Public relations professionals often have to prepare themselves, someone in the company, or their clients for an interview. That means that you must help them to be comfortable with the material that will be covered, ready to answer any questions, and acting in a professional manner.

As the PR pro, your role is to ensure that they have the correct information to share, know what to expect, and are presentable and respectable.

Here are some things to consider when prepping yourself or your client for an interview:

- Practice. This makes a world of difference. Prepare the interviewee with possible questions and do mock-interviews. This can calm the nerves and help to foster a comfortable appearance.

- Do your homework. This can help you to be better informed about the person who will be interviewing the speaker, what they cover, and what they look for. This can also help you to better perform and to be able to give the interviewer what they were hoping to gain from the interview. Don’t assume that you will know everything you need to know and don’t assume that the interviewer will be your friend. Know too that they are not out to get you.

- Be personable. Use first names, smile, and talk to the interviewer. (That is why you came to the interview, after all.) Be sure to speak to the interviewer instead of to the camera, and be responsive to questions you may not have expected.

- Be honest. Truthfully answer questions, but know what is information that can be shared and which information is meant to be kept within the company. Avoid saying “no comment”. While some PR pros will encourage you to say this if you need to, avoid saying so; this can raise some concerns and make you look bad. Try saying something about the topic, sharing only what you are able to share. Moreover, avoid gossip or something you don’t know much about; speculating what you don’t know can get you in trouble, and gossip never helped anyone’s image.

- Be humble. When necessary, you need to be able to admit to mistakes. You should also know that while this is the interviewer’s job, they are taking the time to talk to you, just like you are taking the time to be there. Respect their time and be sure to thank them for it.

- Be aware. Pay attention to their body language and be aware of your own. Also, be aware of your appearance; try to avoid distracting patterns and accessories and excessive make-up. Also be aware of how long you talk; pay attention to cues from the crew and the interviewer so you keep the interview the length they need it to be.

Just remember that this interview is a reflection of you as the PR professional and of the company the interviewee represents, so prep and polish them to shine on camera or the radio.

Have any tips to share from your own interview experiences? Click on this post’s title and leave a comment!

For business, non-profit or association managers like yourself, survival pretty much depends on whether you achieve, or fail to achieve your department, division or subsidiary objectives.

Which strongly suggests that, if you haven’t already done so, you may wish to employ a set of tools that will help you persuade your most important outside audiences to your way of thinking, then move them to take actions that lead to your success.

The tools comprise the fundamental premise of public relations: people act on their own perception of the facts before them, which leads to predictable behaviors about which something can be done. When we create, change or reinforce that opinion by reaching, persuading and moving-to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.

And the promise those tools hold for managers are behaviors like new prospects and more existing buyers, repeat purchasors, highly qualified job seekers, new capital contributions, increased membership referrals or more proposals for strategic alliances.

But there is work to do. You need information about those key external audiences. What do they know about your unit and its operations? How familiar are they, if at all, with your services or products? Have they ever worked with any of your people? Was the experience positive?

Tell the public relations folks assigned to your department, division or subsidiary that you want answers to those questions. And for the simple reason that how those important outside audiences perceive your operation usually leads to behaviors that can help or hinder you in achieving your objectives.

Work with them on a list of your key external audiences whose actions most affect your operations. Put those groups in priority order and let’s have a go at #1.

Remember that the success of your new public relations effort depends heavily on how well you gather these key audience perceptions.

Here, you have a choice. You and your PR staff can interact with members of that target audience, which seems appropriate since your PR folks are already in the perception and behavior business. Or, if a substantial budget is available to you, you can hire professional survey counsel to do the work for you.

Either way, asking members of your key target audience questions such as those outlined above along with the responses you receive, provide the foundation data that underpins your entire public relations effort.

But, as you monitor audience member responses to your questions, stay alert for hesitant or evasive observations about your organization. Do you note statements that are untrue or misconceived? How about inaccuracies, rumors or false assumptions? You’ll need to remedy them because we know that negative perceptions inevitably lead to negative behaviors that must be fixed to protect your operation.

As mentioned, the data your interactive monitoring produces is the raw material with which you create your public relations goal. And that might well be clearing up that misconception, correcting that inaccuracy or replacing an untruth with the truth.

Reaching that goal is another matter. You need the right strategy to show you how to get there. As luck would have it, they’re but three strategic choices in perception/opinion matters like this. Create perception/opinion where you have none, change that perception, or reinforce it.

Good writing doesn’t come easy, but that’s your next challenge. Here, you must put together the message you will use to transmit your corrective facts and figures to those members of your target audience.

Now, all at the same time – in a single message – you must be clear about why the false assumption, the misconception or the inaccuracy should be clarified, or even corrected. Your message must present truthful supporting facts, and must be believable and, if at all possible, compelling.

Your public relations team will provide that talent. Also discuss with them blending the message into a variety of public presentations so as not to damage its credibility with a high-profile announcement.

Keep in mind that the timetable can always be accelerated by adding new communications tactics and by increasing their frequencies. Also a good idea to continue refining and updating the message itself.

Happily, what you will have done is use a set of tools that helped you persuade your most important outside audiences to your way of thinking, then move them to take actions that lead to managerial success and, some might say, survival.

About The Author

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks to business, non-profit and association managers about using the fundamental premise of public relations to achieve their operating objectives. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. mailto:bobkelly@TNI.net Visit: http://www.prcommentary.com

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Tags: public relations tools, public relations manager, public relations

As a business, non-profit or association manager, any tool that helps you reach your department, division or subsidiary objective IS mission-critical.

And particularly so when that tool helps you persuade your most important external stakeholders to your way of thinking, and then moves them to take actions that lead to your success.

Here is such a mission-critical tool. One that lets you get serious about your public relations. It shifts the emphasis away from communications tactics to a workable plan for reaching those outside groups of people with a large say about how successful you’re going to be – namely, your key external target audiences. The tool says, “People act on their own perception of the facts before them, which leads to predictable behaviors about which something can be done. When we create, change or reinforce that opinion by reaching, persuading and moving-to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.”

Use this blueprint to create behaviors that lead to activities like more follow up purchases, higher contributions levels, increased qualified employment applications, new joint venture proposals or a big boost in capital contributions.

First, meet with the public relations people assigned to your department, division or subsidiary and let them know you’re serious about finding out what your most important outside audiences actually think about your organization. The rationale being that target audience perceptions usually lead to behaviors that can help or hinder you in achieving your operating objectives.

Decide among you which audiences are really key to your success then build and prioritize your list of important outside groups of people whose actions most affect your unit. Now, let’s work on #1 on that list.

Your new mission-critical public relations effort will rest heavily on how efficient you are in rounding up the perceptions of your key target audience.

You can put your public relations team to work interacting with members of that #1 outside audience. Or, if you can tap a good sized budget, you can ask a professional survey firm to do the job for you. However, because your PR folks are already in the perception and behavior business, my choice would be to use them for this assignment.

One way or the other, someone must interact with members of that prime audience and ask questions like “What do you know about our operation? Are you familiar with our services or products? Have you had any negotiations with us? If so, were they satisfactory?”

But watch the responses carefully. Notice any evasive or hesitant comments about your organization? Be especially alert for misconceptions or untruths. Are there false assumptions or inaccuracies you need to remedy in light of experience that shows negative perceptions inevitably lead to negative behaviors – the kind you must correct to protect your unit’s operations.

The result of all this work is that you are now prepared to set your public relations goal. For instance, clarify a hurtful inaccuracy, fix that misconception or flatten that rumor once and for all.

But there’s more to reaching your goal. As with just about any goal you pursue, you don’t reach it without the right strategy to show you how to get there. Fact is, with matters of perception and opinion, you have three strategic options: change an offending opinion/perception, create it where there isn’t any, or reinforce an existing perception.

Now comes some work that requires real writing talent – preparing the message you will use to carry your corrective facts and figures to members of your key target audience.

The message must display several characteristics. It must be clearly written as to why that misconception, inaccuracy or false assumption should be corrected or clarified. Your supporting facts must be truthful leading to a finished message that is both believable and compelling.

Now, how about moving your message to your audience? This is the least complex step in the sequence because there are so many communications tactics ready to do the message delivery job for you. They range from op-eds in local newspapers, radio and TV interviews, speeches, consumer briefings and brochures to newsletters, emails, personal meetings and many, many others. Only caution: be sure the tactics you assign to the job have a good record of reaching people just like those members of your target audience.

What about progress? Only way to know for certain if offending perceptions have been altered, is to interact out there once again with those audience members asking the same questions as before. But this time, you and your PR team will be watching carefully for indications that the troublesome perception really is moving in your direction.

That’s where the rubber meets the road, isn’t it? Alter the offending perception…that leads directly to the predictable behavior…that helps business, non-profit or association managers use mission-critical public relations…to reach their department, division or subsidiary objectives.

About The Author

Bob Kelly counsels, writes and speaks to business, non-profit and association managers about using the fundamental premise of public relations to achieve their operating objectives. He has been DPR, Pepsi-Cola Co.; AGM-PR, Texaco Inc.; VP-PR, Olin Corp.; VP-PR, Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.; director of communications, U.S. Department of the Interior, and deputy assistant press secretary, The White House. Visit his website here.

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Tags: public relations tips, public relations, public relations tools

What is the one thing that all of the best public relations agencies do every year?

They research and compile editorial calendars from publications that are pertinent to their client’s business.

You should too.

What’s an editorial calendar?

Editorial calendars are schedules of what topics a publication plans for cover for a particular month. For example, the INC. editorial calendar for July 2003 states that they’re writing an article on various business services.

Bingo!

If you feel that you can contribute to this particular topic, call or email the editorial department at INC. (try to “speak” to the managing editor) and find out who (which reporter) has been assigned to write the story. Email or call the reporter and explain how you can contribute. It’s that simple — it takes less time than writing this article – and is much more effective than blast-faxing a garbage bound press release to inappropriate reporters.

Final thoughts: Many publications post their editorial calendars on their Web sites — usually they’re found in their advertising media kits. Otherwise, contact the publication’s advertising departments and ask for a calendar. Check for editorial deadlines – many publications work 6 months in advance.

Bill Stoller, the “Publicity Insider”, has spent two decades as one of America’s top publicists. Now, through his website, eZine and subscription newsletter, Free Publicity: The Newsletter for PR-Hungry Businesses, he’s sharing — for the very first time — his secrets of scoring big publicity. For free articles, killer publicity tips and much, much more, visit Bill’s exclusive new site.

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Tags: PR, Public Relations Tools, publicity, editorial calendars

Below is a list of public relations tools that are available to PR professionals:

• Media Relations, which can involve media/news contacts, press conferences, and press releases
• Employee Relations
• Sponsorships
• Media Tours
• Newsletters
• Special Events
• Speaking Engagements
• Community Relations
• Philanthropy

In addition to these, there are many online tools that a company or an individual can use, such as websites like PRWeb that allows you to post a press release for free, or online networking sites such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

In addition to your own media contact list and news source contacts, there are other options for distributing a press release that include some additional online sources such as Business Wire, Associated Press, and PRLog. These online sources will reach a broader and larger audience.

There is also a great guide to public relations by Sheldon Rose here. This guide touches on a lot of great tips for writing press releases, managing media relations, and other sites to distribute news releases.

Tags: Public Relations Tools, Tools for public relations professionals, professional PR tools, PR Toolkit, Public Relations Tool Kit