The most reliable way to make a business blog post original is to interview someone inside the company who does the work, for about 30 minutes, and build the post from what they say. The interview gives you specifics that no search or AI model can supply: real numbers, real decisions, real mistakes. Those are also the parts readers remember and answer engines are most likely to quote.
This is the exact structure we use when a client’s expertise is the raw material. It works for a plumber, a software founder or a finance director, and it takes the expert less time than writing a draft themselves.
Why interview instead of research or prompt?
Search results and AI drafts recycle what is already public, so two companies asking the same question get nearly the same post. An expert’s account is different in kind. “We stopped offering same-day quotes because it cost us three evenings a week and the close rate did not change” is a sentence that cannot be produced from the outside. It is concrete, attributable and surprising, and that is what makes content stand out. For the broader argument, see our post on why the brief is harder than the draft.
Step 1: Choose the right expert and the right question
Pick someone who does the thing weekly, not someone who manages people who do it. The best interviewees are practitioners: a technician, a project lead, a customer success manager.
Then define one question the post will answer, in the words a customer would use. “How long does a kitchen renovation really take?” is a good question; “Our approach to renovations” is not. A single question keeps the interview focused and the post easy to structure, and it is the question that appears in the first paragraph of the post. If you need help choosing, ask the sales team which question prospects ask most often.
Step 2: Prepare in 20 minutes
Do not try to learn the subject; learn the outline. Spend 20 minutes on:
- The top three search results for the question, so you know what is already said and can ask for what is missing.
- A list of five to eight questions (below).
- Two or three specific facts you want to verify, such as a price range or a typical timeline.
Send the expert only the topic and the main question, not a long list. Over-preparation produces rehearsed, textbook answers.
Step 3: The 30-minute interview structure
| Minutes | Purpose | Example question |
|---|---|---|
| 0–3 | Set up and permission to record | “I’ll record this for note-taking only; is that fine?” |
| 3–10 | The direct answer | “If a customer asked you this in a meeting, what would you say in two sentences?” |
| 10–20 | Stories and numbers | “Tell me about the last time this went well. What happened and how long did it take?” |
| 20–27 | Mistakes and myths | “What do customers get wrong about this? What did you used to believe that turned out false?” |
| 27–30 | Close | “What should I have asked that I didn’t?” |
That last question is often the most productive of the session. Experts know what matters better than any interviewer.
Which questions pull out real detail?
Good questions ask for specifics and invite a story. Our standing list:
- “What is the most common mistake you see, and what does it cost?”
- “Walk me through the last time you did this, step by step.”
- “What number do you look at first, and what is a good or bad value?”
- “When would you tell a customer not to do this?”
- “What changed in the last two years?”
- “If you had a budget of X, what would you do first?”
Avoid questions that start with “Can you explain…” because they invite a lecture, and avoid yes-or-no questions. When an answer is vague, ask “for example?” or “how many?”. Two follow-ups are usually enough to turn a general claim into a usable one.
Step 4: From transcript to draft
Record with permission and transcribe afterwards; most meeting tools and speech-to-text services can produce a first transcript in minutes. Read it once, then mark:
- The direct answer, which becomes your first two paragraphs.
- 5 to 8 quotable statements, short and specific enough to be pulled out and cited.
- Stories and numbers, which become examples and a table or list.
- Mistakes, which become a section such as “What most people get wrong”.
Use AI as an assistant here if you like: it can cluster the transcript by theme or suggest an outline. But keep the expert’s wording for the key claims and check every number against the recording. We describe the human-checking side in our AI draft editing checklist, and a ready-made structure in the GEO content brief template.
Step 5: Send the claims back for a check
Before publishing, email the expert the list of specific claims and any direct quotes, not the whole post. A two-minute reply protects both accuracy and the relationship. It also tells you whether they are comfortable being named. A named expert, with a role and relevant experience, adds trust to the post, which matters for both readers and search engines.
What if nobody has time?
Shorten it rather than skip it. A 15-minute call with two questions (“What do customers get wrong?” and “Tell me about a recent example”) can supply enough raw material for a post. Voice notes sent on a phone also work: ask the expert to record three minutes answering one question in their own words.
If your team really cannot give even that, accept that the content will be more generic and plan accordingly, or consider bringing in a provider who does interviews as part of the service. We note this as an item to check in what a blog content retainer should include.
A common mistake: interviewing for volume
One strong interview can feed more than one asset, such as a blog post, a LinkedIn post and a short FAQ, but do not stretch a thin interview into five weak posts. Quality of detail matters more than output count. If you want to extend one source across formats, our post on repurposing one long-form piece into 10 assets shows how to do it without diluting the original.
FAQ
How long should an expert interview for a blog post be?
Thirty minutes is enough for a focused post with one main question. Shorter calls work if you prepare well and ask for stories.
Do I need the expert’s permission to quote them?
Yes. Ask before recording, and send the quotes back before publication so they can confirm accuracy.
Can I interview several experts for one post?
You can, but keep it to two or three. More voices make the post harder to structure, and each additional interview adds time without much extra originality.