Topics covered
Show, don't tell
Introductory blurb: Explain the process
Lede: Include your question-asker's story
Kicker: Follow up with your question-asker
Foot of the story: Call for more responses
Lather, rinse, repeat on all platforms
Show, don't tell
You can tell your audience to send in responses through your form embed. You can tweet and post to Facebook. But the best way to inspire your readers to participate in the Hearken process is to show them that what they say and do matters and that you’re listening. And the best place to do that is in your stories themselves. With that in mind, here are the details we recommend including in every Hearken story:
Introductory blurb: Explain the Hearken process
At the top of each Hearken story, it’s helpful to write a few brief sentences to explain that this story is a part of your broader Hearken project. This blurb should do the following:
Explain the Hearken process: Let your audience know that this story was initiated by an audience question. Make sure you also let them know that this story is part of an ongoing effort to listen to and include to the audience in your work. If this story is part of a branded series, say so.
Acknowledge your question-asker: Always highlight your audience member’s involvement in the story. It’s considerate, of course. But it’s also an important way to teach your audience about the Hearken process (show, don’t tell) and to drum up even more engagement. When you acknowledge an audience member’s participation, they’re very likely to share your work with their networks. That means they are marketing your work in an authentic (and free) way. If your respondent submitted their response anonymously, that’s OK. Instead of introducing them by name you can simply say, “This week’s question came from an anonymous audience member.”
Include a link to your series landing page or past call-to-action: If the story is a part of a formal series, be sure to link back to the landing page for that series. If you’re using Hearken in a more ad-hoc manner (e.g., on a topic-by-topic basis) you can just link back to the web post that you made to solicit responses.
Example — General Assignment Series:
This story is a part of Ask Alabama, where you ask the questions, you vote to decide which questions we answer, and then we investigate. This question comes from David Marzette in Vestavia. To submit your question or vote on our next topic, click here. David asks: "Why is the state of Alabama still in the liquor selling business? Private owners would make liquor more competitive."
Example — Topical use:
Goats and Soda asked our audience: What do you want us to investigate about girls in the developing world? Readers submitted more than 100 questions, then voted for their favorite. We answer the top question in this article. To take part in our next callout, on global diseases, post your question here.
Lede: Include your question-asker's story
People often have a great backstory for why they asked a question. That backstory can be great material for your story’s lede. You may recall that we recommend interviewing your question-asker at the start of an investigation to find out more about how they are and why they asked their question. Consider using some of that material at the beginning of your story. Your question-asker can act as a relatable character to draw your audience in.
Example — WBEZ's Curious City:
Curious Citizen Erin English Bailey had a healthy fear of tornadoes as a kid. She grew up near the northwestern limits of Chicago-area sprawl and she remembers when the tornado siren would go off.“There were plenty of times when I was in the basement with my brother, waiting for the sirens to stop,” she says. Together, they’d sit there, huddled in the basement, and Erin’s imagination would get away from her: “I was afraid of cars flying through the air and our house blowing out, our roof blowing off.”Years later, Erin moved to Chicago proper and she noticed something odd. “Suddenly, people were just like, ‘Whatever.’ They were just really blasé about it and like ‘That's not gonna happen here.’” She heard it enough that she passed her observation to Curious City, asking:Why do they think that? And has a tornado ever hit Chicago?
Kicker: Follow up with question-asker
Once you've finished reporting your story, it's great to follow up with your question-asker with another phone call. Give them a summary of what you've learned and ask them to share their thoughts. Often times, their response can provide a perfect way to wrap up your story.
Example — WBEZ's Curious City
So what did Jef think about all this?“This is much bigger than I thought when I asked the question,” he said. “I worry about a private police force. It just sounds like maybe we’re handing too much power to them.” Jef said he is most concerned that the average Chicagoan might never know that UCPD had such a huge jurisdiction.“It’s scary in that sense,” he said. “I’m just finding this out, and I’ve been living in this area ten years.”
Foot of story: Call for more responses
The goal for any Hearken project is that engagement will grow from story to story. But that only works if your audience knows where and how to ask questions! We recommend placing your form embed at the foot of every Hearken story so that it's easy for your audience to ask their own questions as soon as they finish reading. It’s valuable to do this even if your blurb at the top also includes a link back to your main landing page. Repetition is key! Be sure to include an explanatory sentence above the form embed as well.
For example:
This story is part of Ask Orlando, a new feature in which we ask readers to ask questions, we hunt down the answers and report back. If you have a question you’d like us to report on, you can fill out the form below, or head to OrlandoSentinel.com/AskOrlando.
Lather, rinse, repeat on every platform
Any time you publish anything related to your Hearken-powered series, that’s an opportunity to remind your audience how it all works. Does your story involve a video, an audio piece and a web story? Find a way to explain the process, acknowledge your question-asker, and call for more responses on all three of those platforms. If it feels redundant to you, that means you're doing it right.