I’ve been doing a lot of phone interviews lately, and as anyone who’s done them before knows, they can be a little tricky. Interviewees are sometimes wary (“Why are you paying me for this research?”), discouraged (“I can’t possible be giving you good answers, I don’t know anything about that topic”), belligerent (“I won’t answer that question!”) and vague (“Yep, sure – whatever you just said.”), or any combination thereof.

Having said that, interviewees can also be genuine and honest, insightful and thoughtful, inspired (and inspiring), as well as way more capable and knowledgeable than they sometimes think they are. When this happens, conducting interviews becomes a breeze and an absolute joy. Mine is by no means the final word on interviewing and interviewing techniques – I’m not a fan of sticking to the script like some wooden C3PO, nor am I an advocate of being a total cowboy, or unprofessional. I am, however, a disciple of what I call the “Human School.” Here are some of its tenets:

1. Treat them like people (also known as: creating rapport and warm and fuzzies)

This is a big one – and the hardest “rule” to pin down. I hate it when telemarketers launch into a spiel after confirming who I am, or when an interviewer “hmmhmm” and “uh huhs” in agreement with what I’m saying without giving the impression that they’re listening. When I conduct an interview, I do my best to: – Show them I care: “Is this still a good time?”, “Did you have a good weekend?, “Do you want to get that phone in the background?”. The – Show them I’m listening: “Oh, so did you mean this?”, or “I wonder if that means X…?” – Show them I’m human: “Yeah, I totally get what you’re saying, that just happened to me!”, or “Are you serious? :: cracks up ::” As with most of the Human School these are fast and loose pointers, but I’ve found they go a long way toward establishing a rapport with people, which engenders trust and helps them speak more freely (which is really what you’re after).

2. Speak in natural language

(no professional B.S.) This is another toughie. Interviewers often follow scripts where there are certain things they can say to acknowledge and spur conversation (“OK” “I see”, “Got that”), but I find this so stilted. At it’s most basic level an interview is a conversation between two humans (albeit with one speaking more than the other), so converse. Speak. Engage.

3. Deviate from script – but cover all your bases

Related to the previous tenet, in the Human School it’s OK to deviate from your script, or change the order of your questions. Conversations are fluid, and there’s no need to force a structure when it could be detrimental. So feel free to deviate from your script a little and dive into rat holes – as long as you’re sure to cover all of your questions. I typically give myself 2-3 rat holes per hour-long session, which usually gives me time to cover my questions as well as explore any new areas that might pop up.

4. Don’t be shy

This is the hardest one for me – sometimes the questions I need to ask could be seen as too probing, too personal, too invasive. The key here is to make sure you do two things: – Frame the conversation properly. Explain how wide-ranging (or not) the interview might be, and that if the interviewee doesn’t like any of your questions to let you know, and you’ll just move right on. I sometimes reiterate that the interview is anonymous (if it’s been explained already during the screening), but I often leave it out because I feel like it sets a negative overtone for the interview. – Keep tougher questions for until you have rapport. Many interview scripts go like this: Gather demographic information (age, sex, education, financial history, etc.), talk about interest area 1, talk about interest are 2, etc… The thing is, I think asking about someone’s financial history (“How many credit cards do you have? What are their balances?”) is like asking someone if they want kids on a first date. It’s just not cool. So I typically wait until I have a rapport with someone before I start asking tougher/more invasive questions, sometimes even tacking them on at the end like an afterthought (“Oh yeah, I almost forgot to ask – how much are your car payments, again?”). This way I don’t scare them off up front, and I still get the information I need. Now, a lot of these points won’t necessarily work if you’re after quantitative feedback, or trying to get “benchmark” ratings of some kind. Positive affirmation can be seen as “leading”, and this a huge no-no for many research projects. However, I do my best to go by the rule: “When in doubt, just be human.”