With the ever-growing news media needing stories and online reputation management needing constant attention, taking some time to ensure your team has the media skills they need to present your organisation well at every turn is now not a nice to have, but an essential skill.
Hawkeye Media are ex-journalists and media experts who can ensure your team has a bespoke training plan, that addresses everything your organisation needs to manage and navigate the modern media world.
Speaking to the media is unlike any other audience and preparation and training is key for getting it right and more importantly not getting it wrong! Often in business, whether you like it or not, at some point you’ll probably have a microphone plonked in front of you and asked for your views.
Here is a quick review of what media training is and why it is essential in the modern business world:
Media training helps you to avoid faux pas and to represent your company in an engaging, professional way. Without it, you could end up freezing under the spotlight, stumbling over your words, or accidentally saying something that tanks your brand. Any media appearance is also a good PR opportunity that should not be wasted.
Basic Media Training Tips
Hawkeye Media provides excellent media training for any organisation or industry online or in person. Here are some basic media training tips to get you started, if you need to speak to the media, contact our team and we can create bespoke training for you and your team.
Media Training Tip 1 – Be well researched – Many media appearances are planned weeks ahead of time. If you want the appearance to be successful, use that time to prepare. Find out as much as you can about the radio/TV station and the presenter in advance, so you don’t make any avoidable mistakes like pronouncing their name wrong live on air.
Media Training Tip 2 – Consider Soundbites – A great way to effectively communicate with the media is in soundbites. This does of course depend on the situation. Bust as a general tip the key to effective media interview training is learning how to speak in soundbites. As a passionate business or organisation leader, you can no doubt talk about your industry and business ad infinitum. While it’s great that you know your stuff inside out, you need to learn to be concise and appropriate for your audience.
Media Training Tip 3 – Keep Control – Remember that you’re in control. The interviewer might be asking the questions, but your responses are what steer the course of the conversation. As such, don’t be afraid to take a few moments to gather your thoughts. Taking a sip of water or learning a few bridging phrases to give you time to think and give the best answer possible is important.
Media Training Tip 4 – Prepare for Difficult Questions – Dancing round uncomfortable questions is not good for the interviewer, or your audience so prepare ahead for any difficult questions that might occur and practice how to answer them in advance.
For detailed and in-depth training for your team contact Hawkeye Media today to get started.