My latest published interview was with an economist who told me that the debt ceiling crisis was the result of "an accident of history." He also said he thoguht the Tea party had fallen under the spell of groupthink and was unable to see the consequences of their actions. Whatever happens, if the Tea party gets what it wants or if they block the debt ceiling increase, it looks like they will cause a double-dip recession, putting more people out of work in America.
Here's the link to the complete debt ceiling article.
Part 2 of the interview: "How a U.S. government debt default will affect the average American."
Friday, July 29, 2011
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Finding Interview Candidates: Work for it
I've talked about getting qualified experts to comment on current events and using your network of friends and acquaintances for find people with specific experiences or expertise for interviews. What do you do when you want to interview a specific prominent individual?
The short answer is that you figure out who is the gatekeeper for access to that person and work through them. For a top executive, that's probably their executive assistant. Most of the executives I have known would be absolutely lost without their executive assistants telling them where to go and when. These people set appointments and make sure the boss gets there when they're supposed to be there. They screen phone calls and decide who gets through and who doesn't. They pass on requests for meetings -- or they don't. You want this person working with you, not against you.
FOr a celebrity, unless you have a personal contact that can faciliatate access for you, your best bet is usually to go through their publicist. It's the publicist's job to decide which publicity opportunities are a good idea for the celebrity's image and which will be effective promotion vehicles for the celebity's latest project.
As a professional writer or journalist, you have something of value to offer to the executive whow ants to get his company's message out, or to the celebrity who wants to promote their latest project. They may have a favorite charity that they really would like to promote. You need to remember that by interviewing them, you are providing a service to them as well.
You should make it clear to the gatekeeper that you are in a position to provide a service. Tell them where the interview will be published. Who is your target audience and why they would be interested in the celebrity's or executive's message. "My column (or beat) is targeted toward successful, young professionals and I thnk they'd be interested in hearing about your new technology," or "My primary audience is the parents who control what music and movies their teenage children watch." Ideally, you'd be able to match your target audience with their target market.
Do a little research before trying to schedule the interview and figure out what the potential interviewee wants to talk about. Do they have a new book or movie? Did their company just announce a new product line or a superlative quarterly report? Who do they want to hear about this new project? Do they
In other words, figure out what's in it for them and mention that thing as something you'd like to talk about in your article. That doesn't mean that this is the only thing you'll ask about in your interview, but make it clear that they will have the opportunity to get theri message out as well.
In this position you are the salesperson and the marketer. You are also the product. You need to figure out a message that will appeal to exactly two potential customers (the gatekeeper and the potential interviewee) and convince them that an interview with you is in their best interest. Even the best salesperson doesn't close every sale. Sometimes you'll get a resounding "No" or worse yet, your call won't be returned.
Every salesman will tell you, that out of every ten people there are three who would absolutely love to buy your product. To find those three, however, you have to ask all ten. So keep at it and don't be discouraged by rejection. Learn from your successes and your rejections. Refine your approach and go get the next one.
The short answer is that you figure out who is the gatekeeper for access to that person and work through them. For a top executive, that's probably their executive assistant. Most of the executives I have known would be absolutely lost without their executive assistants telling them where to go and when. These people set appointments and make sure the boss gets there when they're supposed to be there. They screen phone calls and decide who gets through and who doesn't. They pass on requests for meetings -- or they don't. You want this person working with you, not against you.
FOr a celebrity, unless you have a personal contact that can faciliatate access for you, your best bet is usually to go through their publicist. It's the publicist's job to decide which publicity opportunities are a good idea for the celebrity's image and which will be effective promotion vehicles for the celebity's latest project.
As a professional writer or journalist, you have something of value to offer to the executive whow ants to get his company's message out, or to the celebrity who wants to promote their latest project. They may have a favorite charity that they really would like to promote. You need to remember that by interviewing them, you are providing a service to them as well.
You should make it clear to the gatekeeper that you are in a position to provide a service. Tell them where the interview will be published. Who is your target audience and why they would be interested in the celebrity's or executive's message. "My column (or beat) is targeted toward successful, young professionals and I thnk they'd be interested in hearing about your new technology," or "My primary audience is the parents who control what music and movies their teenage children watch." Ideally, you'd be able to match your target audience with their target market.
Do a little research before trying to schedule the interview and figure out what the potential interviewee wants to talk about. Do they have a new book or movie? Did their company just announce a new product line or a superlative quarterly report? Who do they want to hear about this new project? Do they
In other words, figure out what's in it for them and mention that thing as something you'd like to talk about in your article. That doesn't mean that this is the only thing you'll ask about in your interview, but make it clear that they will have the opportunity to get theri message out as well.
In this position you are the salesperson and the marketer. You are also the product. You need to figure out a message that will appeal to exactly two potential customers (the gatekeeper and the potential interviewee) and convince them that an interview with you is in their best interest. Even the best salesperson doesn't close every sale. Sometimes you'll get a resounding "No" or worse yet, your call won't be returned.
Every salesman will tell you, that out of every ten people there are three who would absolutely love to buy your product. To find those three, however, you have to ask all ten. So keep at it and don't be discouraged by rejection. Learn from your successes and your rejections. Refine your approach and go get the next one.
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