Ten
Essential Qualities of a
World-Class Interviewer:
An
affability, sensitivity, and confidence on set that causes people to
relax
Background
knowledge on the topic of the interview
Knowledge
of the audience and how they may need to be addressed more winsomely
to be apppropriately motivated
Curiosity
on the part of the interviewer...
...Balanced
by a clear grasp of the communication objectives
Playfulness
that unleashes the spark of spontaneity
Patience.
You cannot rush an interview without killing the goose that lays the
golden eggs. Tape is cheap.
Lighting
that brings out the character and beauty of the face. Full color, HMI
lighting that allows windows and daylight to be incorporaed.
Dual,
high quality microphones -- always a boom & always a lavalier
Excellent,
reliable equipment, that is used in an invisible way that makes people
forget about it. This includes a jib to allow deft camera movement and
cinematic, dynamic touches.
Dick's Myers-Briggs
personality profile, ENFP,
helps explain why he can strike this balance so consistently.
Results
Speak Louder than Words
I
find that some companies feel hesitant to use video because they have
"been there, done that" -- and the "production-company"
videos were always either too expensive or too boring. I think the number
one reason for communication failure is that their interviews were lifeless.
When people are allowed to get an exciting comment on film, it becomes
lightning in a bottle. The 90% of communication that is "non-verbal"
-- the tone of voice, the facial expressions, the human warmth or pathos
-- comes through in video. This is the unique contribution video or film
can make to your communication effort. No other medium can do that.
That's
a powerful two-edged sword ... and the reason why you should hire the
best interviewer money can buy. If your subject says "We had a great
year" but their non-verbal expressions, posture, or surroundings
say, "But I'm distracted or uncomfortable" then the non-verbal
cues will be what the audience hears.
I
believe it is fair and accurate to say that I have been given a gift for
bringing out the absolute best in the people I interview. It doesn't seem
to matter whether they are children, centenarians, aristocrats or plebeians:
I have been able to get their best, and make them feel good. And that's
why the interviews I produce are highly effective in changing behavior
-- in motivating your audiences to buy, choose, donate, matriculate, vote,
re-think, feel good, or react in some other measurable way.
"World's
Best Interviews"
That's
why I have begun to call what we do at Kindig Omnimedia "The World's
Best Interviews". I
got the idea from my trusted master audio technician at Magnetic
Studios, John Fippin, who has worked with me for a couple of decades,
and one day exclaimed to me, "Dick, you're the best interviewer on
the planet." And I also got the idea from Michael Eisner, who told
the Denison Board of Trustees, after I had produced an admissions video
for them, that "This is the best college film I have ever seen."
The last time I saw him, about a year ago, he encouraged me to keep building
on what I do best -- and I do interviews better than anyone I have ever
met. (But then, I've never met Oprah, Bill Moyers, Terry Gross, or Errol
Morris)
Tangible
Results
Many
companies and colleges can and do benefit from the kinds of productions
I consistently create. For example, school district clients who have hired
me to produce a levy campaign video have never lost an election when my
videos are used -- though they often lose without my help. My college
clients who aggressively use the recruiting or fundraising DVDs I create
get tremendous results in terms of cash or matriculants. (Cedarville
University is a good example of a college that understands the value
of a powerful admissions DVD. Click
here to request a sample). My corporate communication clients experience
great results with their positioning or marketing campaigns. It's not
uncommon to see doubling or quadrupling of sales in the year that my productions
and other marketing materials are put into use.
Why
My Clients Get Results
The
most important reason is my interviews. Rarely in the past, and almost
never today, do I use conventional "scripted" or narrated pieces
for complex corporate or institutional work. In the focused, business-like
world of everything from academia to philanthropy, audiences need and
want to hear focused, business-like communication. Art has its place;
surprise and humor are musts; but it's got to be real, it simply must
be genuine and honest. That requirement fits my temperament, and the place
where I especially excel is in my gift for making a person who must be
interviewed feel comfortable, confident, and relaxed. I do not put words
in their mouth, I help them get excited about what they are saying, and
I help them say it in a way that is accessible and interesting to the
audience I know they need to reach. Everyone in this business does interviews;
most are well lit and well edited; but there's a spark I believe you'll
find in my productions that distinguishes them from every other provider.
So
I invite you to request
our new DVD Interview demo. I believe you will find the real-world
communication efforts it contains to be fresh, sensitive, humorous, emotional,
powerful, complex, simple ... whatever the message needed to be for the
client to convincingly address their particular audience.
Never
before has there been such an effective technology available to assist
the more important interpersonal forms of communication. DVDs are the
ubiquitous portable, powerful medium that is only now being discovered
by the purposeful speakers and listeners with whom I work. I look forward
to helping you produce your next DVD.
"World's
Best Interviews"
- 
I
got the idea from my trusted master audio technician at