Succeeding in interviews

You’re in the radio studio, the red light is on and it’s over to you in 30 seconds. The journalist introduces you, but you only have 20 seconds to get your message across. You thought you had three minutes.

It’s too late to ask yourself: "What should I say as a top priority?” This needs to be resolved before the interview, no matter the situation or type of media.

Preparation is key to giving a good interview. This means creating a well-structured message which both specialist and generalist journalists can easily understand, and being able to back it up with solid facts and figures. You cannot assert that your product or service is the best if you can’t back it up with evidence.

The more you perfect your speech, the less stressful the interview. And less stress means more confidence, which in turn makes the message more engaging.

Once you know how journalists work and you have crafted a coherent and well-structured speech, all you need to do is understand the specifics of each form of media – to avoid long sentences on radio or TV, to make sure you know where the cameras and microphones are located, to avoid jargon, to use words and phrases that anyone can understand etc.

Conquer all these elements and you become a “good interview” – the surest way of getting positive coverage.

Each session is led by two experienced journalists - a specialist in the appropriate media (written press, radio or TV) and an expert in the interview subject (finance, IT, HR, marketing, etc). The sessions and interviews are all filmed.

Firstly, they teach what journalists would expect from an interview, as well as how their articles are written or their videos or recordings are made. The interviewee is then questioned under realistic conditions so that the finishing touches, such as the proven examples, facts and figures, and transition gambits can be added. The session simplifies complicated subjects and teaches how to handle the inevitable tricky questions.