The Interview Technique Step 1: Who Do I Interview?
If you are asking yourself, who am I going to interview and how am I going to find them. I have you covered.
You’ll need to find people that would be potential customers. That would benefit from your products or services. You can also seek out past customers that have purchased from you in the past.
The individuals you should be looking for our:
- Customers who have purchased items in the past from you.
- Customers who have purchased in the past but have not purchased recently! (Unless you only sell 1 product!)
- E-mail subscribers that open your sales emails but do not buy.
- Customer’s who have left “3 star” reviews. Please reference “The Gold Digging blog for an example.”
- Individuals that would value and benefit for your upcoming product launch.
You can find these people through many different outlets:
- Facebook Groups
- Ask Old Colleagues
- Ask Friends/Family if they know anyone
- Social Media
- Your Brands Email Subscribers
The Interview Technique Part 2: Setting Up The Interview
Let’s talk about how you should set up your interviews!
I want to walk you down the process to make sure that you get the biggest bang for your buck! (You know to get the absolute most out of this!)
1- Go through all of your old customer data and find customers that meet the above requirements.
2- Reach out to your future/past customers asking if you could ask them a few questions. It shouldn’t take more than 20-30 minutes.
3- Use a scheduling tool such as Calendly to allow them to easily schedule time on your calendar.
4- Set up video equipment and recording devices on your computer/phone. (This way you can go back and watch them when writing your marketing copy!)
Doing interviews in person is ideal, but lets face it, everyone is too busy and coordinating a meet up time may be too challenging. So the next best thing- video conferencing!
You can use Zoom or Skype for video conference. There are several ways of recording. I personally use OBS to record my computer screen. (OBS is FREE)
It is important to do video so you can see their facial and body expressions. By recording the interviews, you can replay them and watch for “triggers.” A trigger is when someone becomes uncomfortable. It is when you see real pain.
Triggers make marketing gold! When you can emotionally convey someone’s pain points in your copy and show them you have the solution! One word: sales!
5- Aim for 7-10 interviews!
Step 3 The Interview Technique: Running The Call
1- Craft questions to guide the conversation. However, once the customer hits on particular points you can dig deeper in that area. Allow the conversation to flow and not just base it on your questions.
Try repeating back what you hear the customer saying. They will generally re-define their answer and go deeper!
2- In the beginning of the call you will need to build trust. Allowing this person to open up to you is vital in getting the answers you need! Take the first 5 minutes to make small talk. Sports is great, or what part of the world they live in. If all else fails, weather is common for everyone! If there is a connection from the beginning, they will be more willing to open up.
The Interview Technique: Tips & Tricks
If at all possible, try to have two people interviewing. This way you can play off each other. The other interviewer may pick up on inflections or other personality traits that you don’t notice! Plus your counterpart could be throwing out some awesome questions!
Have prepared questions, but be willing to divert. If someone starts discussing why they didn’t like a particular program, dive deeper to find out what exactly it was that they didn’t like.
Allow the customer to guide the conversation once you get going. They will be more willing to divulge information if it is a conversation and less of an interview session.
Record the sessions, this way information is not misinterpreted and you can go back to it. You may be able to use it later down the road in marketing copy!
After you document everyone, go through all the interviews and compare them. What were the major issues? What pain points were common?
You may realize that your products are not meeting their needs. At that point, you may need to tweak your products or services. But that is ok! You need products that are going to sell!
As you are writing your marketing material you are able to use the interviews to connect and convey!
You are now on your way to create awesome brand messaging that is going to kick butt. This will set you apart from your competition and make you shine. Speaking directly to your target audience by interviewing them creates a connection. Connections sells products!
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Keep in mind that you’re awesome! Being an entrepreneur is hard. Some people won’t ever understand the sacrifice and hustle, but know that I understand and I am rooting for you!
Now that you have created brand message that converts… go create a kick a$$ business!
