Five Ways Media Training Positions You for Success
Kristin Canders, VP, Media Relations
Our world is full of subject matter experts (SMEs) who innovate, invent, develop and sell products and ideas all over the world. They are brilliant minds who change the world every day, and your business definitely has at least one, if not many! Aside from their innate tendency for forward-thinking that helps keep your business on the cutting edge, your SMEs have the potential to deliver incredible value to your business by acting as spokespeople. Their expertise becomes the company’s expertise, enabling your business to assert itself as a thought leader in that particular area.
However, even the most experienced SMEs and/or spokespeople can benefit from regular media training. And if they’ve never been media trained at all, it’s time to do so.
Having worked with SMEs, spokespeople, and C-suite executives for over 20 years, I’ve seen how media training can have a huge impact on messaging; even small refinements and slight repositioning of information can uplevel a company’s message to help them reach a higher level and broader audience by packing maximum power in their punch. It’s not about how much information you’re putting out there, it’s about the quality of that information and its ability to cut through the noise.
The benefits of media training become immediately apparent when I meet companies who know exactly what they are doing and why, yet every one of their SMEs says something different. This can lead to conflicting messages and a lack of cohesion in the press, which can lead to disaster in the positioning and growth department. Media training ensures your company comes through as a chorus of voices, who are all unique, but are all driving towards the same goals.
With that, here are the top five reasons every SME/spokesperson should be media trained:
Habitual Preparedness
We know that SMEs can talk the talk, but the mental exercise of “getting in the zone” before every media interview by going through a checklist created during media training can help even the most confident SME get laser-focused. This kind of habitual preparation can make an interview with Forbes turn into a feature article with Forbes. You get one shot in many cases, so taking the time to review important key points and being prepared going into an interview will set you up for success that results in high-quality, on-message coverage.
Discover New Pitch Angles
Many times in media training, the mock interview process can turn into a news angle goldrush. Talking with someone outside of the company, who has your company’s best interest in mind asking the questions, can unearth information that otherwise would have remained buried underneath a canned statement or messaging. While the SME is learning tips on how to best deliver their points proactively, the media trainer is also collecting new information that could help expand the angle of future stories and enhance your business’s media talking points.
Increase Messaging Impact
When SMEs review their interview answers after the first round of mock interviews (we always recommend recording the mock interview in order to playback afterwards and actually watch/listen to one’s responses, in addition to reviewing a transcript), it’s amazing what they learn from themselves. Whether it’s a description of their job, what their company does, or an opinion on a trend, seeing the written word staring back at them either impresses them or causes them to take a beat and think about how they are delivering information. It is common that in the first round, seeing their answers paired with constructive feedback prompts some minor tweaks that make their message more impactful the next time around.
Learn to Control the Interview
After completing a media training program, SMEs are comfortable and confident about how to take control of the interview. While reporters have great questions, sometimes they don’t know the right questions to ask because they don’t have the inside scoop. Media training offers tips on how to deliver valuable information that will be important to both the reporter and your company message, without having to wait to be asked a specific question. If they don’t ask the question you’re hoping for, answer it anyway. These techniques benefit both sides of the interview and many times lead to a much more interesting story.
Consistent, Accurate Messaging
Media training provides valuable practice to SMEs that enable them to improve on every interview they participate in. With a solid set of media talking points for each interview and the preparation and techniques in place, the SME can walk away from every interview knowing they used every minute with the journalist wisely. It saves everyone time and ensures that the most important information is communicated. When several SMEs are trained within a company, the message becomes consistent, strong and unified and the company can rest assured that their messages are aligned.