How to Make the Most of Your Media Opportunity

Let’s say that you have put out a press release, you’ve written a great pitch and now you are ready to go to the media with your story.

If you’ve done all of this work, you want to make sure that it counts. In other words, you want to make the most of your media opportunity.

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Tip 1: Prepare Your Main Messages

If you have written a press release, you may have already thought about what your main messages are. If not, your main messages are the things that you most want to communicate to your target audience. Think about what you want your audience to:

• Know
• Think
• Feel
• Do

This could include facts or feelings about your business, an action you want them to take or an opinion you want them to share. Some of the reasons people go to the media include to

• Demonstrate the features and benefits of a new product
• Raise awareness of a cause or shape public opinion about an issue
• Increase their reputation as a leader or authority in the industry
• Encourage people to take an action such as signing a petition

Develop Three Main Messages

Ideally you want to have no more than three main messages in order to avoid overwhelming the audience. Main messages should not be too complex for a general audience. If they do seem complex, think about how you can explain them succinctly. An analogy is a great way to introduce a complicated topic. 

Tip #2: Keep the Interview Focused

One key benefit of crafting your messages ahead of time is that you can keep the reporter focused. Reporters are trained to question, so if they question your claims, it has nothing to do with your credibility. They assume that you are prepared to answer tough questions. They may even find someone with a view that is opposed to yours and challenge you based on what the other source says. If you practice what you want to say, you can avoid being pushed off track. 

Another reason to be prepared is because the reporter might want to take the interview in a different direction. They may have contacted you because your industry is trending in the news for a different reason. They may not fully understand your job and expertise and start asking unrelated questions. Often, they tend to focus on stories with a personal element. For example, they may be more interested in what drove your CEO to create a product than in the features and benefits of the product itself. 

Sometimes people leave an interview disappointed because they feel they weren’t heard, the reporter got it all wrong or even that the reporter was hostile. Having clarity in your main messages can help avoid some of these problems. 

Other Tips

Be prepared: Get all the information you can about the interview. Find out who the interviewer is and read, watch or listen to their previous work. Although reporters are supposed to be objective, often a prevailing bias shines through, especially on topics they frequently cover. Find out how long the interview is. Don’t bother asking for the questions, because they won’t be provided, but you can try to find out as much as you can about the topic of the piece. 

Research trending topics: Not being an expert in your industry, the reporter is probably going to be heavily influenced by what has already been covered in the mainstream media. Be aware of trending topics, controversies and discussions. Envision what types of critical questions the reporter might ask and prepare answers just in case. 

Stay calm: Frustration with a reporter’s questions can come across as disagreeableness or even as having something to hide. No matter what happens, it’s important to stay calm and upbeat. Think about the needs of your audience rather than the reporter who is just a conduit for you to reach the public. 

 Tip #3: Leverage the Attention

Now that you have delivered a great attention-grabbing interview, how will you make the most of it? You might see a spike in website visits, LinkedIn views and contacts. 

Website: Make sure your website is polished and professional before the interview. Watch out for dead links, grammatical errors or out-of-date team photos. 

LinkedIn: The spokesperson’s profile should be up-to-date and free of any errors. 

Customer support: Front-line staff should know about the interview and be able to answer questions or direct inquiries to the appropriate person. 

Getting featured in the media is a great opportunity, but it takes work. Whenever you have the opportunity to get press for your business, organization or personal brand, it’s important to make the most of the opportunity. For more tips about public relations, sign up for the free email course which walks you through writing and pitching your press release.