What is Media Training and Why is it Important?
In this article, we’ll look at why media training is important when acting as a company spokesperson, why the media want to hear your opinion, and how you and your organisation can benefit.
What is media training? Media training is a type of training to equip people with the skills and confidence to speak to the media in an informative and engaging manner. Media training helps an individual or business better present themselves when interacting with others.
Read on to find out more about media training, how it can improve your confidence and success in interviews, as well as our top tips for making the most out of your media training session.
So, What is Media Training?
Media training can be theoretical, practical or a mix of the two. Training will equip the recipient with the skills and confidence to conduct media interviews and clearly articulate messages. This type of training may include scenario planning and tips and techniques to refine media performance. Media training should cover different forms of media interviews and techniques on how to handle difficult questioning or get the conversation back on topic. Attendees should also learn about the role of the media and their role as spokesperson.
What Skills Do You Learn in Media Training?
Media training will equip you with practical skills to successfully and confidently conduct media interviews. You’ll learn:
How journalists work and why they want to interview you
The ground rules for media work
How to communicate your key messages with clarity
How to react in a crisis
How to communicate succinctly
How to navigate difficult lines of questioning
How to move the subject on
How to reiterate your key messages
Why it’s never okay to say “no comment”.
Why is Media Training Important & What Are the Benefits?
Media training comes with many benefits, so we’ve outlined some of the most important below:
Business Positioning
A bumbling performance in front of a television camera, radio microphone or down the phone to a journalist can be devastating both personally and professionally. It can mean you’re remembered for all the wrong reasons. But media work doesn’t have to be scary or something that’s off limits. Being available for media comment and saying yes to media interviews can position you and your business as being innovative, ambitious, accountable, and connected to the concerns of your audience or customers. In short, media training and the ability to conduct successful media interviews helps you stand out from the crowd and can give you a competitive advantage.
If you’d like to find out more about how PR can help a business to grow, why not read one of our most recent articles? - ‘Why Do Businesses Need PR to Grow?’
Improves Confidence
Media training gives you the confidence to handle the media both in everyday situations and in times of crisis.
How a business reacts within a crisis situation can determine how consumers perceive the crisis. Is it really a crisis? Is the consumer assured by how the business is responding?
Implementing media training throughout a company can give relevant staff the confidence to handle the press in a crisis. Pre-training media spokespeople will allow them to become well-versed in conducting interviews, preparing and developing a company message and conveying its values to its audience, instilling strength within the company.
Appropriate training will give staff the confidence to answer the tricky questions that journalists can pose. At the same time, it enables them to connect with their consumers by giving clear and direct communication. Preparation will also allow for quick communication with internal and external stakeholders.
Business Messaging
As the face of the business or organisation, you're expected to take the lead regarding communicating with the media.
When liaising with the media, how you portray yourself will reflect on you and the company. The company spokesperson must learn to articulate clearly and precisely within an interview or may risk sending mixed messages to the audience.
Attending media training will teach the designated spokesperson how to conduct themselves during an interview. You’ll learn how to be clear and concise and to speak in a measured way on behalf of the organisation. This will benefit the company as it will aid them in conveying the message they want to portray to their clients and consumers.
Position Yourself As An Expert
Media training gives you the skills to take advantage of interview opportunities and position yourself as an expert.
Media training will help you learn by providing you with the tools to move forward with confidence and ability. You’ll develop the confidence to say no when media requests aren’t appropriate. You’ll also learn how to project yourself with authority, and decipher which topics to avoid and which you should be well informed on.
Understand Journalists
Media training helps you understand the role of a journalist, likely topics for discussion and a training session can help you with crisis planning.
Receiving media training will help you better understand the role of a journalist, allowing you to navigate topics and avoid getting tripped up with any difficult questions. It will teach you to prepare for likely issues and give you the confidence to communicate with clarity and skill.
SEO & Backlink Benefits
Media training and the opportunity to appear in the media could result in strong SEO links from established websites that often have high Domain Authority. As a result, your company website could benefit from better search engine ranking, meaning better brand visibility online. Find out how PR & SEO work together in one of our recent blogs.
Who Should Get Media Training?
To be a leader within your organisation, you'll be expected to be a spokesperson for your company and share your expertise with the media. We'd also advise having a key spokesperson on critical topics who can be media trained to show the company's knowledge in key areas.
People who may also benefit from media training include:
Business Leaders & Associates of an organisation
Board Directors
Influencers
Athletes
Politicians
Comprehensive Media Training From Altitude PR
Altitude PR offers bespoke media training, altering every session to fit our client's needs. Examples of some of the services we offer include:
Broadcast interview training (non-practical). During this session, we'll help you better understand your audiences and a variety of media formats, including Skype/Teams interviews. You'll learn about preparation, hints and tips to help you make a good argument. We'll also cover how to deflect questions, the appropriate length of replies and how to reinforce key messaging.
An open Q&A discussion and scenario planning with two of our team; a qualified journalist and a PR professional who has advised politicians and business leaders.
We are partnered with a former journalist turned crisis media expert for a practical session should you want to role play and record your performances for critique.
To start the process and plan your exclusive media training day, get in touch with one of our experienced team members here at Altitude.
Media Training FAQs
How Should You Prepare For Media Training?
While the prospect of media training can seem daunting, coming in relaxed with an open mind is the most important thing. You're not expected to be media specialists upon arrival. On the day, you will learn everything you need to become an excellent company spokesperson.
How Much Does Media Training Cost?
As every package we create is bespoke, the prices differ depending on the number of attendees and time required.
We can provide additional bespoke training, which is more practical in nature. We can offer a day-long or half-day skills development workshop, with role-play and exercises led by Altitude and a qualified trainer.