BLOG - The importance of preparation in media spokesmanship
Over the past few weeks, I trained no fewer than 11 spokespeople at 3 organizations.
I always find these incredibly interesting and educational moments. These organizations, often very well-known companies, give you a unique look inside their organization. It feels like a privilege every time.
I've given a lot of media training sessions by now, and one important conclusion keeps coming back: how important preparation is – and how often it gets forgotten. Because the people appointed as spokespeople know their subject matter, their organization, the positions, and the key messages.
But that's exactly why they sometimes underestimate the importance of preparation. So here are three tips that can make the difference.
1. Turn an unplanned interview into a planned one
A journalist calls. The first instinct is often to answer right away, especially if the first question is an easy one. But that first question is followed by a second, slightly harder one. And then a third, even trickier one... And before you know it, you're in the middle of an uncomfortable interview, with no preparation.
My advice: first ask for enough context. Make sure you find out the angle and the specific questions involved, and by when a response is needed. Then ask if you can call back later.
Even ten minutes makes a difference. In that short time, you can learn more about the journalist and the outlet, prepare for potentially difficult questions, jot down your key messages, and mentally prepare yourself.
2. Decide in advance what you want people to remember
An interview isn't an exam, and yet during media training we often see an interview turn into a simple question-and-answer session. But answering as many questions correctly as possible isn't your real goal in an interview. What counts is that your key messages stick, and that unwanted ones are avoided.
So ask yourself beforehand: "What key messages does the audience absolutely need to remember?" That way you'll communicate much more deliberately and find it easier to bridge back to those core messages – even when the questions head in a different, or even unwanted, direction.
That's how you come out of the interview much stronger.
3. Work with a message house
Perhaps the most valuable tool from any media training. A message house consists of:
- 1 main message or a kind of elevator pitch: what should the audience remember?
- 3 to 4 key messages: which points support that main message?
- Proof points: examples, figures, cases, or facts that make your key messages tangible and credible.
It sounds simple. But during training sessions, we notice time and again how much structure this brings. And when an organization doesn't yet have a message house, the same conclusion often comes up: "We need to build this as soon as possible." And we're happy to help with that.
Good interviews start before the first question
The quality of an interview is shaped in large part by the preparation beforehand. At least a few minutes of preparation, three clear key messages, a strong message house. That's what makes the difference between "reacting" and "communicating."
- Karolien Hessels is managing director Belgium and media trainer at Charly PR. Together with the Charly Media Training team, she recently trained, among others, essenscia, Q8, Action, Energie.be, BASF, Q-Park, Belnet, Hydro Extrusion, L'Oréal, Bilthoven Biologicals, IDEWE, Vanden Borre Kitchen, Wise, and Center Parcs. Both for regular and crisis spokesmanship.
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