Surely you’d rather sound like human being rather than a robot when you appear on the media for the first time to represent your organisation?
Quite often at our media training workshops, I’m asked, ‘Is it ok to take a few notes into the studio with me, just in case I forget something important?’
The problem with reading out loud what you’ve just written is that it’s not conversational. Which may be fine if you’re a newsreader or a priest about to give a sermon but if you’re being interviewed on the tv, radio or online it just doesn’t work and you won’t get your message across in an effective way to the audience, as I’ve explained in more detail in a previous blog.
Buzz words
The audience expects you to know what you’re talking about without having to refer to a crib sheet and if you’re being interviewed it’s crucial to get the content and the tone right whether in vision or on audio.
For live and pre-recorded interviews, I advise my workshop attendees never to write down their full answers on a piece of paper when going into a studio because you need to sound like a reasonable human being rather than a robot – much as I love robots.
If you need some prompts, try writing a few buzz words on the back of your hand or on a small card or piece of paper which you can glance at before the interview.
Remember, the reason you’re being asked to appear on the tv or radio is for your expertise ; you will know far more than the interviewer about the subject under discussion, so take confidence from that !
Practice out loud
You may benefit from practising out loud what you’re going to say – particularly any phrases or words that help to hammer home your point to the audience.
Don’t be afraid of repeating yourself either – as long as you don’t overdo it, coming out with the same point twice can be a powerful way to communicate your key message which is crucial when the interview is being clipped for a news or sport bulletin – the more powerful and concise the words, the more effective the sound-bite.
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