The MediaCoach

Hi John,

I'm back in the sunny and dry UK after a couple of weeks in the southern hemisphere. No, hang on, just looked out the window. Oh well. Anyway, a lot to catch up on, especially on the political front (more of that later). While I was away, I spent some time with my great friend and co-author, Paul du Toit, and we discovered that our Exceptional Speaker Masterclass at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in March had filled up. Naturally, we don't want to disappoint anyone, so we've added another date at the same venue - March 16th. It's a rare opportunity to receive advice from both of us, test a section of your speech, and learn professional techniques to raise your speaking game. Bookings can be made at Exceptionalspeaker.com.

Well, the film awards season is over, and no real speech disasters occurred. Of course, actors are honoured for their ability to take on a character, an deliver lines written by others, so they are often at a bit of a loss when being themselves and using their own words. The trick is to keep it brief and humble. I find it more interesting to view the cutaways of those who don't win. Do they go for the fake grin, the wry smile or the expressionless nod? Perhaps one year there should be an Oscar for "best losing performance".

TJ Walker is a media veteran and brilliant speaker. Hear his advice in the Media Coach Radio Show. There's also a great tune from Ainsley Diaz Stevens, my third cousin from Nashville (yes, nepotism, but it's my show).
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Back in 1960, a young writer devised a TV series that he thought might have a chance of running for a few episodes. It was set around a pub and a few houses in a street in Manchester, featured working-class folk who drank, chatted and got on with their lives. It didn't sound very promising, but Coronation Street went on to become the longest-running soap opera on TV. This week its creator, MediaMaster Tony Warren, passed away. Tony created strong female characters, especially Ena Sharples, Minnie Caldwell and Martha Longhurst, who spent hours putting the world to rights over a few milk stouts in the Rovers Return snug. Here they are with a few other well-loved characters.

Chris Christie takes the MediaMug gong this week for his bizarre reaction when standing behind Donald Trump, who was hailing his victories on Super Tuesday. Mr Christie threw his weight behind the Trump campaign recently, and was clearly placed in full view in order to show his support. Unfortunately, Mr Christie looked far from comfortable. His facial expressions veered between that of a hostage in a kidnapper's video to a man who realised that he'd made a dreadful mistake, but had no idea how to correct it. For a while afterwards, Chris Christie's Face was a trending topic on Twitter. It was a perfect televisual example of saying everything while saying nothing.

AND WHO WAS IT SAID?

Many quotes used by speakers are either unattributed, or wrongly credited. The former is a type of fraud (since it looks as though the speaker made it up), and the latter is probably copying someone else's error. When using quotes in speeches, correct attribution is important. For one thing, it respects the originator. For another, it's something that may undermine your veracity if members of the audience check it out.

There are a number of sites that help: http://quoteinvestigator.com/ is one of the best, but there's also https://en.wikiquote.org/ and the ever-useful http://www.snopes.com/

Here are my seven tips for quotations:

As Joseph Roux once said "A fine quotation is a diamond on the finger of a man of wit, and a pebble in the hand of a fool."

RETURN EVERY CALL FROM A REPORTER

No matter what publication, radio station or TV channel a reporter calls from, always return their call. Make sure you return it as quickly as possible. A few years ago, I returned a call from a reporter at the Yorkshire Post, and was quoted in a story. Every so often, the reporter calls again. Most recently, I was on my way through Johannesburg airport when my phone rang, asking for some quotes about PR. I called the reporter back when I cleared security, and the story appeared within a couple of hours.

Journalists gather much of their information over the telephone. Although many of them write shorthand, the skill is declining, and you are more likely to be asked if you are happy for the call to be recorded. There is nothing sinister about this, and it makes sense to agree. Remember, though, that there is no such thing as "off the record", particularly if your answers have been permanently saved. Stick to the facts, and don't speculate or exaggerate. In other words, treat it exactly as you would if it was a radio interview

After the call, you should also make a note of the questions that you were asked, and the responses that you gave. It is unusual to have to challenge a story, but if you do, you will need to have some evidence. There is a much more important reason for keeping notes, though, and that is to refer back to if the reporter calls again, possibly to clarify a point, or to find out more information. If a colleague takes the call instead of you, it will be extremely for them to know what was said.

The great advantage of telephone interviews is that you are able to have all of your "prompt sheets" in front of you, so that you can deliver your core message, make all of your points, and deal with any awkward questions with consummate ease. At least, you will if you are media-ready!

WHY SOCIAL MEDIA IS THE OPPOSITE OF ARCHERY

In archery, it is quite tough to hit the target (believe me, I've tried). If you make the target bigger, it's easier to hit. So far, so obvious. However, the larger your target audience in social media, the harder it is to hit, or reach if you prefer. It's all about creating niches, something very easy to do on social media. You can set up groups on LinkedIn or Facebook, or use a Twitter hashtag to group tweets together. A small, highly engaged audience is like a networking event where everyone shares the same interests. If you do business in that market, the chances are that some of your current and future customers will be there.

You already know not to do the hard sell to these groups. It's more about getting engaged and offering help. You can set up as many of these small groups as you can manage, but I'd advise keeping the number to two or three, since ignoring discussions is as bad as selling too hard.

So keep your targets small and focused on social media. You could even set up a group about archery.

Another video from those guys at Bad Lip Reading. They have turned the spotlight on US Republican hopeful Ted Cruz. No political significance, but very well done.

The Exceptional Speaker Masterclass on March 15th in London has sold out, but there's a new date on 16th March, and a few places left in the Netherlands on March 20th. Both Paul du Toit (co-author of the Exceptional Speaker) and I will be providing advice. Book now!

The information in this ezine may be freely re-used in any online or offline publication, provided it is accompanied by the following credit line - "This information was written by Alan Stevens, and originally appeared in "The MediaCoach", his free weekly ezine, available at www.mediacoach.co.uk."