Profile-style videos are one of the most common types of corporate video, and being good at conducting interviews is an important part in creating a profile with great content.

Here at On-Site Studios, you always have the option of having our team ask the questions or to pose the questions yourself. Here are a couple of tips you can use to get great answers if you choose to conduct the interview yourself.

Positioning

You should position yourself next to the cart/camera so that the onscreen talent can look right at you and be at a profile angle to the lens. Work with your producer to make sure you are correctly positioned for the talent's lighting.

Make Sure the Interviewee is Comfortable

As the interviewer, you set the tone. You don’t want to make the interviewee feel uncomfortable.

Go over the interview process with them before beginning. Start off with some simple questions to ease into the interview. Don’t go straight into the “hard-hitting" questions.

You can make the interview conversational, like you are having a normal chat. However, be sure you are not interrupting the person as they are answering, to ensure that there are clean sound bites. Give them a couple of seconds after they finish before moving on to the next question.  

Two is Better Than One!

During the interview, it is always good to have more than one take of each answer. The second take doesn’t have to be the same as the first take. In fact, in some cases, the second one is unexpectedly better than the first.

Be Encouraging

It’s hard being in front of a camera sometimes! If the interviewee is struggling, be encouraging! Let them know they can take as many tries as they need to, and if necessary, they can always come back to the question later.

Have Them Rephrase the Question in Their Answer

Keep in mind, usually the interviewer's voice won’t be in the video, and the viewer will not hear the question. That means that answers should rephrase the question and be complete sentences to give context.

For example, they could answer "I went to medical school for eight years," instead of answering "eight."

Evergreen Content 

Your videos should be able to stay relevant for a long time! Sometimes an answer cannot be used in the video because it is "time stamped."

For example, an answer such as "I've been working here for three years" will be outdated the following year. Find ways to rephrase it so that the information stays relevant no matter when the viewer sees it.

As always, On-Site Studios is here to help you if you have any questions about interviewing.