How to Prepare for Your MemberWhen Conversation

Conversations with MemberWhen storyographer’s are designed to be easy and organic — they are truly meant to be just what they’re called, a conversation. There’s no need to prepare, but we understand, if it’s your first MemberWhen, you want to anticipate topics of discussion and what you may want to say. We’ve got you covered.

How It Works

Storyographers are equipped with a list of questions, each question is designed to provoke a certain response. Keep in mind that during the conversation, some questions may sound similar or even prompt similar responses, that’s ok. Customers may become concerned with repeating themselves, but know that storyographers do this to find the content they are looking for. We’ll cut out, edit and move around what we need to. You’re job is to simply answer the questions to the best of your ability. Too often, people edit themselves in the process, but the best thing you can do is be yourself! MemberWhen’s goal is to capture who you are; that’s what makes a MemberWhen so special.

How To Prepare

As I mentioned, there’s no need to prepare, but there are certain things you can keep in mind. Depending on the type of MemberWhen you’ll be participating in, you can check out sample questions & topics of discussion on each category page. Just click through to the type of story you’ll be telling.

• Sample: Life Story MemberWhen – Leaving Your Legacy
  • Think about your life, from the early years to present day
  • What do you want your family and friends to always remember about you?
  • Sample Questions & Topics:
    • Where does your story begin?
    • How would you describe your childhood?
    • Who or what has consistently had the most influence on your life?
    • What do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?
    • Do you have a motto or a value/principle that you’ve lived your life by?
    • What’s one of the greatest lessons you’ve learned?
    • What are you enjoying most during this time of your life?
    • Where is your happiest place to be?

• Sample: Contributing to a MemberWhen
  • When speaking about a friend or loved one, we ask similar questions that prompt great and interesting responses.
  • Maybe there’s a fun adventure/journey you shared with your dad/grandma/sister/etc.? An embarrassing story? A significant impact they had on your life? Or an event that brought you closer together?
  • Before your call, try and think about the times you’ve shared with them and all notable moments that you’ll always remember.

Don’t Do’s

As I mentioned before, organic conversations create the best audio content. Some customers write down their stories and read them back to storyographers. This however, creates a monotone delivery, losing inflection of the voice and the true meaning behind the words.

As I mentioned, audio sounds best when it’s most authentic, when it’s said naturally — with all the pauses, sentiment, and emotions that can only be captured when it’s unrehearsed.

What if I say something I want to take back?

Let’s say you’re answering a question and start going down a road you didn’t intend to go down, or maybe what you said isn’t what you meant, or it’s just not coming out right. That’s easy to fix! Just let your storyographer know you don’t want that specific content in the final product and start over. It’s that easy! We’re patient and willing to keep the conversation going until we get it right.

Have fun!

Lastly, have fun! What we want to capture is who you are— your quirks, your personality and all that it brings. Most importantly, that’s what your loved ones want to hear because you are the gift. You are what makes a MemberWhen meaningful and everything that it is.