By Pat Southwell:
In today’s media landscape, there’s an inherent weakness to most media training. It puts the emphasis on the journalist, not the spokesperson.
To explain, about half of a media training session is about understanding what type of journalists there are, the techniques they use and how to handle tough questions. Yet for most B2B spokespeople, the majority of their public performances are at conferences, roundtables and other events. And in a digital media landscape, interviews or comments are increasingly provided in written form.
As a result, Five not 10 is keen to get its clients ready for anything. Not just a grilling from a great journalist who can sniff out a story at a hundred paces.
So, how can a spokesperson get match fit for whatever they’re doing?
1. Know what to say
Ok, so this is stating the bleeding obvious. But you’d be surprised how many businesses don’t have a clear handle on their messaging. They might be experts in their field. They might know their products and services inside out. But often, the business struggles to clearly articulate its message to the outside world in a compelling way.
So, before anyone embarks on spokesperson training, they need to be crystal clear about their comms strategy and the messaging that comes from it. And, in true Five not 10 style, it needs to be simple. Brutally simple.
2. Understand how to tell a story
It’s undeniable that stories are vital for nearly every type of communication. And while we often train people to deliver stories to journalists, it’s only because we know the end reader or viewer will be engaged by them.
So why not simply learn how to tell stories for all audiences, not just for media? It will make any speech or presentation more engaging. We think there are three key elements to stories:
First: people. Set up the story with your protagonist – this is usually a customer or audience group.
Second: problem. What challenges did they face, which led them to go on a quest or journey?
Thirdly: solution. How did the person solve the problem they faced and what was the outcome? Importantly, what was your role in helping them?
The trick is to create a story with purpose. One that carries the messaging and delivers the point. Again, this is why messaging is so crucial. It dictates the characters, challenges, and resolution of a narrative.
3. Understand how to deliver
In a media relations context delivering a story is often about staying in control of a moving conversation where a journalist tries to take you off in a different direction. But in the absence of a back-and-forth between interviewee and interviewer, there are other things to consider.
For example, how do you grab attention instantly? Perhaps it's a matter of opening with a jaw-dropping statement. How do you maintain an audiences’ focus? It could be worth using fiction writing techniques such as withholding information to keep people on the edge of their seats.
And how should you speak and use space? I’d suggest that a pause can be as powerful as a shout. Or that movement and gesticulation can land messages more effectively than we realise. After all, Google reliably informs me that 93 per cent of communication is non-verbal.
It’s also worth thinking about how to spark interest through counterintuitive facts, or powerful opinions that may even divide an audience. Perhaps even use humour to lower people’s defences.
4. Use rhetoric
By this I mean learn a few tricks from the masters. Read up on how to craft lines that are memorable. Alliteration can make something memorable. So can repetition when used sparingly. Metaphors and similes are also powerful tools.
In summary
There’s so much more to spokesperson training than media training. And it can be applied in many more ways.
So, while the Five not 10 team loves nothing more than putting people through their paces, playing the role of mischievous journalists, perhaps it’s time to consider the wider benefits of being a great speaker in any context.
If you’re interested in learning more, let us know.