October 2, 2024 • 19 mins
On this episode of 1000 Ways to Market Your Business, Samantha Scott, APR, is joined by Yliana Vilella, Communication Specialist at Pushing the Envelope.
The episode delves into the essentials of media training. Learn how to prepare for and ace media interviews, the importance of representing your business effectively, and practical tips on planning, preparing, and practicing. Discover best practices for attire, handling unexpected questions, building rapport with journalists, and much more to ensure your media interactions reflect positively on you and your brand.
Have a question or feedback to share? Visit www.getpushing.com or one of our many social media channels. We look forward to hearing from you.
#marketing #business #communication #strategy
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Samantha (00:05):
Hi, I'm Samantha Scott, APR, and today I'm joined
by Yliana.
Yliana (00:09):
Hello.
Samantha (00:10):
Communication Specialist with PTE, and we are
talking all things mediatraining.
We want you to be absolutelyready to ace your media
interview, how to prepare, andthen how to ace that talk with
whichever media you might betalking with.
So, let's start things off.
Yliana, can you tell me, howwould you describe media
training, media relations, thatkind of ball?
Yliana (00:29):
It's simple really, and it's just as it is.
Media training is trainingindividuals to interact and
engage appropriately with themedia.
Samantha (00:37):
And why is that important?
Yliana (00:38):
Oh, it's so important for many reasons because when
you have a company, you have abrand, it's putting a face to a
name and it's putting a messageout there.
It's putting it clearly intoperspective for viewers and for
people that you need to engagewith your company and your
business.
Samantha (00:51):
I think that's a great point because you're
representing a business, notjust yourself.
So keep that in mind when you'redoing media training.
It's not just that mediarepresentative talking with you,
the individual, but it's howyou're representing your
business, and your industry,your profession, even if you
want to go really broad with it.
Yeah, and it's super importantbecause if you have a poor
interview, that could reflectpoorly for quite a long time and
(01:14):
on you as well as your business.
Yeah.
So we definitely want to makesure that we're prepared for
that and how to best presentyourself.
Everybody wants to look theirbest and present themselves
their best.
So we'll talk about all thelittle tips and trips, or tricks
rather, of how to do that fromyour attire to where to look, to
how to prepare for indooroutdoor interviews and
everything in between.
So, let's say you've got aninterview lined up, you're
(01:37):
fortunate enough.
Maybe it's a reporter who wantsto do an interview with you.
And if somebody hasn't ever doneone before, how would you best
prepare them?
What would be some suggestions?
Yliana (01:46):
Right.
It's interesting because rightnow we're in the middle of it
for one of our clients, so it'sexciting.
There's a lot that goes onbehind the scenes, and the
biggest thing, the most simplething I say is communication,
communication, communication.
We need to sort out a lot ofthings before we get to that on
air time with the media.
So I try to simplify it the bestway possible.
Three simple steps that we kindof go over.
(02:08):
We plan, prepare and practice.
So what does that mean in thegrand scheme of things behind
the scenes is we want to plan.
Simply put, we want to get thelogistics of it.
Where is it?
Who are we speaking with?
What context are we speaking?
Is it in a studio?
Is it on the phone?
You know, those type oflogistics we want to sort out.
And then we want to prepare.
(02:29):
And what does that mean?
Preparing means simply gettingall the items we need for the
interview.
It could be props, if we're onTV, it could be making sure we
have our key messaging.
As you know, sometimes clientslike a list of questions in
advance so they can prepare.
And then that third component ofit is practice.
We want to review our keymessaging.
(02:50):
We want to practice how we sayit.
We want to practice even down tothe clothes we wear and how we
present ourselves professionallyand in the best way possible for
our organization.
Samantha (02:59):
Yes.
So that was a lot.
Thank you, Yliana.
Really, really good advice.
So let's start back at thebeginning part, the planning
part and researching.
So ask all the questions.
I think sometimes people tend toget caught off guard if they're
not super comfortable with doingmedia interviews or if they
haven't done a lot of them.
So if you're that person, let'sstart there.
Making sure that you feelcomfortable asking questions.
(03:20):
So, say a journalist has calledyou and said"hey, we'd love to
interview you, we want you to beon the six o'clock news to talk
about your business," and, youknow, fill in the blank,
whatever that topic is.
Don't feel like, one, youautomatically have to say yes.
Make sure this aligns with yourbusiness strategy and that you
are an expert to talk aboutwhatever that topic is.
Two, also make sure that you askthose questions.
(03:40):
Is this going to be in studio?
Are you coming to my location?
Who's doing the interview?
How long do you expect this tolast?
There's lots of things to ask sothat you are best prepared
walking into it.
You want to make sure you don'tjust go in and be like,"okay,
what do I do now?" Have all ofthe answers to the best of your
ability.
And then that preparing partabsolutely is super important to
make sure that you're preparednot only to speak your key
(04:03):
messaging and key points, that'ssuper important, but also be
prepared for the unexpected.
So, sometimes, journalists,while I love you all,
journalists, if you'relistening, will throw a
curveball question in there, andyou want to make sure you're
prepared for that.
So, how do you answer the thingsthat might be difficult, that
might be negative?
And then how do you turn thosearound so you have the best
(04:23):
possible interview.
And then, of course, if timeallows, practice to the best of
your ability.
Ideally, you would be doing thismedia training well before you
have an interview in place.
So, walking through, what do wewant to accomplish?
What are we trying to say?
How do we say this in a way thatresonates with our audience and
represents our brand well?
Do all of those types of things.
(04:44):
Map that out.
Also work on answering thosetough questions well before you
get an interview.
Yliana (04:49):
Absolutely.
Samantha (04:49):
And then once you finally get that booked, you can
do a dry run really quickly.
But yeah, great points forpeople.
Yliana (04:55):
Something that's important to remember is
oftentimes when we get to thepoint of an interview, we've had
already establishedrelationships with journalists
and those individuals that arelooking for a particular type of
information.
And we have clients aligned withthat and a lot of organizations
have key speaking people andthese people are typically
well-versed and more seasonedand know a lot about that
(05:16):
subject area.
So we, we don't need a lot ofpractice time in some instances
because they're very well-versedand we just get them in front of
the camera.
We can walk them through it.
But there's a lot of elements toget to that point.
Samantha (05:28):
Yeah, and if you aren't familiar with that, if
you aren't as well-seasoned takethe time to do that even if it's
go in the bathroom and practicein the mirror, you know, if
you're uncomfortable doing itwith somebody else.
There's lots of ways to do thatbut make sure that you feel
comfortable in your skin andwhat you're saying because
nothing is off the record.
Once the camera's rolling, it'sthere.
So be very mindful of that.
(05:48):
Practice what you're saying, bethoughtful, and always feel
free, if you need to buyyourself some time during that
interview, repeat the questionback, gather your thoughts, and
then come back with the bestpossible answer.
Also recommend during theinterview to speak in sound
bites.
You know, that makes it veryeasy for them to cut something
short.
If you tend to ramble, try tokeep your thoughts concise,
(06:08):
short, leave a little pause inbetween your sentences, and then
they're able to get the bestpossible clip for you.' So, in
the planning stage, we talkedabout that.
You want to make sure that youhave all of your goals in mind.
What are you trying toaccomplish with this?
How are you going to do that?
And also make sure that you'respeaking, I mentioned this
earlier, about things that youare an expert in.
(06:30):
It's very easy for media to say,"okay, well then what about
this?" But if that's not, one,your business, you really
shouldn't talk about that.
That's PR 101 is don't talkabout somebody else's business.
But then also make sure thatit's something that you are an
authority in.
And you never want to be oncamera saying,"I don't know."
But at the same time, you canfind creative ways to say,"well,
this is my take on it," or"here's how we do it," and you
(06:53):
can kind of massage the questiona little bit.
Yliana (06:54):
Or you can say, this is my level of expertise on this
topic.
Samantha (06:58):
Absolutely.
And that brings to a great pointof honesty.
Absolutely important.
Never stretch the truth, nevertry to get creative with your
answers.
If you get stuck in a situation,Yliana had a great example of,
"this is my authority on it," or"here's my take on it." Make
sure that we're being veryhonest and open and direct and
not trying to kind of stretchour abilities or come across as
(07:18):
something that we're not.
So, in the preparing stage, theother thing you mentioned was
messaging, so key words, thosetypes of things, and making sure
that we're clear, we understand.
If you are a restaurant owner,that you have the product on
hand to show if there'ssomething visual, that you have
the best representation ofyourself.
Or if this is a professionalservice firm, that you have the
(07:39):
technicalities of what you'reable to offer.
And that you've checked with, ifyou have to, legal counsel on
what you may or may not say.
Also very important.
So all of that kind of goes intothat prep work.
So we've talked through kind ofpreparing for that interview.
Let's talk more detail about inthe interview.
All right.
So now the media's at your frontdoor.
Knock, knock, knock.
I'm here.
Or, perhaps you've gone to thestudio and you're preparing to
(08:02):
do this interview.
Now what?
Yliana (08:05):
So this should be, even though it can be nerve-racking,
this should be the fun part.
Like this is where you kind ofshow up and show out like you
have done all the prep work.
It's kind of like when you're astudent in school.
You know, I have three littles,so my kids are students, right?
And so I always tell them testday, even though it's, you know,
you could have anxiety.
It's the day that you show upand you just do what you do,
(08:27):
because you've done all thestudying the prep work.
It's the same thing with mediatraining.
You've done all the prep work.
You've got your key messaging.
You know what your outfit is,you're gonna look and feel your
best.
So when you show up for theinterview or they show up to
interview you, you hopefullyjust smile.
You're happy.
You think through what you needto think through.
You enunciate.
You take control of theconversation for yourself by
(08:50):
taking a few deep breaths.
You're thinking calmly andclearly and you're just engaging
and interacting the best waypossible.
And that's kind of what thecheat sheet boils down to.
Samantha (09:01):
So a few tips, and we do have a great cheat sheet for
our clients when we do our mediatraining, but a few kind of
insider tips for that would beto make yourself the most
comfortable.
If you're going to a studio andyou feel like you might have
some anxiety around that, arriveearly.
Get there.
Kind of get yourself acquaintedwith the sounds, the lights, the
way it works.
You can't obviously go on stageand do all that stuff, but you
(09:22):
can at least be in theenvironment.
And kind of get acquainted towhat this looks like and how it
works and kind of settle down alittle bit.
So, always try to arrive earlyif possible so you're not
running and rushing in andbringing that energy into the
space.
Yliana (09:34):
Right.
And that's something that we'vediscussed with clients in the
past is control what you cancontrol, right?
Yes, you can't control theenvironment.
You can't control theinterviewer.
You can't control that there maybe a car accident, God forbid,
or something on the way there.
So, we always say allow fortime.
Get there early to get yourselftogether, last minute things.
We've had clients walking into asegment and something comes
(09:55):
unpinned.
So something that we also have,which our team does a great job
of, is having media kits, likeemergency kits, with like pins,
and bobby pins, and chapstick,and whatever they may need
before going on air.
And so it's just allowingyourself time to just get
yourself mentally prepared,physically prepared, you look
and feel great, and you go onand you kind of do your thing.
Samantha (10:15):
Yeah, absolutely.
That's a great little tip.
So we do have these little kindof go bags that have oil
blotters or a comb, bobby pins,safety pins, double-sided tape,
all the different stuff becauseyou never know when an accident
could happen.
And that brings up a great pointis wardrobe.
So making sure if you're goingto do an interview that you're
wearing clothes that you feelconfident and comfortable in.
(10:36):
If you have a great blouse thatyou love, but you always have to
adjust it, don't wear that forthe segment.
And there's different,obviously, setups for men and
women, but for women, I tend torecommend not wearing a button
down because you don't want tohave an accident.
God forbid something happened oryou see something you don't want
to show.
Those kinds of situations, butalso try to avoid busy patterns
(10:57):
because they don't show up wellon camera.
Yliana (10:58):
Right.
Samantha (10:59):
Also be mindful if you're going to be doing a
segment outside, think aboutthis.
I have short hair for a reason,because it is so easy.
But if you're going to beoutside and you got hair blowing
everywhere.
Yliana (11:08):
Or if it's humid and you're just a big...
Samantha (11:10):
It looks so good, and then it doesn't.
So make sure you try to planahead for that and think about
everything from your hairstyleto your wardrobe.
Again, wind, right?
Because if you've got a windyday and you've got a flouncy
dress on, that could be aproblem.
And then also for men, thinkabout what you're wearing.
Is it a blazer?
Is it a button down?
Is it a polo?
Is it a branded shirt?
(11:31):
Is it clean?
Is it pressed?
Does it have stains on it, ifyou're a cook?
You know, think about all of theways that someone could look at
you and misconstrue how you wantyour brand to be presented.
So thinking about that's alsovery, very important.
Yliana (11:43):
Right.
Especially if you're in astudio.
Lighting reveals everything.
Samantha (11:48):
Everything.
Yliana (11:49):
Even some things that you don't want seen or revealed.
So, just being mindful of thecolors.
Is it too sheer?
And we always err on the side ofbeing a little more conservative
with our attire and how we askour clients to show up.
Because again, you'rerepresenting your organization
and what is their brand and whatis their faith and what is their
messaging and how do you as arepresentative of that
(12:09):
organization show up for them.
Samantha (12:11):
Yeah, and also be mindful of who you're speaking
with.
You know, we had Mark Gordon onthis podcast recently, Business
Observer.
That's a more professional,C-suite oriented publication,
but if you're talking with alifestyle blogger or podcast or
something, you might be able todress a little bit more casual
in that video interview.
Just be mindful of who you'retalking to and their audience as
well because you don't want tocome across overly formal if
(12:34):
that's not the vibe of thatpublication or your audience
that you're talking with.
And that brings up backgroundsas well, right?
So we talked about kind ofoutside, different weather
elements, but also studio.
But now most of the time they'redoing interviews on video or
even on the phone as well.
So keeping in mind backgroundsfor that.
So what's happening in thebackground?
Are your kids running around?
(12:54):
Are there birds chirping loudlythat could be distracting?
What's happening in yourenvironment and how can you best
control that?
Think about those elements aswell.
I liken this back to duringCOVID.
If you watch the news, you'doften see people doing
interviews from their homes.
Yliana (13:07):
Right.
Samantha (13:07):
Sometimes they were well set up and sometimes they
were not.
And it was very distracting.
Yliana (13:11):
We saw those bloopers where they were not.
Samantha (13:13):
Yes.
So be mindful of what you havein the background.
Also, I'm a very private person,so I'm very mindful if there's
anything that's personal that'sin the background.
If I'm doing a video from myhome, office, be mindful of
that.
Are there pictures of your kids,your family, your dogs, what
have you?
Are you comfortable with that ornot?
Would you rather have somethinggeneric in the background?
So just keep in mind thosethings as well when you're
preparing for your interviews.
Yliana (13:34):
Right, and we've been in a pinch sometimes with
interviews where we've hadclients that are traveling, and
someone is calling to interviewthem, and they said"Hey, are
they here?
Can they be in the studiotomorrow morning?" Well, no,
they're on the other side of theUnited States right now, on
other side of the country.
But what's awesome is, withtechnology, we're able,
especially in that setting,where we can use online
(13:54):
recording.
They were able to go live fromtheir home office.
And they set up a little cornerby the window, had a plant, had,
you know, a few minor things inthe background, very subtle,
very professional, and it cameout wonderful.
And it came out, I want to sayin the 5 or 6 o'clock news, and
it just seamlessly kind of wenttogether.
That's not the case every time.
(14:15):
But if you do have a littlespace like you mentioned in your
home, just keep that one littlecorner clean for interviews
cause you just never know.
Samantha (14:21):
Right?
Yeah, and I would also say trialthat out, right?
So we talked about the practicestages if you're gonna do that
you can control what does thatlook like.
So you can do a practice, youknow on your computer, on your
phone, with FaceTime, howeveryou want to do that, but you can
kind of practice to see whatdoes my background look like?
Is the lighting good or not?
And you mentioned by a window,natural light is so, so good,
way better than artificial ifyou can manage it.
(14:42):
But being mindful of what yourenvironment looks like in
addition to what you're saying,what you're wearing, and your
body language as well.
Yliana (14:49):
Absolutely.
Samantha (14:49):
So that's something else is, you might be very
intense in thought and thatcould come across on your face
in a very negative way.
So, keep that in mind.
We're smiling.
We're happy.
Of course, if you're doing, andI hope not, but a crisis
interview, we want to be alittle bit more solemn.
Be mindful of your bodylanguage.
Be mindful of how you'recommunicating and what you're
talking about so that everythingis consistent and appropriate.
(15:10):
Because, if you're very tensebut you're talking about
something happy, that'sconfusing to viewers.
Yliana (15:15):
It is.
Samantha (15:15):
On the flip side, it could be misconstrued very
poorly as well.
Yliana (15:18):
Right, and that brings up a good point for
authenticity.
So we always talk to our clientsabout being authentic and being
ethical with the messaging thatthey have.
And it really just depends, likeyou said, on the situation.
Is it a crisis communicationmoment or is it a moment that
they're just kind of getting outthere to share the messaging of
the organization?
So it really depends.
Samantha (15:39):
Yeah, absolutely.
So, a few things as we kind ofthink about the conversation
that we've just had now, kind ofrecapping, and I hope this has
been valuable for you all.
Make sure you do your homework.
Who are you interviewing?
Find out as much as you can.
Maybe watch, if it's a reporteron TV, watch a few of their
segments so you can kind of seetheir interview style, the kind
of questions they ask.
Or if they're a journalist, readtheir articles.
(16:01):
Make sure that you are familiarwith who you're talking to.
That also could help you asyou're walking in and you can
have a rapport and say,"Oh,Yliana, I read your recent
article, I thought it wasgreat." You know, so they feel
appreciated as well because thisis a two way street and that's
something, again, referencingthat earlier podcast, Mark and I
discussed, you know, on bothsides of the house, the
journalist and the PR person orthe actual end company that's
being interviewed is making surewe're respectful of each other.
(16:23):
We're appreciative.
Be kind, be courteous, make surethat you communicate your
appreciation to thoseindividuals for taking the time
to talk to you and tell yourstory because there's any number
of other platforms that could bedoing that.
Yeah, so what other tips, isthere anything else you can
suggest, things not to do, orthings to do, as you prepare for
a media interview or areactually in the throes of one?
Yliana (16:44):
I'll start with the positive first.
The awesome thing about being inthis position and doing public
and media relations is just thatrelationship building.
And you should, over time,establish wonderful
relationships with your clientsthat, you know what their
strengths and weaknesses are,you know what their likes and
dislikes are.
And the same thing with themedia individuals that you're
preparing for just having thatrelationship with them.
(17:05):
So when they come together, it'slike a match made in heaven.
So it's really just thepositivity of like knowing your
client, having that rapport,having that relationship, and
just saying,"you know what, Ithink this interview is going to
work well" for these reasons.
Or, like you said earlier, itmay not work.
And just knowing like this isn'tfitting for us.
Samantha (17:21):
Sure.
And so that's a great tip for aPR practitioner, like us.
And I should have said at thebeginning that Yliana and I are
both accredited in publicrelations, APRs.
Yes.
Of recent.
Go girl.
Yliana (17:32):
Thank you.
Samantha (17:32):
But if you are a business person preparing, or
maybe you are a spokesperson fora company versus a PR
professional, I'll translatethat in a little different way,
which would be, create thoserelationships for yourself.
So you're reading the media,you're watching the news, you're
consuming information in avariety of ways.
Start to document who theseindividuals are that are
covering companies like yours ortopics that you could speak to
(17:55):
and then start building yourrapport with them.
There's no harm in reaching outon LinkedIn or sending an email
or what have you and saying,"hey, you know, loved your
series on X and if you ever needanything, I'm here for you."
Just remembering that it's a twoway street, but relationships
are very important.
So that way they know who tocall.
Yliana (18:11):
Exactly.
And it's establishing yourpresence.
Like you said, like,"hey, I'mhere if you ever need an expert
on anything or expert tips oradvice." That's, that's very
important.
Don'ts, is kind of like goingback to your conversation with
Mark.
You don't want to like houndpeople.
Right.
Or beg for an interview.
These things kind of comenaturally.
Samantha (18:27):
Or cold call, either, which is where...
Yliana (18:29):
Those are the strong don'ts we
Samantha (18:31):
Yeah
Yliana (18:31):
would recommend.
Samantha (18:32):
Yeah, which, you know, it's a shameless plug for a firm
like us.
That's part of our value is wehave those relationships so we
can do that work for you.
But yes, great tip.
Well, this has been a fantasticconversation, at least in my
opinion.
Yliana (18:43):
Absolutely
Samantha (18:44):
on how to prepare.
I believe we have some blogs onthe website.
But of course, if you havequestions, you can always feel
free to comment below or send anote.
Check out our website,GetPushing.com, and we would be
so glad to help you and trainyou on anything that you need to
know related to media relations.
Thanks for joining 1000 Ways toMarket Your Business.
Yliana (19:02):
Thank you.
Hi, I'm Samantha Scott, APR, and today I'm joined
by Yliana.
Yliana (00:09):
Hello.
Samantha (00:10):
Communication Specialist with PTE, and we are
talking all things mediatraining.
We want you to be absolutelyready to ace your media
interview, how to prepare, andthen how to ace that talk with
whichever media you might betalking with.
So, let's start things off.
Yliana, can you tell me, howwould you describe media
training, media relations, thatkind of ball?
Yliana (00:29):
It's simple really, and it's just as it is.
Media training is trainingindividuals to interact and
engage appropriately with themedia.
Samantha (00:37):
And why is that important?
Yliana (00:38):
Oh, it's so important for many reasons because when
you have a company, you have abrand, it's putting a face to a
name and it's putting a messageout there.
It's putting it clearly intoperspective for viewers and for
people that you need to engagewith your company and your
business.
Samantha (00:51):
I think that's a great point because you're
representing a business, notjust yourself.
So keep that in mind when you'redoing media training.
It's not just that mediarepresentative talking with you,
the individual, but it's howyou're representing your
business, and your industry,your profession, even if you
want to go really broad with it.
Yeah, and it's super importantbecause if you have a poor
interview, that could reflectpoorly for quite a long time and
(01:14):
on you as well as your business.
Yeah.
So we definitely want to makesure that we're prepared for
that and how to best presentyourself.
Everybody wants to look theirbest and present themselves
their best.
So we'll talk about all thelittle tips and trips, or tricks
rather, of how to do that fromyour attire to where to look, to
how to prepare for indooroutdoor interviews and
everything in between.
So, let's say you've got aninterview lined up, you're
(01:37):
fortunate enough.
Maybe it's a reporter who wantsto do an interview with you.
And if somebody hasn't ever doneone before, how would you best
prepare them?
What would be some suggestions?
Yliana (01:46):
Right.
It's interesting because rightnow we're in the middle of it
for one of our clients, so it'sexciting.
There's a lot that goes onbehind the scenes, and the
biggest thing, the most simplething I say is communication,
communication, communication.
We need to sort out a lot ofthings before we get to that on
air time with the media.
So I try to simplify it the bestway possible.
Three simple steps that we kindof go over.
(02:08):
We plan, prepare and practice.
So what does that mean in thegrand scheme of things behind
the scenes is we want to plan.
Simply put, we want to get thelogistics of it.
Where is it?
Who are we speaking with?
What context are we speaking?
Is it in a studio?
Is it on the phone?
You know, those type oflogistics we want to sort out.
And then we want to prepare.
(02:29):
And what does that mean?
Preparing means simply gettingall the items we need for the
interview.
It could be props, if we're onTV, it could be making sure we
have our key messaging.
As you know, sometimes clientslike a list of questions in
advance so they can prepare.
And then that third component ofit is practice.
We want to review our keymessaging.
(02:50):
We want to practice how we sayit.
We want to practice even down tothe clothes we wear and how we
present ourselves professionallyand in the best way possible for
our organization.
Samantha (02:59):
Yes.
So that was a lot.
Thank you, Yliana.
Really, really good advice.
So let's start back at thebeginning part, the planning
part and researching.
So ask all the questions.
I think sometimes people tend toget caught off guard if they're
not super comfortable with doingmedia interviews or if they
haven't done a lot of them.
So if you're that person, let'sstart there.
Making sure that you feelcomfortable asking questions.
(03:20):
So, say a journalist has calledyou and said"hey, we'd love to
interview you, we want you to beon the six o'clock news to talk
about your business," and, youknow, fill in the blank,
whatever that topic is.
Don't feel like, one, youautomatically have to say yes.
Make sure this aligns with yourbusiness strategy and that you
are an expert to talk aboutwhatever that topic is.
Two, also make sure that you askthose questions.
(03:40):
Is this going to be in studio?
Are you coming to my location?
Who's doing the interview?
How long do you expect this tolast?
There's lots of things to ask sothat you are best prepared
walking into it.
You want to make sure you don'tjust go in and be like,"okay,
what do I do now?" Have all ofthe answers to the best of your
ability.
And then that preparing partabsolutely is super important to
make sure that you're preparednot only to speak your key
(04:03):
messaging and key points, that'ssuper important, but also be
prepared for the unexpected.
So, sometimes, journalists,while I love you all,
journalists, if you'relistening, will throw a
curveball question in there, andyou want to make sure you're
prepared for that.
So, how do you answer the thingsthat might be difficult, that
might be negative?
And then how do you turn thosearound so you have the best
(04:23):
possible interview.
And then, of course, if timeallows, practice to the best of
your ability.
Ideally, you would be doing thismedia training well before you
have an interview in place.
So, walking through, what do wewant to accomplish?
What are we trying to say?
How do we say this in a way thatresonates with our audience and
represents our brand well?
Do all of those types of things.
(04:44):
Map that out.
Also work on answering thosetough questions well before you
get an interview.
Yliana (04:49):
Absolutely.
Samantha (04:49):
And then once you finally get that booked, you can
do a dry run really quickly.
But yeah, great points forpeople.
Yliana (04:55):
Something that's important to remember is
oftentimes when we get to thepoint of an interview, we've had
already establishedrelationships with journalists
and those individuals that arelooking for a particular type of
information.
And we have clients aligned withthat and a lot of organizations
have key speaking people andthese people are typically
well-versed and more seasonedand know a lot about that
(05:16):
subject area.
So we, we don't need a lot ofpractice time in some instances
because they're very well-versedand we just get them in front of
the camera.
We can walk them through it.
But there's a lot of elements toget to that point.
Samantha (05:28):
Yeah, and if you aren't familiar with that, if
you aren't as well-seasoned takethe time to do that even if it's
go in the bathroom and practicein the mirror, you know, if
you're uncomfortable doing itwith somebody else.
There's lots of ways to do thatbut make sure that you feel
comfortable in your skin andwhat you're saying because
nothing is off the record.
Once the camera's rolling, it'sthere.
So be very mindful of that.
(05:48):
Practice what you're saying, bethoughtful, and always feel
free, if you need to buyyourself some time during that
interview, repeat the questionback, gather your thoughts, and
then come back with the bestpossible answer.
Also recommend during theinterview to speak in sound
bites.
You know, that makes it veryeasy for them to cut something
short.
If you tend to ramble, try tokeep your thoughts concise,
(06:08):
short, leave a little pause inbetween your sentences, and then
they're able to get the bestpossible clip for you.' So, in
the planning stage, we talkedabout that.
You want to make sure that youhave all of your goals in mind.
What are you trying toaccomplish with this?
How are you going to do that?
And also make sure that you'respeaking, I mentioned this
earlier, about things that youare an expert in.
(06:30):
It's very easy for media to say,"okay, well then what about
this?" But if that's not, one,your business, you really
shouldn't talk about that.
That's PR 101 is don't talkabout somebody else's business.
But then also make sure thatit's something that you are an
authority in.
And you never want to be oncamera saying,"I don't know."
But at the same time, you canfind creative ways to say,"well,
this is my take on it," or"here's how we do it," and you
(06:53):
can kind of massage the questiona little bit.
Yliana (06:54):
Or you can say, this is my level of expertise on this
topic.
Samantha (06:58):
Absolutely.
And that brings to a great pointof honesty.
Absolutely important.
Never stretch the truth, nevertry to get creative with your
answers.
If you get stuck in a situation,Yliana had a great example of,
"this is my authority on it," or"here's my take on it." Make
sure that we're being veryhonest and open and direct and
not trying to kind of stretchour abilities or come across as
(07:18):
something that we're not.
So, in the preparing stage, theother thing you mentioned was
messaging, so key words, thosetypes of things, and making sure
that we're clear, we understand.
If you are a restaurant owner,that you have the product on
hand to show if there'ssomething visual, that you have
the best representation ofyourself.
Or if this is a professionalservice firm, that you have the
(07:39):
technicalities of what you'reable to offer.
And that you've checked with, ifyou have to, legal counsel on
what you may or may not say.
Also very important.
So all of that kind of goes intothat prep work.
So we've talked through kind ofpreparing for that interview.
Let's talk more detail about inthe interview.
All right.
So now the media's at your frontdoor.
Knock, knock, knock.
I'm here.
Or, perhaps you've gone to thestudio and you're preparing to
(08:02):
do this interview.
Now what?
Yliana (08:05):
So this should be, even though it can be nerve-racking,
this should be the fun part.
Like this is where you kind ofshow up and show out like you
have done all the prep work.
It's kind of like when you're astudent in school.
You know, I have three littles,so my kids are students, right?
And so I always tell them testday, even though it's, you know,
you could have anxiety.
It's the day that you show upand you just do what you do,
(08:27):
because you've done all thestudying the prep work.
It's the same thing with mediatraining.
You've done all the prep work.
You've got your key messaging.
You know what your outfit is,you're gonna look and feel your
best.
So when you show up for theinterview or they show up to
interview you, you hopefullyjust smile.
You're happy.
You think through what you needto think through.
You enunciate.
You take control of theconversation for yourself by
(08:50):
taking a few deep breaths.
You're thinking calmly andclearly and you're just engaging
and interacting the best waypossible.
And that's kind of what thecheat sheet boils down to.
Samantha (09:01):
So a few tips, and we do have a great cheat sheet for
our clients when we do our mediatraining, but a few kind of
insider tips for that would beto make yourself the most
comfortable.
If you're going to a studio andyou feel like you might have
some anxiety around that, arriveearly.
Get there.
Kind of get yourself acquaintedwith the sounds, the lights, the
way it works.
You can't obviously go on stageand do all that stuff, but you
(09:22):
can at least be in theenvironment.
And kind of get acquainted towhat this looks like and how it
works and kind of settle down alittle bit.
So, always try to arrive earlyif possible so you're not
running and rushing in andbringing that energy into the
space.
Yliana (09:34):
Right.
And that's something that we'vediscussed with clients in the
past is control what you cancontrol, right?
Yes, you can't control theenvironment.
You can't control theinterviewer.
You can't control that there maybe a car accident, God forbid,
or something on the way there.
So, we always say allow fortime.
Get there early to get yourselftogether, last minute things.
We've had clients walking into asegment and something comes
(09:55):
unpinned.
So something that we also have,which our team does a great job
of, is having media kits, likeemergency kits, with like pins,
and bobby pins, and chapstick,and whatever they may need
before going on air.
And so it's just allowingyourself time to just get
yourself mentally prepared,physically prepared, you look
and feel great, and you go onand you kind of do your thing.
Samantha (10:15):
Yeah, absolutely.
That's a great little tip.
So we do have these little kindof go bags that have oil
blotters or a comb, bobby pins,safety pins, double-sided tape,
all the different stuff becauseyou never know when an accident
could happen.
And that brings up a great pointis wardrobe.
So making sure if you're goingto do an interview that you're
wearing clothes that you feelconfident and comfortable in.
(10:36):
If you have a great blouse thatyou love, but you always have to
adjust it, don't wear that forthe segment.
And there's different,obviously, setups for men and
women, but for women, I tend torecommend not wearing a button
down because you don't want tohave an accident.
God forbid something happened oryou see something you don't want
to show.
Those kinds of situations, butalso try to avoid busy patterns
(10:57):
because they don't show up wellon camera.
Yliana (10:58):
Right.
Samantha (10:59):
Also be mindful if you're going to be doing a
segment outside, think aboutthis.
I have short hair for a reason,because it is so easy.
But if you're going to beoutside and you got hair blowing
everywhere.
Yliana (11:08):
Or if it's humid and you're just a big...
Samantha (11:10):
It looks so good, and then it doesn't.
So make sure you try to planahead for that and think about
everything from your hairstyleto your wardrobe.
Again, wind, right?
Because if you've got a windyday and you've got a flouncy
dress on, that could be aproblem.
And then also for men, thinkabout what you're wearing.
Is it a blazer?
Is it a button down?
Is it a polo?
Is it a branded shirt?
(11:31):
Is it clean?
Is it pressed?
Does it have stains on it, ifyou're a cook?
You know, think about all of theways that someone could look at
you and misconstrue how you wantyour brand to be presented.
So thinking about that's alsovery, very important.
Yliana (11:43):
Right.
Especially if you're in astudio.
Lighting reveals everything.
Samantha (11:48):
Everything.
Yliana (11:49):
Even some things that you don't want seen or revealed.
So, just being mindful of thecolors.
Is it too sheer?
And we always err on the side ofbeing a little more conservative
with our attire and how we askour clients to show up.
Because again, you'rerepresenting your organization
and what is their brand and whatis their faith and what is their
messaging and how do you as arepresentative of that
(12:09):
organization show up for them.
Samantha (12:11):
Yeah, and also be mindful of who you're speaking
with.
You know, we had Mark Gordon onthis podcast recently, Business
Observer.
That's a more professional,C-suite oriented publication,
but if you're talking with alifestyle blogger or podcast or
something, you might be able todress a little bit more casual
in that video interview.
Just be mindful of who you'retalking to and their audience as
well because you don't want tocome across overly formal if
(12:34):
that's not the vibe of thatpublication or your audience
that you're talking with.
And that brings up backgroundsas well, right?
So we talked about kind ofoutside, different weather
elements, but also studio.
But now most of the time they'redoing interviews on video or
even on the phone as well.
So keeping in mind backgroundsfor that.
So what's happening in thebackground?
Are your kids running around?
(12:54):
Are there birds chirping loudlythat could be distracting?
What's happening in yourenvironment and how can you best
control that?
Think about those elements aswell.
I liken this back to duringCOVID.
If you watch the news, you'doften see people doing
interviews from their homes.
Yliana (13:07):
Right.
Samantha (13:07):
Sometimes they were well set up and sometimes they
were not.
And it was very distracting.
Yliana (13:11):
We saw those bloopers where they were not.
Samantha (13:13):
Yes.
So be mindful of what you havein the background.
Also, I'm a very private person,so I'm very mindful if there's
anything that's personal that'sin the background.
If I'm doing a video from myhome, office, be mindful of
that.
Are there pictures of your kids,your family, your dogs, what
have you?
Are you comfortable with that ornot?
Would you rather have somethinggeneric in the background?
So just keep in mind thosethings as well when you're
preparing for your interviews.
Yliana (13:34):
Right, and we've been in a pinch sometimes with
interviews where we've hadclients that are traveling, and
someone is calling to interviewthem, and they said"Hey, are
they here?
Can they be in the studiotomorrow morning?" Well, no,
they're on the other side of theUnited States right now, on
other side of the country.
But what's awesome is, withtechnology, we're able,
especially in that setting,where we can use online
(13:54):
recording.
They were able to go live fromtheir home office.
And they set up a little cornerby the window, had a plant, had,
you know, a few minor things inthe background, very subtle,
very professional, and it cameout wonderful.
And it came out, I want to sayin the 5 or 6 o'clock news, and
it just seamlessly kind of wenttogether.
That's not the case every time.
(14:15):
But if you do have a littlespace like you mentioned in your
home, just keep that one littlecorner clean for interviews
cause you just never know.
Samantha (14:21):
Right?
Yeah, and I would also say trialthat out, right?
So we talked about the practicestages if you're gonna do that
you can control what does thatlook like.
So you can do a practice, youknow on your computer, on your
phone, with FaceTime, howeveryou want to do that, but you can
kind of practice to see whatdoes my background look like?
Is the lighting good or not?
And you mentioned by a window,natural light is so, so good,
way better than artificial ifyou can manage it.
(14:42):
But being mindful of what yourenvironment looks like in
addition to what you're saying,what you're wearing, and your
body language as well.
Yliana (14:49):
Absolutely.
Samantha (14:49):
So that's something else is, you might be very
intense in thought and thatcould come across on your face
in a very negative way.
So, keep that in mind.
We're smiling.
We're happy.
Of course, if you're doing, andI hope not, but a crisis
interview, we want to be alittle bit more solemn.
Be mindful of your bodylanguage.
Be mindful of how you'recommunicating and what you're
talking about so that everythingis consistent and appropriate.
(15:10):
Because, if you're very tensebut you're talking about
something happy, that'sconfusing to viewers.
Yliana (15:15):
It is.
Samantha (15:15):
On the flip side, it could be misconstrued very
poorly as well.
Yliana (15:18):
Right, and that brings up a good point for
authenticity.
So we always talk to our clientsabout being authentic and being
ethical with the messaging thatthey have.
And it really just depends, likeyou said, on the situation.
Is it a crisis communicationmoment or is it a moment that
they're just kind of getting outthere to share the messaging of
the organization?
So it really depends.
Samantha (15:39):
Yeah, absolutely.
So, a few things as we kind ofthink about the conversation
that we've just had now, kind ofrecapping, and I hope this has
been valuable for you all.
Make sure you do your homework.
Who are you interviewing?
Find out as much as you can.
Maybe watch, if it's a reporteron TV, watch a few of their
segments so you can kind of seetheir interview style, the kind
of questions they ask.
Or if they're a journalist, readtheir articles.
(16:01):
Make sure that you are familiarwith who you're talking to.
That also could help you asyou're walking in and you can
have a rapport and say,"Oh,Yliana, I read your recent
article, I thought it wasgreat." You know, so they feel
appreciated as well because thisis a two way street and that's
something, again, referencingthat earlier podcast, Mark and I
discussed, you know, on bothsides of the house, the
journalist and the PR person orthe actual end company that's
being interviewed is making surewe're respectful of each other.
(16:23):
We're appreciative.
Be kind, be courteous, make surethat you communicate your
appreciation to thoseindividuals for taking the time
to talk to you and tell yourstory because there's any number
of other platforms that could bedoing that.
Yeah, so what other tips, isthere anything else you can
suggest, things not to do, orthings to do, as you prepare for
a media interview or areactually in the throes of one?
Yliana (16:44):
I'll start with the positive first.
The awesome thing about being inthis position and doing public
and media relations is just thatrelationship building.
And you should, over time,establish wonderful
relationships with your clientsthat, you know what their
strengths and weaknesses are,you know what their likes and
dislikes are.
And the same thing with themedia individuals that you're
preparing for just having thatrelationship with them.
(17:05):
So when they come together, it'slike a match made in heaven.
So it's really just thepositivity of like knowing your
client, having that rapport,having that relationship, and
just saying,"you know what, Ithink this interview is going to
work well" for these reasons.
Or, like you said earlier, itmay not work.
And just knowing like this isn'tfitting for us.
Samantha (17:21):
Sure.
And so that's a great tip for aPR practitioner, like us.
And I should have said at thebeginning that Yliana and I are
both accredited in publicrelations, APRs.
Yes.
Of recent.
Go girl.
Yliana (17:32):
Thank you.
Samantha (17:32):
But if you are a business person preparing, or
maybe you are a spokesperson fora company versus a PR
professional, I'll translatethat in a little different way,
which would be, create thoserelationships for yourself.
So you're reading the media,you're watching the news, you're
consuming information in avariety of ways.
Start to document who theseindividuals are that are
covering companies like yours ortopics that you could speak to
(17:55):
and then start building yourrapport with them.
There's no harm in reaching outon LinkedIn or sending an email
or what have you and saying,"hey, you know, loved your
series on X and if you ever needanything, I'm here for you."
Just remembering that it's a twoway street, but relationships
are very important.
So that way they know who tocall.
Yliana (18:11):
Exactly.
And it's establishing yourpresence.
Like you said, like,"hey, I'mhere if you ever need an expert
on anything or expert tips oradvice." That's, that's very
important.
Don'ts, is kind of like goingback to your conversation with
Mark.
You don't want to like houndpeople.
Right.
Or beg for an interview.
These things kind of comenaturally.
Samantha (18:27):
Or cold call, either, which is where...
Yliana (18:29):
Those are the strong don'ts we
Samantha (18:31):
Yeah
Yliana (18:31):
would recommend.
Samantha (18:32):
Yeah, which, you know, it's a shameless plug for a firm
like us.
That's part of our value is wehave those relationships so we
can do that work for you.
But yes, great tip.
Well, this has been a fantasticconversation, at least in my
opinion.
Yliana (18:43):
Absolutely
Samantha (18:44):
on how to prepare.
I believe we have some blogs onthe website.
But of course, if you havequestions, you can always feel
free to comment below or send anote.
Check out our website,GetPushing.com, and we would be
so glad to help you and trainyou on anything that you need to
know related to media relations.
Thanks for joining 1000 Ways toMarket Your Business.
Yliana (19:02):
Thank you.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!