Interview Skills: Securing an Interview with an Expert or a Celebrity

Posted by Lima Al-Azzeh Oct 9, 2009

Last week editor Mia Carter published a blog post on how to format an interview for SEO. This week, Mia shares some tips on how to secure an interview with a celebrity or industry expert.

Interviews can make an article more interesting and more credible, but many web writers aren't sure precisely how to secure interviews, particularly when it comes to high-profile subjects like authors and celebrities.

Interviewing Experts

Expert opinion can add a great deal of credibility to an article and the information obtained from an interview with an expert can serve as a great source for one or more articles.

When writing an article, web writers can ask, "Who would I consider an expert on this topic?" If writing about a new medical discovery, perhaps you might contact the doctor or researcher who was involved in the groundbreaking medical advancement. If writing an article about canine diabetes, you might contact a local veterinarian to discuss the disease. Authors are also great expert sources, as are college professors. Even an article about an artistic medium can benefit from a discussion with an artist who specializes in that particular medium.

Establishing a long-term relationship with a handful of experts can greatly improve your writing's credibility. When I first started as a pet writer, I interviewed a family friend who's a veterinarian and since then, we've met on a regular basis to discuss my current pet writing projects. These discussions serve as a great opportunity to confirm facts, and he'll weigh in to provide comment on whatever pet topics I'm writing about. One 90-minute discussion equips me with quotes for a couple dozen articles or more!

Getting an Interview With an Author

To interview an author concerning the release of a new book, you'll need to contact the publisher's in-house media relations department or the public relations firm that's handling PR on behalf of the publisher. PR firms typically handle media requests in the case of a very popular author/book or in the case of a small publisher that does not have an in-house PR department. If you've received a press release concerning the release of a new book, you can call the contact information listed on the release.

This is precisely how I landed exclusive interviews with "The Dog Whisperer" Cesar Millan and PETA founder Ingrid Newkirk, among others. Publishers or PR firms working on behalf of the publisher routinely send out mass emails announcing interview availability with authors several weeks before the book's release. So contact the publisher and request to receive press releases and media alerts. This will grant you access to some really great interview opportunities.

In some cases, authors maintain a website and it may be possible to contact the author directly via his or her website.

Securing an Interview With a Musician or Celebrity

To interview a celebrity or musician regarding a new album, film, etc., you'll need to contact the P.R. firm that's handling media relations on behalf of the record company or film/television production company.

Another great way to interview musicians involves obtaining press passes to a concert. To obtain a press pass, contact the record company and request the contact information for the firm that's handling promotions for the tour.

One really wonderful way to interview musicians involves getting press passes to a music festival or radio station concert, like Boston radio station KISS 108 FM's annual KISS Concert, featuring dozens of artists in the day-long event. Music festivals and concerts hosted by radio stations are generally very press friendly and it's very easy to arrange one-on-one interviews with big name musicians, and musicians who are not available for one-on-one interviews will typically conduct press conferences. I've had the opportunity to conduct exclusive one-on-one interviews with musicians like Britney Spears, Aerosmith, Tori Amos, Lionel Richie, N'Sync and many, many more – all at music festivals and concerts hosted by radio stations.

It's also important to remember the public relations campaigns are launched weeks and even months before the release of a film, book or an album. So if you're seeking an interview with a high-profile subject, do not expect to land an interview a week before the release date. While the actual interviews are usually conducted in the week or so before the release of a film, book or album, the arrangements for these interviews are typically made several weeks in advance. So plan ahead.

Next week's post in Suite101's Limelight Blog will focus on tips for conducting an interview.