enThrall Promotions

You're holding an event or you have reached a significant milestone, and you figure that the media would be interested. You wrote a media release (or hired me to do so) and suddenly, the phone rings! A reporter under a time crunch (they are all under a time crunch) wants to ask you a few questions to flesh out the story.

What do you do?

Remember that there are always a few minutes to collect your thoughts before you agree to an interview. An "I'm busy right now - can I call you back in fifteen minutes?" will give you time to sit down and review your key messages. However, grab a pen and paper to ask some of the most important questions right now:

• Write down the journalist's name, media outlet and phone number. Find out their deadline.
• Ask about the focus of the interview. What is the nature of the story/piece they are producing?
• Who else are they interviewing on the subject?
• If television or radio, will the interview be live or taped? If print, will it be recorded?
• How long will the interview last and where do they want to record it?
• When will the story be broadcast or printed?

Get this information down and chat with your friendly neighbourhood media relations contractor to decide the best approach. Choose a comfortable, quiet setting for the callback where you won't be interrupted.

However, if you can, arrange for an interruption. The interview could start going poorly or overlong - remember that you want to deliver your key messages clearly and concisely, you want to avoid speculation and you want to limit the interviewer to only using the best responses you can give.

This has been a quick media relations tip - stay tuned for the flip side, where I give tips to reporters on how to shake PR training from spokespeople!