RRD#@>> Individual business owners are often good interviews...my biggest
RRD#@>> problems come with those little blurbs I end up having to do about big
RRD#@>> chain stores and multiple-site businesses!  I often spend more time
RRD#@>> trying to find someone *willing* to do an interview for a 75 word blurb
RRD#@>> about something one of the big chains is doing than I do getting an
RRD#@>> interview done with the guy down the street who owns a little cafe,
RRD#@>> salon or store featured in a full profile.

RRD#@>     I haven't written about any large stores yet so I'll keep it in mind
RRD#@>usually interview people who own their own small business.  I think the s
RRD#@>writers of the local newspapers write most of the blurbs about the larger
RRD#@>stores and businesses.  Usually smaller business owners are happy to get
RRD#@>whatever free publicity they can get so the interviews go pretty well.

My papers are finally getting to the point where they have something
resembling "staff writers"...but when we started out with mostly
part-time freelancers, we were the only ones there to do the blurbs.

I try to group the interviews for such blurbs together, and get them
over with in the first day or two of my weekly work cycle.  One
advantage to dealing with the bigger places...head offices are usually
open on Mondays, and Monday afternoon is often a good time to find folks
there.
OTOH, Monday is often a bad time to try finding local retail and
restaurant people.  Many such places are *closed* on Mondays, so I
usually try doing those interviews Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.
I've never had a lot of luck on Friday, Saturday or Sunday...

Small business owners are often happy to get the publicity, but there
are always people who don't quite "get it"...they think they can
determine when articles appear, they don't allow enough "lead" time when
contacting the paper (especially important, as we're weeklies...calling
Friday afternoon will *not* get your story in Monday's paper, as it's
usually already gone to print), they want a wonderful story...but don't
come across with much more than "we have a nice business.  we have nice
customers.  this city is a nice city."...even after diligent digging.

Fortunately for me...I get very few blurb assignments (in relation to my
full article assisgnments) any more...and I usually seem to come away
from interviews with some sort of "story".  A friend who worked for a
newspaper, and now writes a lot of company newsletters for his own
design/printing company, once told me that he always felt everyone had a
"story"...our job is to tell that "story"...sometimes a tough order when
you're out doing profiles that aren't linked to special events.

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