Being a founder

Being a founder 6 - Successful interviews with the press

By Ted Pin ⋅ September 5, 2008 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

I just got finished being interviewed about Intermz by Tina Reed of Ann Arbor News. It went really well. Here are some tips on how to handle getting interviewed.

Handling Nervousness

I don’t typically get nervous before these kinds of things (I usually get the adrenaline rush afterward), but I did get a little nervous before this interview. It’s really important that you calm your nerves ahead of time because being calm helps you respond to the interviewers questions how you would normally respond to them–accurately and naturally. (Sometimes, nerves can make you say something you didn’t really want or mean to say.) Remember, whatever you say could end up in a widely-read newspaper or blog.

I beat nerves by engrossing myself in something I have already been thinking about, and that’s completely unrelated to what I’m about to talk about. For me, it was basketball; I’ve been trying really hard to improve my offensive game against taller players, so I thought only about that for a little while before meeting Tina. It took my mind off of the interview and put me into a much more relaxed mode. So much of nervousness comes from the anticipation of what’s going to happen. So, if you can forget about what’s going to happen, if you can prevent yourself from anticipating, you can calm down a whole lot. Being relaxed really helped how the interview flowed. I was able to respond faster, more accurately, and probably more intelligently.

Nervousness can be a pretty nasty thing; while you’re being nervous, you’re often wondering if the other person can tell or not, which can you even more nervous.

Do your homework

Read recent articles that your interviewer has written. Get familiar with her beat and the questions she might ask. You want to get to know your interviewer.

If you can, mention some of the pieces of hers that you read, especially if they relate to what you are talking about. During my homework, I ran across a great article Tina wrote about a photographer turned coffee proprietor. She asked him what the switch from photography to coffee was like. He said, “I feel like I’ve gone back to what my photography career used to be like when I used to make black and white prints … It’s doing something that’s handcrafted, that’s hands-on, is as much science as it is art …”

In other words, his response was Coffee in termz of Photography, which was a perfect way to illustrate the concept behind Intermz to Tina; I was able to put Intermz in termz of one of Tina’s own experiences.

Doing these things go a long way toward building report, which will make the interview process more enjoyable for both of you and encourage future encounters. What reporter would want to repeat a dry, one-way interview?

Give your interviewer what she wants

How will you know what she wants? Ask her! In your communication up to the interview, ask her what material you should prepare. She will tell exactly what she is looking for. In my case, Tina wanted me to talk about the site, the business, give her a demo, talk about Startup Weekend (where the team was assembled), who was involved, and where we are going.

I prepared written notes in advance so I would be ready and confident to give her exactly what she was looking for.

And if there’s any other relevant material, like blog entries you’ve written regarding your company, print them out.

Having written and hard copy material ready was really helpful for me because, in a few cases, she didn’t need me to answer her verbally, forcing her to write down what I said; I could just hand it to her. Saves her time. Believe me, this is a good thing.

Now that you know how to give her what she wants, know how to give her what she really wants.

Give your interviewer what she (really) wants

What do reporters really want? They want to write a compelling story. So help them. Give them as much compelling information about you and your company as you can. Don’t continually wait for her to ask you questions.

Stories about your company’s background, how the idea started, and what your dreams and aspirations are, are prime material. Make sure they include people and those peoples’ experiences. Why? Because people stories bring a personality and humanness to her article (and your company). The reason the most influential people are often the best story tellers is because stories are enjoyable and people tend to remember them. That’s also why stories can make great press material. During my interview, I talked about how my parents are all black belts in martial arts and used the martial arts philosophy of adaptation to get my brother and I involved in tons of variegated activities like boating, opera, painting, gardening, and music writing. I then told her how our upbringing ultimately lead to the idea behind Intermz–learning new things quickly by using what you already know.

Having said that, don’t continually talk, either. When she does ask questions, answer them and make sure you answer them thoroughly. This shows that you are listening and believe that she herself, the interviewer, is asking an important question–and not that she is just a way for you to get your company’s name printed in a paper. Pay attention to your interviewer. It’s not entirely about you. It’s a two way street, just like any good social interaction is.

Put yourself in her shoes. Remember that her desire to write compelling story has three main purposes:

1. To give her readership something interesting to read.
2. To help expose your company and what you’re doing.
3. To give her more credibility as a reporter who breaks interesting news.

So, do your darndest to fulfill those purposes. Give the reporter an interesting story about you so she can give the public an interesting story about you and advance her career. It’s good for both you and her.

Be enthusiastic

At the end of the interview, I apologized to her for monopolizing so much of our time with my own talking. She said it was the best kind of interview because she didn’t have to draw things out of me, and because she could tell I was really enthusiastic about Intermz. Enthusiasm is infectious. While reporters aim to take a neutral positions on their stories, it’s hard for them not to pick up on your enthusiasm, which may ultimately come through in her story about your company. Even if she doesn’t get enthusiastic about what you’re doing, at least that energy will come through in your quotes.

Jason Calacanis of Mahalo and Weblogs wrote a really great article on the importance of enthusiasm when talking to the press (or anyone, for that matter).

Answer with complete sentences

This is a tip I got from my dear friend Rebecca Reynolds, a journalist from Milesmedia.com. Answer using complete sentences so that it’s easier for your interviewer to quote you. Remember that written sentences are completely different from spoken sentences. So if your interviewer isn’t able to quote something you said so that it makes sense to a reader, she might not use it–even if it is a great quote.

Also, for less careful reporters, there’s always the chance that they might take your quote out of context entirely (either accidentally or even deliberately).

Balance volume with clarity

This is a really difficult thing to do, especially on the fly, but it’s actually something Tina suggested I do when I asked her if I should keep listing off different uses for our service.

You should try to say a lot of interesting things without overwhelming your interviewer with too many different things. Remember, she has to go back to the office, digest everything you said about your company, and condense it into a compelling story only a few paragraphs long. Keep focused on the stuff that best represents what you are doing, and try not to add anything redundant or confusing.

For instance, when giving an example of how your product or service can be used, stick to one or two interesting ones. More than that, and your interviewer may have to figure out for herself which ones are the best to write about–which may not jive with what you would have picked.

Hopefully, Tina will get to publish our story. If she does, I’ll link to it here.

Good luck, and go get ‘em.

Related posts: