Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Things You’ll Need:
- A non-cellular telephone line
- Telephone tape recorder
- Blank cassette tape
Step1
Type out your questions word for word ahead of time. Make sure your line of questioning is thoughtful, organized and precise. You owe it to the interviewee to be impeccably prepared for the interview so that you don’t waste any of his time.
Step2
Set up an interview date and time in advance. Tell your interviewee about how much of her time you’ll need for the interview.
Step3
Call your interviewee at exactly the appointed time. Don’t be late. Make sure he knows that your conversation will be recorded.
Step4
Start your tape recorder, taking note of what time it is and how many minutes your tape can record on each side. (Most cassettes are 60 or 90 minutes, so you probably have either 30 or 45 minutes before you’ll need to worry about flipping the tape over.)
Step5
Begin asking your questions. Don’t be afraid to ask follow-up questions that aren’t on your sheet. Often the best questions in an interview are those that come up spontaneously, as a natural byproduct of the conversation.
Step6
Because you’re on the phone with your interview subject and can’t read her nonverbal signals, pay especially close attention to her verbal signals. Make note of when she seems comfortable talking about a particular subject, and when she seems uncomfortable. Listening to her tone of voice, the rhythm of her pauses, whether she is volunteering information willingly--these cues should tell you when to move on to another question, and when to press further on the current one. Remember, great interviewers are great listeners.
Novice 
