10 Key Takeaways From 20+ Informational Interviews

I am in the midst of a career transition. With 15 years of experience in the international travel and tourism industry, I am pivoting from a recent operational role to one in which I can put my marketing, branding, and business development skills to better use. Even though I've managed expeditions in far flung destinations, navigating my own hometown market of Philadelphia seemed daunting. To get a handle on it, I went the route of the informational interview.

I was hesitant at first, but for the last year I’ve reached out to friends and family, messaged contacts on LinkedIn, and found email addresses of the people whose jobs or companies I was interested in. Overall, the interviews have netted me great freelance clients, introduced me to phenomenal people, and, while I haven’t found the right full-time fit, I’ve learned a lot about the market and myself in the process.

If you're finding yourself in a similar situation, here are my Top 10 Informational Interview Takeaways to help you along your own professional pathway.

1. It’s not a job interview. The only job at hand is for you to extract as much information as possible from your interviewee. Ask about their work, career, industry, connections, interests. If you go into the meeting only hoping to hear about the perfect job opportunity, chances are it will veer into awkward pause territory very quickly.

2. Respect people’s time. Time is a gift. Whether it’s an hour-long coffee talk or 15 minutes over the phone, treat whatever the person is giving you with care. They could literally be doing anything else.

3. Show up early (if meeting in a public place). There is nothing more awkward than meeting outside a coffee shop, getting your drinks, and turning around to find every seat taken. Show up early, get a table — the best table! — where you can talk freely and comfortably. Use your waiting time to prep for the interview. (And don’t overdo it on the caffeine!)

4. Have your biography polished and ready. Some people will read your resume or LinkedIn profile before you meet. Others might not. Being able to quickly bring people up to speed on your work history and the ‘why’ of your meeting in an efficient and (hopefully) interesting way will save a lot of time, get the conversation off to a good start, and give you the confidence in knowing that you can speak about yourself as well.

5. Do your homework. Again, make the most of the time people are giving you. Don’t ask them to explain what you could have learned on the website. It’s boring anyway. Have at least 5–10 questions ready for their work and 5 more open ended or general ones. (Check out this Forbes.com article for ideas.) Study websites, industry periodicals, anything that might be in their orbit. This also shows them that you care. (And always end with “Anything else you think I should know?” and “Is there anyone else you think I should talk to?” What you think is the end of the conversation often results in the best leads.)

6. Shut up and listen. You are an interviewer. Yes, you are presenting yourself, but being able to listen first and ask follow ups will give you the best opportunity to inject your most fitting viewpoints or personal anecdotes. People might not remember what you specifically talked about, but they will remember your enthusiasm towards their work.

7. Know at least a little about what you want. But--if you must--wanting to ‘learn about the industry’ is a fine place to start. This one hit me hard. I stared at an interviewee as “Well, what do you want to do?” echoed in my head. It felt like an hour passed before I said, “I’m sorry, but I’m still trying to figure that out.” I then gave a few options, what I might want to do, the types of jobs that interested me (which I had researched), but let her know that I was in the information gathering phase.

Take some time on this. Not everyone knows what they want. But you can get more out of your meeting the more specific you can be about what you want.

8. Not everyone is good at informational interviews. Some of your interviews will energize you, as any good conversation would. Others might leave you feeling a little flat. But, if you prep enough, you should still come away with something valuable every time. Trust the process.

9. Follow up asap…and don’t get bent out of shape if you don’t hear back. Email a personalized thank you later in the day, or the next day, including a sentence thanking them for a key takeaway. Hopefully you’ll leave the meeting with a call to action — a promised introduction or information related to your search. Some people will come through as promised, some will come through in a big way, and others you won’t hear from again. That’s life. Don’t sweat it. You’re on a mission.

10. People are interesting! That’s it. Enjoy the journey. The variety of people I’ve met, their backgrounds, their jobs, their skills and interests has been so wide ranging. I’m amazed at the variety of responsibilities and skills I found in the interviews (even by people with the same titles), how people balance hectic schedules, demands, families, and still took the time to sit down with me.

Marc Cappelletti is an independent marketing strategist and content developer. Follow him at MarcCappelletti.com.