Professional communicators know about the importance of expert media training and selecting the right media trainer for your executive team is key.
The media trainer who works with your team should be an insider in the public arena, working directly with newsmakers on a regular basis. They should have deep knowledge of the media landscape and extensive first-hand experience as a news person. Your media trainer should also have the ability to help your team "translate" high-level political & business-speak into strong and memorable soundbites. With his or her help, your executives should learn how to navigate the media waters successfully, delivering key messages to improve and enhance your company’s reputation, without sounding like they are speaking in tongues.
Although communications professionals understand that media training is critical to the success of any business, they sometimes face executives who feel that getting media trained is like going to the dentist (It’s not. We have way more fun and rarely need to use a drill)!
Then there are those executives who first decide they need media training after something bad has happened on their watch. Although media training can certainly help ease some of the pain, the smart move is to be ready before there’s a crisis.
Media training is an ongoing process that should be done periodically. It's like getting into shape; it takes time and dedication to build the muscles needed for effective communication. Training should be seen as an investment in your executive team, not as a band-aid to fix problems caused by lack of preparation.
Holding effective training sessions is not enough; it's the follow-through that counts. Training takes place over a few hours or a full day max but, ideally, participants should continue to practice. Make sure you (or your communications team) organize media training for your executive team well before any media interviews and appearances to make sure they can practice to help build muscle memory and ensure success.
The reality is that it takes repeated practice to get good at media interviews. Just like you would improve your tennis game, public speaking, or baking skills, the more practice and training you have, the better you will become.
