The Art of the Interview
Conversations with Architects
We love interviewing architects.
It’s a part of what we do for our clients that are either architectural firms or architectural product suppliers. We like to say that Every Structure Has a Story, and architects are often the ones who can tell those stories the best.
For example, we told a story recently about an amazing architectural achievement at a winery in California called Fulldraw Vineyard. We wrote the story for our client, Dynamic Fenestration, the company that supplied the windows and doors for this exclusive project. They collaborated with the architects of Clayton Korte, a world-class architectural firm based in Texas.
For the story, Pohl Strategic interviewed two architects from Clayton Korte: Camden Greenlee, AIA, Associate, and Brian Korte, FAIA, Principal, both of whom worked closely with Dynamic on the winery project. The result was a feature article called “Fulldraw Vineyard: Winery Architecture that Blends Sophistication and Comfort” which appeared on Dynamic’s website
When Korte was asked about his experience of being interviewed by Pohl Strategic, he said,
“We came away very satisfied and felt that the subject matter was well covered. The interviewer asked great questions and created a comfortable environment. We even worked in some laughs, which was nice to not take ourselves too seriously. Overall, it was a good experience.”
Approach
As a marketing company with a special focus on the architectural industry, we’ve interviewed our share of architects. It’s been a pleasure to interview people like Camden and Brian. Whether we’re working on writing articles, compiling case studies, or just telling
stories, we’ve learned a lot from spending intentional time with these people, and we’ve learned a few things over the years. Here’s our top seven lessons:
1. Don’t say “interview.” Say “conversation.” Think conversation. Think of it as an interactive encounter with another human being. Don’t intimidate. Be kind.
2. Don’t go too deep too fast. Start with small talk. Show interest in the person’s life, rather than just the story or subject at hand. Be gentle.
3. Don’t assume you know the story. Let it emerge from your conversation. Find out what they want to talk about. Be humble.
4. Don’t talk too much. Don’t fill the silence with your words. Ask your questions and wait. Some people are okay with silence. Be patient.
5. Don’t let them off easy. If you’re working on a story, don’t just ask about what happened, ask about how they felt about what happened, and what it meant to them. Push for reflection. Be diligent.
6. Don’t jump the gun. Assure them that you won’t publish anything before getting their final approval. Invite them to be a part of the editing process. Then follow through on communication. Be considerate and collaborative.
7. Don’t be a grump. Smile a lot. Laugh a little. Don’t take yourself too seriously. Admit to your humanity. Make the atmosphere as casual as possible, but as structured as necessary. Be real. Be fun.
BONUS: Not everyone records their interviews, but we regularly do, and we often find it very helpful later in the writing process. So, if you want an audio recording, don’t forget to hit “record” and to ask for the person’s permission to do so (it’s unlawful to record someone without their knowledge). Recording the conversation also frees up the interviewer during the call to be more attentive and not worry so much about notetaking.
Need help with interviewing your clients?
We take a professional approach that feels casual at the same time, which helps us to get to the heart of the story.
Give us a call and let’s see how we can collaborate.
