Headlines

Public relations tips, tactics and trends
Volume Two, Number Three

Welcome to Headlines, a free newsletter published by Polaris Public Relations with practical information about the PR industry.

Knock, knock:
Media calling…now what?

The media are notorious for working to impossible deadlines. But when media come calling, it’s essential to buy yourself a bit of time to properly prepare for an interview (no matter how tight the deadline). One mishandled media interview will have a lasting impact on the journalist and they may never come back for seconds.

Whether you’re coordinating media interviews yourself, or relying on your media relations or PR firm to do it for you, there are some basic guidelines to follow so you will put your best foot forward.

Never jump into an interview cold. Even the most confident of people can be thrown off guard sometimes. When a journalist calls for an interview, convey accessibility. Ask them about their deadline. If you’re working with a public relations firm, take the journalist’s name and number and have your firm call them back immediately. If you’re working on your own, get a few details and agree to call them back in 20 minutes for the interview when you have more time.

If you’re not working with a PR firm, what should you find out from the journalist before agreeing to the interview? You’ll have to ask a few questions (but not too many or the journalist will get annoyed):
Who is the person conducting the interview and what media outlet are they with?
What is the purpose of the interview, and when will it be published or broadcast?
Try and get a sense of the focus of the interview, but don’t expect a lot of details (journalists don’t have a lot of time to provide detailed questions).
If it’s a broadcast interview, will the interview be taped or live?
How long will the interview take and where will it be conducted? Always allow for extra time, just in case there are delays or the interview moves into additional areas.
Who is the target audience? This point is an important one since the more relevant your quotes are for the audience, the more you will be quoted.
Who else is being interviewed on the subject? Be careful with this question however. Don’t make it sound like you are grilling them about your competitors – keep it very general and casual.
What is their deadline? In the case of print media, make sure you specify interview deadline rather than their copy deadline. You must allow them as much time as possible.

Don’t spend days trying to line up interview times. If you don’t call them back right away for the interview, chances are somebody else will take your place. Once the interview is scheduled, don’t cancel or reschedule. Cancellations can be a big headache for the media since they’re often interviewing numerous people.

Now that you understand what the interview is about, how do you spend the next 20 minutes to properly prepare? Stay tuned for our next issue that will cover the basics of key message development.

© 2004 Polaris Public Relations. All rights reserved.

Shelley Pringle is principal at Polaris Public Relations, an associates-based PR agency that offers a full suite of communications services. She can be reached at 416.597.1518 or shelley@polarisprinc.com.






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