Oops! I Said It Again - A Special Report On How Media Training Can Help Business People Survive Life
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By Chris Roycroft-Davis MediaMasters (London) Ltd www.mmasters.co.uk
Media training teaches us that the first rule of being interviewed is simple – be available. Journalists are busy people who work to inflexible deadlines. The story has to be ready in time or it doesn’t go in the paper.
So when a reporter phones, don’t ignore them. Take the call.
But, unless you’re the world’s greatest living expert on your subject and are filled with confidence at your ability to handle the media because you’ve had proper media training, DON’T jump in without thinking.
Remember that the interview really starts the moment you pick up the phone, so be positive and co-operative.
Media training teaches you that you don’t sound suspicious of the journalist’s motives, don’t get agitated or irritated. Just be pleasant and buy yourself a little time before you have to answer any questions.
“Yes, of course I’d like to help you. Can you tell me what publication this will appear in, please, and what’s the story exactly.”
Now you’re in control, thanks to your media training. Feels better already doesn’t it!
By asking what publication the story will appear in, you’ll discover whether the journalist is on the staff of a newspaper or magazine, or whether he or she is a freelance, who works for a number of publications.
Freelances are sometimes commissioned to write a story, in which case it has a good chance of appearing in print if you give them the quotes they’re after.
But often freelances can be on a fishing trip, dangling their line in the water to see what bites. If they catch a story, then they get paid. So there can sometimes be a temptation for them to try to stretch the story a little further than you’d like, to make it more interesting and increase their chances of getting paid.
On my media training courses I tell my students to make sure you ask about the reporter’s deadline. Is it today at 5pm, in which case you haven’t much time to think, or is it in a week’s time, in which case your life has just become much easier?
Next thing to establish is who else they have spoken to, or plan to speak to?
“What do you want from me?” is an essential question. Firstly, to make sure they are talking to the right person and secondly so you can arm yourself with the answers to the questions.
“What exactly is it you want from me?” will give you a firm idea of what you need to know.
Follow up with: “How much do you now already?” Now you should be able to spot potential traps. Does the reporter already know something you wouldn’t have wanted him to know? If so, how are you going to deal with it?
Already media training means you’ve taken control and set the agenda. Now here comes the clever bit.
“I’m sure I can help you with the information you need,” you say. “But before I can do that you’ll have to give me a few minutes to rearrange a meeting I am supposed to be attending. Give me your number and I promise I’ll ring you back in 15 minutes.”
That’s a promise you must keep. Like someone doing media training, the reporter may have six other people he needs to talk to in the hour or so before he has to write his story! If you don’t call him back on time, he may not bother chasing you any more.
So you will lose the chance to be interviewed. Good? No…bad!
Your media training will show you that an interview is an opportunity, not an ordeal. It is your chance to put a positive message about yourself or your organisation into the public domain.
It is no-cost, low-cost marketing which can pay rich dividends.
In the worst scenario, it is a vital means of defending your image by correcting a falsehood or putting your side of an argument.
You’ve got 15 minutes to get your act together. Luckily, you asked the right questions, so you know what the journalist wants to question you about.
Take out your media training interview planner. Write down the topic. Now ask yourself if this is something your company would want you to talk about. If it isn’t, prepare a sentence you can give the journalist which explains why you’re going to say nothing.
“XYZ Ltd regrets it is unable to make public statements about confidential business matters.” Or
“I’m sorry but it is XYZ Ltd’s policy never to make public comments about the private lives of its employees.”
The one thing you must never say is “No comment.” That can backfire horribly.
Suppose the reporter rings the Finance Director and says, “What can you tell me about the strong rumour sweeping the City that your company is about to go bust?”
Mr Beancounter says a curt, “No comment” and puts the phone down, secure in the knowledge that he has averted disastrous publicity.
Imagine his horror when he picks up the paper next morning and reads a story which begins…
THE finance chief of XYZ Ltd last night refused to deny rumours sweeping the City that his company was about to go bust.
How could he have handled this differently? Media training will unlock the secrets for you.
Let’s suppose his company is indeed going through financial difficulties.
Does he tell the truth?
No. That would not be acting in the best interests of shareholders, employees or creditors – and, after all, a finance director owes a duty of care and responsibility to them, not to the Press.
But one important rule of media training is that not telling the truth isn’t the same as telling a lie.
“I’m not interested in rumours,” he could say. “I deal in facts – and the fact is that it’s business as usual today at XYZ Ltd.”
Full stop. End it there. Don’t embellish it. Don’t be drawn into conjecture. Let silence be your friend – never make the mistake of burbling on to fill the space. Use the time to think, not waffle.
“But suppose the rumours were true,” the reporter might say. “You’d have to close down, putting hundreds out of work, wouldn’t you?”
What should Mr Beancounter reply?
Media training will tell you: Never, never answer a hypothetical question. But don’t be afraid to say that you don’t. “I’m sorry, but I never answer hypothetical questions.”
“So are you saying you’re not about to go bust then?”
“What I am saying is that XYZ Ltd made £20million profit last year and that is has £30million of orders on its books for this year. Our five factories, employing 220 people, are working hard to meet the demand for our products.”
Facts. Facts. Facts. Not necessarily the relevant facts, mind you. But no lies have been told and a more positive image has been created of XYZ Ltd.
Mr Beancounter hasn’t said there are no financial problems – after all, he chose not to mention the £60million of bank debt, the inefficient and ageing factory machinery or the secret negotiations with the union to avert an all-out strike.
Has he turned disaster into success? What do you think?
Anyone who has had media training will know that he has simply set a trap for another day. Suppose the reporter runs a story saying the rumours about XYZ Ltd are untrue because the finance chief says everything in the garden is rosy.
Then a week later, the workers go on strike, or the factory machinery packs up, or the banks threaten to call in the debts. What can Mr Beancounter say to the reporter when he rings up this time? There’s no hiding place.
So if times are hard to XYZ Ltd, just like every other manufacturer or deluxe widgets, what should Mr Beancounter say to the reporter.
On my media training courses I say to students: Put yourself in his place and write a 35-word quote for the Press.
What you’ve done is precisely what every person who might come into contact with the media should do.
You’ve prepared your response. Whatever business you’re in, you’ll have some link to one or more major issues on which your company will have a view, a policy for public consumption. What politicians call “the line to take.”
So when should you work out “the line to take” on the many issues that could affect you and your company?
When a journalist calls asking for a quote? No, that’s too late. Leave it until then and you will rush at it and make mistakes. What if you have only a few minutes to contact your boss and ask him if he or she even wants you to do the interview, let alone decide between you what you should say?
What if your boss is out, or on holiday or off sick? You’re in trouble. Deep trouble.
So the first rule of media training is: Plan and prepare. Set aside a couple of hours as soon as you can to identify the potential issues, understand and agree your company’s policies, then draft an effective response.
Avoid jargon and try not to be over-formal. Don’t say:
“My company will use its best endeavours in an effort to reconcile the issues and ensure the restoration of an appropriate level of customer satisfaction”
When what you really mean is:
“We’ll do our best to make solve the problems and make sure our customers are happy again.”
Journalists, even on the serious broadsheets, write in simple English. So do media training experts.You must do so, too.
The other thing you must do is remember the 3Ts: Tell The Truth. If you lie to a journalist, you are making yourself a hostage to fortune.
For you can bet your mortgage that the truth will always come out. Just because you lied doesn’t mean the next person the journalist speaks to will.
Finally, don’t abuse the interviewer, however you may dislike him or her. Journalists are only doing their job, just as you are doing yours. Media training will help you understand that and lay the foundations for solid success in your dealings with the media.
Chris Roycroft-Davis has been one of Britain's leading journalists for three decades. He is the former Executive Editor of The Sun, the UK's biggest-selling daily newspaper, and currently writes for the Daily Express and The Times of London. He is a founding partner of MediaMasters (London) Ltd, which specialises in effective communications through advertising, websites, corporate literature, branding, marketing and corporate identity. He is skilled in media training and helps business people get the best out of media interviews.
Disclaimer: The information presented and opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of ArticlePros.com and/or its partners.
