IF YOU’VE sought out this post from our Media Room, then I’m guessing a “congratulations’’ is in order. Your press release was successful and now you’re planning for that interview. Apart from “breathe’’ and staying relaxed, there’s a few tips you can follow to make a media interview less daunting.

1. Be prepared. Know what you want to say and then say exactly what you mean. If need be, take in notes, but don’t ever “read’’ them during an interview. Know your topic and be interesting. The better the interview, the better the story.
2. Make sure your key message is catchy. If you can, have it within a “golden quote’’ – that is a line a reporter can’t help but want to include. Be witty, but best of all, be honest. If you are saying/doing something which is false, it will show.
3. The best way to emphasise your key message is to repeat it. Stay on message. Say it 100 different ways, not the same way, but say it!
4. Be clear and concise with your answers. The quickest way to get misquoted is to ramble, go off topic and start using jargon. Don’t try and use big words. It’s the old “KISS” principle (Keep It Simple Stupid).
5. If you don’t understand the question, don’t be afraid to ask for clarification.
6. Always answer. If you get thrown a difficult question, answer briefly and then put forward your key message. You should also be prepared for such questions beforehand. It’s best not to say “no comment’’ as it implies you’re hiding something. It is acceptable to say “I’m unable to speak about that because…’’.
7. Use personal anecdotes and stories that illustrate your point and give examples. Be prepared to open up.
8. Do your research and have facts and figures at hand to emphasise your point. For example, one in three women will seek help with breastfeeding; our business is the first to win this award in 20 years.
9. Never mention something is “off the record’’ or provide information you don’t want included in the interview unless you have a personal relationship with the reporter or previous experience with them. Some reporters may not honour this.
10. Always be presentable. This is obvious for television, but if for print, you may need to be photographed.

Written by a journalist, who happens to be married to a deputy editor

How do you think you’d cope in an interview? Have you been interviewed before? What tips would you give others?

EACH newsroom receives up to 500 emails a day and not even 50 of these see the light of day. Chiefs of staff spend the first part of their morning culling that list to find the gems and get rid of the spam. This is where your email can easily be deleted.

Here are some tips to avoid this happening to you and get your release inside the newsroom:

• First, pitch to your local media (newspapers, radio, magazine, TV and even blogs and podcasters). Local media love championing their local success stories.
• Figure out where you want your story to be told – ie, in the news pages, lifestyle pages, afternoon radio segment, TV morning show – and familiarise yourself with that vehicle.
• Pitch to the relevant person, or your story could get lost. Are you looking at it being a news item (then ask for the chief of staff or, even better, a specific news reporter) or on the afternoon drive program (ask for the radio announcer).
• Phoning directly is the best option, but avoid timing it with their deadline. Ask for their direct email address to send the release to and try to get their direct phone number too.
• Media organisations are more accessible than ever, thanks to their increased use of social media. So if phoning has you curling into the foetal position, consider contacting the organisation via Facebook or Twitter. Bear in mind, in some instances this isn’t as effective as phoning.
• Take time to customise your release to each media outlet on your list so they’re receiving exactly what they’re interested in and personalise your address to them (which also includes spelling their name correctly).
• Send off the release immediately. Don’t wait until the next day or week. If possible, make sure you’re giving them plenty of time – either before morning conference where much of the direction for the day is made or days in advance (but don’t forget to include an “embargo’’ if needed).
• Always follow up with the same person if you don’t hear back from them. Chiefs of staff and reporters sometimes get sidetracked with other stories. It’s not to say they’re not interested in the story you’re pitching, it’s just there’s so much else to follow on any given day.
• Nobody likes to be pushed into things. So just offer up the story, politely give a reminder if you haven’t heard anything and, if all else fails, work on the next media outlet. If it doesn’t get picked up, don’t be offended. Sometimes it just comes down to timing.
• Building a relationship with the reporter, announcer or presenter is important. This means next time you have a release, you have someone to go to. In turn, when that reporter needs a story in your niche, they’re more likely to contact you.

If you’re unsure how to put together a press release, check out the step by step guide to writing a press release and example of a press release. Then you’re ready to write a press release that gets noticed. If you’ve already put together your release, then what are you waiting for? Time to make that call!

If you would like to know when the next tutorial in the Media Room is posted, don’t forget to “like’’ us on Facebook. Next week we tackle: How to survive the interview.

AFTER learning how to put together a press release that gets noticed, are you still a little nervous on the nuts and bolts of writing your release? Do you know how to structure the release, what information needs to be included and in what order?

Well, this week we’re looking at a step by step guide to formatting your press release.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Signify whether it’s FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE or EMBARGOED UNTIL …. It’s a good idea to use capital letters and bold, especially if it’s embargoed.

HEADLINE: This will also be your subject line on your email, so you need to make sure it’s getting your message across. Use boldface. It also needs to be eye catching and interesting.

SUBHEAD: This one is optional, but can help further with selling your release

DATELINE: The format is city, state, date. That means the city or town the release is being issued from and the date it was released. So, for example: Devonport, TAS. March 7, 2011 – Then you start your first paragraph here…

FIRST PARAGRAPH: This is your chance to really grab their attention and make them want to read more. The old “Joe Bloggs has announced the launch of a new blog…’’ is boring. Give it life with an interesting “news’’ angle, while still covering who, what, where, when, why and how.

BODY: The body of your press release should take on the form of an inverted pyramid – that is, the most important information at the top and then the detail, background etc further down. In many instances, only the first few lines of your press release will get read. Use quotes to add colour. Don’t use jargon – keep it simple. Try not to write more than a page. Say what you mean and avoid fluff.

BOILERPLATE: Here is your chance to include your bio, where your product is available (if you’re selling one), hyperlinks to your website/blog and email address.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Sometimes # tags are used to signify that anything below this point is not to be made public. It’s up to you. Regardless, this is where you need to include as much contact information as possible. Include your name, blog title, all phone numbers (some journalists work after hours, so include an after-hours number and mobile), email address and links to your blog/website. If the release is also going online, it’s wise to obfuscate your email address (ie. kellie at threelilprincesses dot com). Otherwise it will get picked up by the spam spiders.

TESTIMONIALS: Use testimonial quotes at the bottom of your release. It’s a clever way to actually drag people to the bottom of the page – they’ll want to read what the quote says and not just skim over your contact information.

Next, you need a PR plan. Read how to create a FREE media plan template to step up your PR efforts.

Was this helpful? What other burning questions do you have about dealing with the media? Let us know.

Written by a newspaper journalist, who’s married to a deputy editor

WITHOUT careful planning, a press release to the media about your new project can fall on deaf ears.

Journalists, chiefs of staff and editors are busy people. There are now more spin doctors employed than there are journalists in newsrooms, meaning they have to read and sort through hundreds of press releases per week. If you can’t capture their attention early in your release, it will go straight to the trash file.

They are looking for a “hook” (something interesting) or the pay-off (OK, what’s in it for us as a media outlet?). The key is a point of difference. You have to stand out from the crowd.

Here are some tips to help your press release get noticed:

• The first question a journalist, chief of staff or editor will ask after reading your press release is: “why is this news?’’ What sets this apart from anything else out there?
• It’s important to grab their attention from the first line (which also includes your headline and email subject line).
• Directly after your headline you need to tell the journalist where the release is coming from and when it was delivered. A simple: Sydney, February 24, 2011 will do.
• Tailor your release to the market you’re targeting. If you’ve got a blog about mums who meet in Hobart, there’s not much point pitching this to a Coffs Harbour newspaper.
• Answer all the questions you might think a journo would ask – who, what, where, why, when and how. And generally in the first few lines.
• Treat your press release like an inverted pyramid – the most important information at the top and then the detail, background etc further down. In many instances, only the first few lines of your press release will get read.
• Don’t make it too long. As long as you’ve covered the important points, one page will suffice.
• Make it colourful. Add some quotes from yourself, using a conversational tone. Some journos are lazy and may simply use your release without even interviewing you.
• A press release is no place to be reserved. Sell yourself. Tell them how good you or your product is. For some of us, that’s easier said than done!
• Tell them a bit about yourself, your background and what led you to this point.
• Before you finish writing, make sure it includes your contact details – web links, email, home phone and mobile!
• Always attach print-ready photographs, making sure it’s in jpeg format and at least 200 dpi. Add a simple caption to it, so they knows who’s in the photo or what it’s about. Bear in mind though, many newspapers and magazines prefer to take their own photos.
• Before sending it, find out and use the reporter or chief of staff’s name. Even better, see if you can get the journalist’s direct email address.
• Sometimes it comes down to timing. Slow news day and you’re a hit; major disaster and sorry, nothing personal, but they’ve got better things to be chasing.

Each week, we’ll cover a different aspect of dealing with the media. If you have something in particular you’d like covered, don’t hesitate to drop us a line via the Contact page.