Summary:
Tips for freelance writers on how to conduct an effective email interview. Includes specific examples about structuring questions and ideas about maximizing the potential of the writer/source relationship.

Details or Sample:
Tips for a Great Email Interview
Annie Flint

For freelance writers, finding willing sources and conducting interviews can be frustrating and time consuming. Yet including illuminating quotes from qualified experts adds credibility, depth and strength to an article that cannot be achieved through stand-alone research. Email interviews can be an effective solution, but how can you get the same juicy quotes usually garnered in spontaneous conversation? Here are a few tips to help you make the most of an email interview:

Call First
Always call to request an interview rather than send your request via email. Even if your email makes it past the spam filters, email introductions are cold and impersonal. Great interviews are impossible without some rapport…

When you call, introduce yourself and describe the type of article you are writing and where it will be published. If you are writing the article on spec, briefly explain your plans for the article. Also, most people aren’t exactly sure what a freelance writer…

Do Your Homework
Just because an interview is conducted via email does not mean that you should take it any less seriously than you would an in-person interview. Research is the first order of business…

If in your research you find an article citing your expert as a source, make note of his or her comments and use them as a guide when crafting your own questions. For example…

Set a Deadline
Let your experts know right up front when you need the answers to your questions. Set a deadline that is slightly ahead of when you need it to allow for hiccups in their schedule, or yours. If you haven’t heard back from your experts…

If after a couple of days you still don’t hear back from one of your experts, give him or her a call. People change their mind, get busy, and sometimes feel nervous about…

Be Respectful of Your Expert’s Time
If an expert is gracious enough to agree to answer questions via email, don’t present them with a multi-page survey that would take them hours to complete. If you structure them correctly, you should be able to get what you need in…

For the basics, check the “About Us” and “History” pages of your expert’s website. Write a brief summary of any facts you compile on your own…

This method is much easier and faster than asking your experts to give the basic information to you and it shows that you have taken the time to learn about them. An added bonus is your experts will not feel compelled to repeat…

Ask Very Specific Questions
Specific, carefully crafted questions are almost always rewarded with fantastic interviews. Clearly defined, particular questions show experts that you have taken the time to learn about them and understand the subject matter, which in turn, motivates them…

For example, for an article on inexpensive organic gardening methods, a general question might be, “Which low-cost starter plants would you recommend?” For this question you might get…

A more specific version of the same question would be, “Which low-cost starter plants would you recommend for each grow zone, and how much do they cost?” Do you see how this question….

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