ease the atmosphere if you keep it light. Try to get the basics first Starting point and door opener Remind yourself of the project (perhaps one you have assessed) You can congratulate the person on an application well written. You may want to say something about wanting a chat or perhaps connecting the person to the communications department to share information for upcoming stories. Show they are important Be informal Make it about them! Say that you’d be very excited to have the Programme writing about the project and the process it is making. Ensure that the person does not think he is being checked, controlled or corrected. Starting light How’s it going? How do you feel about your project? What are your hopes for the partnership? Broad opening question – get them talking Describe a regular Tuesday in the project. What do you do? The story is in the details What we want to avoid is the situation when all answers stay on a general top level response, basically not saying anything. So let’s ask for details and drill a little deeper into the project. Top line: “The project is about fracture management” Drilling down: “The number of cases of fractures and linked health disorders are going to increase in the future due to an aging society. The project will set up local registries and link them together in one transnational data registry to support hospitals and companies in the Baltic Sea Region in identifying needs and potentials for innovation within fracture management.”
- 2. Interview Guide 2 | 2 Ask follow up questions, such as: “What does a data registry look like?”, “Who would manage it?”, “Is it available online?”, “What kind of health-disorders are we talking about here?”, “What can be done to avoid them?”, “How many people in the Baltic Region are affected by this?”, “Could this happen to my grandmother?”, “What advise should I give her to avoid these fractures?”. The closer you get to the human being the better it is. – see below Human interest Human interest How did you feel when…? What do you think of…? Human interest always catches the attention of the reader. Giving an example of what a real person is experiencing or is working on right now or perhaps what problems for real people that the project aims at solving are good ways of personalizing a difficult or complicated issue. Tips The key facts and figures have to be readily available to you. Keep them with you on a piece of paper (such as project fact sheet). Avoid EU or Interreg jargon and technical words. Try talking to each other as if you had just met your 10th grade teacher. For every word your teacher would not understand, ask the representative a question to explain. Identifying a good sound bite A soundbite is a short extract from an interview or speech, chosen for its succinctness or concision. Knowing when to put a full stop to a sentence is key. Try to focus on the active verb and put a stop when you sense repetition, ranting or general recital of non-descript stuff. If you feel the person you are speaking to is being too general in his responses, interrupt and ask for specifics of what he is saying. Short, specific statements go a long way. Technicalities Ask for the business card, which would include full name, organisation & position, project & function: “Could you remind me of… “ Ask if MA/JS can contact him/her again for follow up Travel report Please consider the updated section in the travel report (Stories from the event for our programme communication ) - (2016.01.19_template_event_report) L:00_Common04_Travel + event reports