Interview Conduct

Introduction

Take it from usability expert Wendy Hess, whether it's a face-to-face, phone, Skype, or email interview, these tips will help you succeed.

Set the Schedule Yourself

When scheduling interviews, suggest a date and time for each participant instead of making the meeting request open-ended.

Be cognizant of the time zone they’re located in and be sure to include the time zone on the meeting request.

Factor in Breaks

Give yourself an hour between sessions to digest what you heard, drink some water, use the bathroom, rest your hands, ears, and eyes.

Recruit More Participants Than You Need

Participants will always drop out. Don’t feel bad, it isn't you. But conflicts come up, schedules shift, and people need to cancel.

Record the Sessions

While it might seem like recording your interviews is a hassle, the benefit far outweighs the cost. You’ll be able to take lighter notes, concentrate on what’s being said, and supply tangible evidence if someone challenges your findings. You can use a digital voice recorder, a Skype recorder (like Vodburner) or a screen sharing recorder (like iShowU), or even a LiveScribe Pulse Pen.

Be Casual and Conversational

A formal, mechanical Q&A session is not the way to conduct an interview. The questions you prepare should only be used as conversation starters, and as a checklist of topics you want to cover.

Here are two great tips to help your participants feel more comfortable, and make them more willing to answer questions honestly and with great detail:

• Memorize the questions
• Don’t number your questions.

Ask Open-ended Questions

Always start your questions with Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How. Open-ended questions can’t be answered with a 'Yes' or 'No'. Never start a question with, “Do you…” and expect to get more than a three-word answer. A better way to phrase it would be, “To what extent do you…” or “Tell me more about…”. That opens up the conversation, gets the ball rolling, and forces people to really think about their response.

Ask the Question, Then Pause

Ask your question, and then be quiet. Let them answer, even if it takes a moment.

Ask About Behaviors, Not Feelings

People have a really hard time talking about their feelings, especially to strangers.

Asking, “How do you feel about XYZ?” is only going to reveal the smallest piece of the puzzle, just a momentary, fleeting emotion. You will not find out what triggered it, nor what resulted from it. Instead ask, “What did you expect would happen when you…?” and, “What actually happened when you…?” and then most importantly, “What did you do next?” These types of questions tell the whole story of what the person actually experienced on both the inside and out.

Play Dumb

In order to challenge your assumptions and uncover hidden truths, you’re going to have to check your ego at the door. While interviewing people, it is not your goal to demonstrate how much you know, but instead to find out what they know, how they think about it, what they call it, and how they think it all works.

Help me understand…” and “ I've never done…” puts the participant into the teacher role and you into the learner role. And everyone loves to teach what they know to people who seem to know less.

Don't Judge Their Answers

You might be shocked by what you hear, but try to do your best not to show it. You are there to learn about real people and real situations, not to form opinions or evaluate their answers. While conducting the interview, be neutral, even-toned, and accepting.

Paraphrase What You've Heard

Communication is hard, especially with someone you’re meeting for the first time. Things get lost in translation even when you’re both speaking the same language. So as you’re going along in your interview, take the time to summarize something you learned and repeat it back to the participant.

If You're Wondering, Ask

In most cases you get one shot to spend some time picking this person’s brain. You’re already in the zone, building a rapport, so don’t keep your questions to yourself. If the participant uses a term you've never heard before, ask them to explain it. If you think you misheard something, ask them to repeat it. If one of their responses makes you think of something that isn't on your list of questions, ask it anyway. This is where the gems are hiding.

Be Grateful

Say, "please" and "thank you." More than once. Go out of your way to make the participant feel appreciated and valued. You’ll make them feel like a partner in the process rather than just a subject of study, and that will lead to more honest feedback, deeper answers, and it's just general good karma.