No one knows your brand better than you and being able to communicate your company’s values, purposes and promises are paramount to your success. However, communicating effectively with the media is a skill that must be fine-tuned and practiced regularly. Even the CEOs of Fortune 500 companies regularly practice media training techniques.
Media training helps ensure that key messages are conveyed clearly and effectively by company spokespersons to present your company in the best possible light. From in-person TV interviews to emailed Q&As with print journalists, communicating with reporters requires preparation and practice. Read on for our five quick tips on how to best communicate with members of the media.
Prepare
As with any type of training, preparation is crucial. To prepare for media training, create key message points, fine-tune your elevator speech and think of relevant examples that support your key messages.
Stay on target
To ensure high impact delivery of your message, stay on point, be succinct and be positive. Lead with the important information and strong examples to prioritize key points.
Maintain control
To communicate a cohesive message, emphasize appreciation, clarification and corrections. For example, to show appreciation, consider phrases such as “Good question” or “Thanks for your interest.” For clarification or corrections, consider “I’m sorry, I misspoke. Let me rephrase that,” or “Let’s ensure I’m answering accurately. Will you repeat the question?” Lastly, remember that everything is always on the record. If an uncomfortable situation arises, consider responding “I’m sorry, I can’t go off the record.”
Repeat the question
When participating in an interview, phrase your answers as quotable statements by repeating the question followed by your response. For example, if an interviewer asks, “Why is your company unique?” consider responding “My company is unique because…” This tactic affirms clarity and avoids unnecessary information.
Bridge and pivot
Bridges and pivots are important transitional strategies used to insert talking points or combat a lack of information on-hand. If you’re asked about a topic or question to which you don’t know the answer, pivot the conversation by saying, “I couldn’t tell you, but what I do know is…” If you would like to incorporate information unrelated to the prompted question, bridge your answer with what you want to say by using phrases such as “Yes, and what’s also interesting is…”
At Lou Hammond Group, we specialize in providing comprehensive public relations and marketing services so you can confidently deliver your message to key audiences. Let us show you how we can take your media training to the next level and call us today!