MEDIA RELATIONS (Press & Print)

Register your interest in a public group session

We understand individuals and small businesses may not have the resources to book an exclusive group or one-to-one session, so we operate a wait list system. Give us you contact details and when enough people have registered their interest we'll be in touch to organise a date. For most sessions you'll be alongside (virtually that is) no more than five other trainees.

Organise an in-house private course

This is the way most organisations choose to work with us. You get to choose the workshop, nominate who you want to sit the session, fix a time and date that suits everyone and decide whether you want online or in-person delivery. We do the rest – even down to tweaking the training to match your specific needs. All we need is a bit of information about you so click the organise button to get the ball rolling.

Price

From £999 per session

AIMED AT

Those who have to deal mainly with the written media (newspapers and magazines) and want to feel confident that when they read the resulting story it will accurately reflect what they said during the interview. It also touches on how to proactively use the media and is a perfect companion for our Writing Press Releases workshop. Please note that, at present, this workshop is only available on an in-house booking basis.

CONTENT

As with all of our media workshops this is split into four sections as below. In a structured way, it equips participants with a set of skills which are theoretically based and practically demonstrated. These enable them immediately to control and manage interviews so that their message is the one communicated.

Introduction
An introduction to the basic principles underlying an organisation’s approach to the media. By the end of this section participants should appreciate: -
• The consequences of being “unavailable” or making “no comment” to the media
• The value of a corporate face when dealing with the media
• The pros and cons of passing the buck
• The importance of reacting quickly

Message
Getting the message right is the key to a successful interview so consequently the bulk of the day is spent on this. By the end of this section the following key points will have emerged: -
• Straight and sincere – say what you mean and mean what you say
• Know your job
• What to say when you don’t have the answer
• What to say when you do have the answer but rather wouldn’t disclose it
• When to speak off-the-cuff and when to use a prepared statement
• The long and the short of it – the differences between extended interviews and quick quotes
• How to deal with awkward interviewers
• Interview planning and preparation
• Identifying and selling a key message
• The use of soundbites - their strengths and weaknesses
• How to avoid being taken out of context

Medium
So that the workshop is as close to a real life experience as possible we only use trainers with current industry experience. Through guided discussions, small group workshop sessions and practical experience the following points will be covered: -
• Understanding newspapers and journalists
• Who’re you going to call – avoiding the scattergun approach, targeting the right publication and making contact
• Writing successful press releases – a brief guide (book our Writing Press Releases workshop for the full story)
• Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the print media to get your message across
• When the worse happens – what to do when things go wrong
• Can I quote you on that? – checking the reporter’s record of events

Messenger
That’s you! Reading what you’ve said – or what the reporter thinks you said - can be painful. Yet with a few hints and tips the pain can be eased or avoided altogether. We cover the following points throughout the day and in a whole group session towards the end: -
• self appraisal and improvement – how to get better
• you’re in their hands – forging relationships with journalists
• usage and abusage – using the written word to maximise your message