How to get top notch profit pulling content from interviews for info products, teleseminars or podcasts.

This is an honest, user review of “Interviewing Unwrapped” – a 7 CD and 3 manual home study course from Heather Vale that aims to teach the essential skills needed to find, interview, and record experts in any chosen field or niche. I have personally used the product, and what follows is based on my own experience.

Why Learn to Interview?

While there is plenty of money to be made online by selling other people’s products, the REAL MONEY is at the top of the internet food chain – creating and selling your own information products.

One of the best ways to create your own product is to interview experts and have them share their knowledge, ideas and experience with you. Your interview can be recorded and sold, given away as an incentive, transcribed and added to a blog or membership site, or used as part of a series, e-book, or compilation.

Alex Mandossian calls this “product creation at the speed of sound”.

Interviews can be a win-win for both people. As the interviewer, you get credible, interesting and relevant new content, and your guest will have enhanced their reputation as an industry expert. Your expert may also tell his list about the interview, giving you a stream of their personally endorsed traffic. Perfect.

Its also a great way to build YOUR reputation within a niche, and leverage the trust and expertise associated with those you have interviewed. If the big names will talk to you, then you too must be a big name. Call it social proof, or becoming an expert by association, but it works.

If Google has taught us anything, it is that content is king. Those with the best content will be rewarded with more traffic, more subscribers, more downloads, more listeners, more credibility and more sales.

For product creation, blogging or podcasting, one of the surest ways provide the fresh content our market craves is a well conducted and revealing interview.

Sounds simple?

It is! Or at least it can be, but only if you know how.

Who is Heather Vale?

Heather Vale (now Heather Vale Goss) has worked in Canada as a journalist, a news reporter, a TV host and a news anchor. Heather’s on-air work included daily interviews with celebrities and news makers, in person, on camera and via the phone. She has since moved from on-air to on-line, and her unique style of interviewing has earned her the nickname of “the Unwrapper” for the way she is able to gently but persistently “unwrap” a topic or guest and get to the deeper, innermost levels of information or understanding.

Mark Joyner says she is “razor sharp”.

Dr. Joe Vitale describes her questions as “brilliant and to the point”.

Her interviews with popular and significant figures in the internet marketing and personal growth arenas have brought her wide recognition, and she has worked as a freelance interviewer for Brad Callen, Joel Comm, Rick Raddatz and many others.

Clearly, this lady knows her stuff!

“Interviewing Unwrapped” is the culmination of over 15 years of Heather’s trial and error experiences interviewing people and teaching other broadcast and print professionals, online marketers, and live seminar students to do the same.

What’s in the Box?

7 Audio CDs in a protective sleeved case:

The 7 CDs are in CD audio format only, meaning you will need to rip them to digital audio format if you wish to listen to them on your iPod or portable music player. Each CD is professionally made, with full color printing and all are housed in a convenient multi-sleeve protective case.

The first 6 CDs feature Heather interviewing other well known online interviewers to discuss their techniques and suggestions on how to get the best results. Her guests include Harris Fellman, David Garfinkel, Willie Crawford, Martin Wales, Randy Gilbert, Harrison Klein, Lou D’Alo, Barry Goss, Shaune Clarke and Mark Joyner.

The 7^th CD turns the tables and has Heather being interviewed by Janet Beckers of Wonderful Web Women.

“Interviewing Unwrapped – Book 1” spiral bound manual:

This is the is the 184 page “foundation manual” that includes 46 chapters of practical interviewing advice and techniques to guide you from absolute beginner to skilled interviewer. The manual is divided into the following sections:

1. Introduction
2. The Truth About Popular Interviewing Myths
3. The Anatomy of a Great Interviewer
4. The Anatomy of a Great Interview
5. The Anatomy of a Great Question
6. Presentation and Delivery
7. Content
8. Getting The Guests

This is more of a workbook than strictly a text book, with blank Notes pages at the end of each chapter. This format is perfect for making notes and observations as you read.

Unless you “personalize” a book with your own hand written thoughts and ideas, you simply aren’t being fully engaged with the content. Forget what the school librarian taught you about never marking any page in a book: this is YOUR book – make it truly your own and never read without a pen or pencil in your hand! The notes you make to yourself are invaluable when revising or clarifying what you have read and turning an author’s words into ACTION.

“Interviewing Unwrapped – Book 2” spiral bound manual:

This 182 page volume contains the transcripts of the first six CDs of interviews with other well known online interviewers. The format is the same as the first book, with one or more pages for notes at the end of each interview transcript:

1. Interviews with Today’s Top Online Interviewers
2. Conclusion
3. Bonuses

The Action Steps listed in Chapter 10 will get you headed out with a PLAN, and the bonus Question Template from Chapter 11 is a good cheat sheet to keep your interviews on track.

“Wonderful Web Women” spiral bound Interview transcript

This is the full transcript of the hour long interview with Janet Beckers of Australia’s Wonderful Web Women that is on the 7^th CD in the package. The microphone is turned back on Heather this time, and she gives insights into her background, including how she came to be known as “the unwrapper”, and how she was able to secure an interview with a previously non responsive Mike Filsaime.

The Online Members Area

There are 3 versions of “Interviewing Unwrapped”, all of which feature the same physical package but offer different levels of access to the online members area.

The basic level is “The Interviewing Pak”, which includes everything described so far and online access to:

• downloadable copies of the Book 2 tools

The next level is “The Show Host Pak”, which includes everything above plus:

• one year forum access – ask Heather and share with other users
• case studies and interview critiques
• 20 specific niche question templates (50+ questions each)

The next level is “The Producer Profit Pak”, which includes everything above plus:

• swipe files and templates
• marketing reports
• much greater detail on how to pitch, produce and profit from interviews

Content Breakdown

The real core of this product is Book 1, and everything else can be probably be regarded as bonus material. The layout and sequence of topics is well thought out, and her ideas are communicated clearly without unnecessary fluff or padding.

Unlike some information products I have purchased, I had absolutely no sense of filler material being used to boost the page count and cover up an under developed product. “Interviewing Unwrapped” is just great, solid content.

I liked her balance between detail and examples, and found myself reading easily for many hours. Admittedly I do not come to this topic as an inexperienced newbie. My own background has included public and commercial radio news and documentary production, and although I suspect this makes me a more critical reviewer of this product, I found little to fault.

Heather tackles some of an interviewer’s classic dilemmas with experience and sometimes contrasting viewpoints:

• Conversations vs. interviews – which is better?
• How to balance the tell with the sell.
• How much preparation should you do?
• Should a guest be given a prepared list of questions or topics?
• When is it appropriate to ask a tough question?
• How to control or guide a interview towards better content
• Who makes a better interviewer: Introvert or Extrovert?
• When does intimacy become unprofessional?
• How to avoid loaded, leading and limiting questions.
• The pressure of silence

The five pages she devotes to “Your Voice and You” are some of the most practical advice I have read on the subject of articulation and vocal expression. She even includes some simple exercises to help fine tune the 7 factors of your voice personality. Oh yes, your voice has it’s own personality, and recognizing that fact will help you become a more interesting and engaging speaker for your listeners and guests.

Despite being an informative and well structured learning package, there are a few minor negatives:

• I would have liked the Instructional part of this package to have also been in an audio format. If Heather could have narrated the course content it would be very useful to listen on my iPod.
• There are no .pdf or .mp3 files of the main content, as this is part is only a physical package. I love the ability to quickly search a .pdf to find a phrase or keyword, and unlike an .mp3 ripped from an audio CD, I cannot generate a .pdf from the physical product.
• My two spiral bound workbooks tended to unwind themselves during use, and I would twist the binding back in place to keep the all the punched holes secured.

I especially enjoyed some of the bonus interviews, and my two favorites were with copywriters and interviewers David Garfinkel and Shaune Clarke. I had not previously been aware of either, and am very happy to have been introduced to their work and opinions through the “Interviewing Unwrapped” course.

Conclusion

For online and offline users, interviews are potentially an excellent way to quickly generate new information and unique content. Despite the large numbers of interviews and teleseminars appearing regularly online, it is clear that few people have the skills and techniques needed to create content rich and enjoyable interviews.

If you publish a blog, podcast, community newspaper, information products or own a website – you need “Interviewing Unwrapped”.

Even if you only purchase the entry level “Interviewing Pak” with limited online access, Heather Vale delivers a wide ranging and very complete home learning course. Experienced interviewers will find plenty of tips, and newbies are gently guided through the main pitfalls and problems to achieve interviewing success.

“Interviewing Unwrapped” is excellent value for money, and there really is nothing else quite like it.

I have personally used and will continue to use the product, and can recommend it to any aspiring or experienced content creators. The 60-Day Money Back Guarantee is insurance against any possible shortcomings or deficiencies you may find, and I feel certain you will enjoy and benefit from this purchase.

Visit InterviewingUnwrapped.com to purchase this program