© 2006 MarketingScoop.com. All rights reserved. Page 1 Media Training 101 3 Anderson Lane, Robbinsville, NJ 08691 Tel: 800.357.0393

© 2006 MarketingScoop.com. All rights reserved. Page 1

Media Training 101

3 Anderson Lane, Robbinsville, NJ 08691Tel: 800.357.0393 www.MarketingScoop.com


Objective

•To understand how the media works and how to work with the media.

Control

Credibility

Comfort


What You Want

•To be quotable

•To understand the real question

•To be polished

•To differentiate from competitors

•To “guard” oneself

•To diplomatically handle difficult questions

•To frame products within a corporate umbrella

•To understand what the media are looking for

•To learn tricks of the trade


Media 101:How the Media Works

•Who they are

•What they do

•How do they do it


Who They Are

•MACHINE GUNNING – rapidly firing a series of questions at you.

Trap – trying to answer all the questions

Technique – Choose the question that will allow you to seize control and deliver a message.


Who They Are

•INTERRUPTING – never letting you finish a thought. Cutting you off mid-sentence.

Trap – You acquiesce and the interview falls into a question/answer/question/answer interrogative pattern

Technique – Politely continue your statement


Who They Are

•DART THROWING – Attacking you with hostile negative language. Pinning negative labels on you, the company or its products.

Trap – You react angrily and repeat negative language, missing an opportunity to deliver a positive message point.

Technique – Remain calm, pause before you respond, ignore the attack and bridge to a message point.


Media Myths

…Don’t hate everyone in the world

But they don’t love you either

…Aren’t out to make you look bad

But they don’t get paid to make you look good

…Don’t have a hidden agenda

But they think they know what news is, and what their readers and viewer want

…Don’t seek to misquote you

But they won’t rewrite a bad quote into a good one

…Don’t intentionally quote you out of context

But their context often comes from you


Media Personality Matrix

MEDIUM CHARACTERISTICS

TV/Broadcast Simplistic; top-line; hard deadlines; visual; emotional; competitive; fewer stories

TV/Cable All of the above and more stories; niche areas; softer news bias

Radio Longer duration; can be more complex; secretly visual; emphasis on speaking

Dailies Hard deadlines; “sectioned” out; hard news oriented

Wires Public markets; breaking news; “never ending” stories; short news cycles; limited features

Internet Nanosecond news cycles; lots of space to fill; more irreverent; 24/7; less factual


Media Personality Matrix

MEDIUM CHARACTERISTICS

Trades Very hungry; set industry news standards; often staffed with more novice journalists; more in-depth; highly specialized knowledge; easier deadlines.

Business Weeklies Less opportunity for placements; very talented writers; trend oriented; mid-week deadlines.

General Interest Very emotive; can be more sensational; wide-read and spread; high credibility; consumer-oriented

Tabloids Lower credibility; highly sensational; typically inaccurate; consumer focused.

Local Look for neighborhood relevance; often more junior; fewer staff; take wire reports.


Media 101:What Do They Do It?

•Conduit of information for your key audiences“Stand in” for viewers or readers

Public filters

•Want a good storyBreaking

Feature

Trend

•Trained to be skeptical and inquisitive

•Bearers of news and information



“The principal task of the professional journalists is to establish order from the chaos

of fact arising from any given event so that information may be presented…to readers”

-Everyman’s Encyclopedia


Media 101:How Do They Do It?

•Supply and Demand BusinessWe supply and they demand

•Want SupplyPress kits

News releases

Events

Background meetings

•They Demand•Breaking news

•Features

•Trends


Media 101:How Do They Do It?

•It’s all about the relevance

Your Story The Market

Relevance

Media



•Relevance drivesBreaking news

Trends

Features/profiles

•Tougher sells includeProduct announcements and new offerings

Executive changes

Charity

Sneezes, burps, bumps, and pains



•Research market dataPast stories

Friends

Foes

Luminaries

Gut instinct

•InterviewsIn-person

Phone


How They Do It: The Interview

7%

38%

55%

Verbal…

Vocal…

Visual…


Media 101:How to Work with the Media?

• It’s all about process, making communications a linear, controlled function.

1. Messaging

2. Targeting

3. Training

4. Interviewing


Media 101:Messaging

•Messages are the heart, soul and essence of ALL communications, written and spoken

•The “content base”

•The footprint of strategy and tactics

•A formulaic series of concise, distinct statements

•Statements customized by audience

•They guide, discipline and filter our communications

•They’re built by consensus


Media 101: Messaging

Problem/Need

Solution/Remedy

Credentials/Expertise

Compelling-Credible-Different-Defensible


Media 101: Messaging

UMBRELLA MESSAGE

Problem

Solution

Expertise

Media Analysts

Employees Customers Shareholders Partners


Media 101:Messaging

•Think of messages as “Islands of Safety”

•Commit them to memory; return to them consistently

•They are more than well-written prose; they’re well-spoken thoughts

•They should be cyclical, fluid

•No message is complete without supportive information

•Examples, figures, anecdotes, third party endorsements


Media 101:Targeting

•Determine which media most effectively and efficiently reach your key audiences

•Insurance

•Technology

•Business

•Finance

•Healthcare

•View each publication as several; segment sections and story ideas

•Find out who the right reporter is to contact, otherwise you’re wasting your time


Media 101:Targeting

•Initiate contact and develop a relationship

Background meeting

Source

Ongoing information sharing

Editorial calendars

Sounding board

•Treat the relationship personally and professionally


Media 101:The “Pitch”

•What’s the news?

•Who’s going to deliver it?

•When?....Tuesday or Friday?

•How?...Press release or press event?

•Why?...What’s the significance?

•What do you hope to accomplish?Business objective?

Organizational objective?

Market objective?


Media 101:Training

1. Prepare yourself

2. Rehearse yourself

3. Rehearse until you are completely comfortable with content and key message points!


Training Preparation

•Make sure your messages are bulletproof and you know them cold

•Prepare tough questions and answers

•Know the media – publication, reporter, history and anticipate angles (briefing book)

•Pre-select a location that works well for you, not them

•Limit possibility of interruptions


•Check your appearance (grooming, attire, etc.)

•Watch TV, listen to the radio, read the paper, etc.

•Practice smiling, listening, and eye contact

•Practice saying your company name (no kidding)

Training Preparation


•Role play the scheduled interviews with a colleague, friend, or trainer

•Practice bridging, flagging and transitions

•Bridging:But…

In the meantime…

However…

Our real focus is…

The real issue is…

What I’d like to point out is…

More importantly…

Training Rehearsal


•Flagging:

“I’ve said it before…”

“Let me emphasize that…”

“Don’t lose sight of the fact…”

“It’s important to understand…”

“What I’m most excited about is…”

Training Rehearsal


•Transitions:

That’s an interesting question, it reminds me of

Before I forget, I want to tell you audience

Let me put it in perspective

What’s important to remember, however…

What I really want to talk to you about is…

That’s not my area of expertise but what I can tell you is…

Training Rehearsal


Training Rehearsal

•That’s a good point, but I think your audience would be interested in knowing that…

•What I’m really here to talk to you about is…

•Let me just add…

•Let me give you some background information…

•Let’s take a closer look at…

•That’s an important point because…

•What that means is…


•Practice conversing with only your own agenda in mind

Training Rehearsal

Interviewer Interviewee

Flag

Transition

Bridge

Q

Key Messages

Q

Q

© 2006 MarketingScoop.com. All rights reserved. Page 343 Anderson Lane, Robbinsville, NJ 08691

Tel: 800.357.0393 www.MarketingScoop.com

Documents

© 2006 MarketingScoop.com. All rights reserved. Page 1 Media Training 101 3 Anderson Lane, Robbinsville, NJ 08691 Tel: 800.357.0393