How can you prepare your media spokesperson?

Your journalist is ready to fix a time for an interview.

You’ve meticulously constructed your message and have your neat A4 briefing sheet ready. 

What next? How do you get a spokesperson ready for your interview? 

Firstly, before you do anything, ask yourself, is this the right person to be interviewed and the right time for them to be briefed?

The best person isn't always the most senior one. And you don’t want to be briefing someone too far in advance, or right before the interview.

It’s also important to be mindful of the spokesperson’s workload and schedule – are you going to have their full attention when you are briefing them?

It’s vital all of your spokespeople have had good media training and are well-practised. 

But they also need to be the most relevant to the story. It certainly makes the briefing process easier if they are close to the action. 

At a recent exclusive masterclass for members of The Media Team Academy, it was quickly established that, when it comes to preparing and briefing a spokesperson, one method doesn’t fit all.

Journalist and media training tutor Victoria Smith pointed out that successful briefing depends on the individual spokesperson.

Some require in-depth notes. Others want small, pre-interview chats.

So, comms professionals need to know who they are dealing with and what the individual they’re working with prefers.

“Whatever fits that situation is right,” said Dan Boniface, a leadership and management tutor at The BCF Group. “So, it could be the pub, the coffee shop or a meeting.”

The impact of the pandemic means that, in many cases, face-to-face meetings have been replaced by briefing docs, lots of emails and telephone calls.

But Dan believes there’s room for more: “Having a briefing document is great,” he said.

“But there's got to be time and space for that face-to-face, whether it's in-person or via Zoom or Teams. Whatever platform, use it just to make sure the message comes across well.”

But should media briefings be that bespoke?

“There does need to be some kind of system in place,” said James White, Media First’s managing director.

“It builds trust between the spokesperson and the media team.”

A good starting point for that is to download our briefing template.

Alternatively, ask yourself these crucial questions:

• What do you want to achieve from the interview?
• What’s the message?
• What real-life, human examples do you have to back up your messages?
• What negative, or diverting questions could come your way?

Ditch the complex message house

Getting your message right is crucial for successful media interviews.

And many media briefings rely on messaging house for this. It is a structured, disciplined and well-established approach to creating messages. And it is great as an internal document or for approving messages internally.

But it can overcomplicate messages and create too many.

Dan said: “Sometimes we overcomplicate things, and we give too many messages.

“We dish out too much information in one go, and it becomes confusing.

“Keep it simple, keep it clear. Then, there’s more chance of the person understanding what you are asking them to do.”

The temptation tends to be to create several key messages.

But it is often best to whittle this down to just one.

While some people will argue that is not enough, few watching or listening to an interview will remember more than one major point.

The power of stories

What examples can you use to support your message and make it resonate?

Without strong examples, messages are just empty statements.

Examples need to be relatable and have a human element. The best ones are those which are personal to the spokesperson.

Personal stories and anecdotes help make the brand relevant, provide a human side to the organisation and help spokespeople speak confidently and sound fluent.

This may feel like a part of the briefing your spokesperson should fill in themselves. But, if you know them well, you will probably already have a good idea of examples and stories they could use.

Ultimately, this part works best as a team effort.

Know your interview format

You and your spokesperson need to be clear about whether or not you're briefing for radio, TV or print.

They are three entirely different mediums and need different approaches.

The messaging may remain the same, as would the evidence to support it.

But the approach is so different.

In a print interview, you might have more time to go into facts, figures and statistics. 

If you’re prepping for broadcast, simplify it even further.  In a 90-second radio interview for news, keep it to one key message. Because that's all you’re going to have time for.  If you’re preparing for a podcast or talk radio show you will have more time.

If you’re on TV, you have even less time than radio news. Encourage your spokesperson to get the message out in the first answer. It may be the only chance they get. 

And make sure you have the logistics to hand too. Ahead of the interview, establish how long your spokesperson has to speak. Will they be on their own? Will there be another guest? Your spokesperson will find this reassuring.

Know your interviewer

And you need to know about the person asking the questions.

Victoria noted that, as a journalist, she wants the best story she can get. She wants something topical, relevant and interesting to her audience.  

She also said that she expects to be asked a series of questions ahead of any interview being agreed. 

“Talk to us,” she advised.

“Ask about the audience. What's the demographic?  Who's listening? Who's watching? Who's reading? What age are they? What gender?” 

You and your spokesperson can build a picture of who you're speaking to and what's relevant to them.

It’s not always the case your spokesperson will be interviewed by a big personality journalist like Piers Morgan or Kay Burley. 

 But you might have to deal with some egos. If your interviewer has a particular axe to grind or audience to impress, expect a different, more aggressive line of questioning. And practice accordingly.

Simulate the Interview

One way of building confidence is to have a dummy run of the interview.

As part of our media training courses, we encourage spokespeople to practise out loud. Not only do you warm up your voice, but you know what you're going to say and what it sounds like.

Even if it’s a conversation in the car with your kids, it forces you to get to the point and simplify what you need to say. 

Use the smartphone in your pocket to record people on video and play that back. It will give people practical experience.

Help to build confidence

Encourage your spokesperson to allow their personality to shine.

Dan said: “Always be yourself, let your personality come across. And that way people buy into you. From a sales perspective, people buy from people.

“So, the more you can be yourself, the more you can positively influence others”.

Also, comms teams should reassure spokespeople that they are the experts and help them to let this expertise shine.

But don’t expect to be told the questions

Your spokesperson may want to know the questions they might be facing – many do.

By all means, ask the journalist. But you probably won't get far because journalists don't have to tell you in advance.

You can, however, legitimately ask about the areas they’re going to cover. And you could try and find out what the first question is likely to be - it's worth an ask. 

But keep your cool if the unexpected curve ball swings your way.

Victoria described a moment when she was punched in the shoulder by the then Prime Minister’s press officer when she asked a difficult question that hadn’t been discussed. “The bruise is gone,” she said. “But the memory lingers.”

What happens when you get a surprise? You can prep and brief for most difficult questions and help your spokesperson with the bridging technique for when things take a wholly unexpected turn. 

Should comms pros sit in the room during the interview? 

This is a question we are often asked on our media training courses.

You have every right to be there as a media team. 

But if you believe your spokesperson is better when they don’t feel they are being managed, you might want to step outside the room.

How much you're involved, if you do stay in the room, can be an issue. 

Victoria mentioned a recent Sky News interview when the Harry Potter actor Tom Felton, who plays Draco Malfoy, was stopped from answering a question about JK Rowling. This became the story. 

She advised that if things go wrong, raise it post-interview with the journalist.

Always have a constructive debrief 

The temptation may be to flee the scene, especially if you feel something’s gone wrong. Or to tell your spokesperson that everything went fine.

But as they discussed in the masterclass, Victoria believes it is vital you go over the interview.

“I know it sounds painful,” she said. “But if you can bear to watch it again and point out the positives (because there will be positives).  It's your job to do that.”

Victoria adds that you shouldn’t focus too hard on what went wrong. “If you dwell on a mistake, you’re likely to make another one,” she said.

“The key is to ask what your audience will have taken away.” 

Don’t forget, you can catch up with this masterclass, and all the previous ones, in the video library section of The Media Team Academy hub.