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"Being interviewed by the media is a performance,
and the very thought may make you nervous. Before you're interviewed,
know exactly what you want to say," says Rick Frishman, president
of Planned Television Arts and co-author of the new book Guerrilla
Publicity.
Rick insists that all his clients undergo preparation
and training before they're interviewed. "No director,"
he points out, "would send an untrained, unrehearsed actor
on stage … and in PR, we're the directors and our clients are
the actors. Our clients must know their lines and how to deliver
them or the audience will get up and leave."
In Guerilla Publicity, Frishman and his
co-authors, Jill Lublin and Jay Conrad Levinson, share their best
advice on how to prepare for a media interview:
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- Write down the five main points you want to cover.
- List anecdotes, facts or jokes that help you make
each point effectively.
- Anticipate the questions interviewers are likely
to ask and prepare answers that include your main points. It helps to
study the host's prior interviews to find his/her favorite questions
and approaches so you'll know what to expect and how to respond.
- Keep answers and explanations simple. Complex information
tends to lose or bore interviewers and audiences.
- Never try to steal the limelight from the host or interviewer. Your
job is to make them look good, while getting your main points across.
- Practice by having friends and family pretend they're the interviewer
and question you.
- When you practice, videotape yourself or stand in front of a mirror
to observe your performance. Be conscious of your posture, facial expressions
and gestures. Ask your interviewer to honestly appraise your performance.
- When friends and family aren't available to help, interview yourself
aloud.
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"No director would send an untrained, unrehearsed
actor on stage. … Our clients must know their lines and how
to deliver them or the audience will get up and leave."
—Rick Frishman
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By following these tips, media producers and newspaper
interviewers will come to respect you as a knowledgeable source and, just
as important, an entertaining interviewee. This, in turn, will keep them
coming back and keep you in front of prospects and clients.
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