On our media training courses we regularly talk about the power and importance of examples in media interviews.
And there is little doubt they really enhance interviews regardless of whether they are for television, radio or print.
Not only do they add credibility to proceedings, but they also bring messages to life, help influence the direction of the conversation and enable the spokesperson to connect with the audience.
But not just any examples – it is human and personal examples which are crucial to capturing the audience’s attention and making messages memorable.
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People want to hear stories about other people, not policies, protocols and strategies. They want to know what your announcement means for real people in real life situations.
Often the strongest examples, the ones which really stimulate emotions in the audience and persuade them to give money, take action, support an idea or buy a product, are those which are personal to the spokesperson.
This may sound a little daunting for media spokespeople, but during our media training courses we notice those who choose to bring their personal examples and anecdotes into an interview are the ones who we see grow in confidence the most.
But it is crucial that before these examples are used outside the safe environment of a media training course, spokespeople discuss with their comms teams how much of themselves they are prepared to share in interviews.
Obviously they need to share enough to make their content interesting, but are there boundaries they are not prepared to cross?
For example, are they just willing to talk about their industry and work or are they comfortable to bring in examples from their home life or perhaps experiences they’ve had in other countries or different sectors? Are they willing to talk about their children and how they have influenced this particular announcement?
We think there are four levels to sharing personal examples in media interviews. The first level is sharing something relatable which just teases a hint of colour. For example, you might hear a spokesperson say something like ‘when I was doing the washing up this morning it occurred to me that…’.
The second stage provides a bit more detail to the person behind the voice. It might be an admission you are slightly OCD at home, or perhaps that you are always the last person to volunteer to take the bins out. The audience starts to see a picture emerging or who you are and what type of personality you may have.
The third stage is one many people will be familiar with. It is where the spokesperson provides some more intimate detail about their private life. You will probably recently have heard a spokesperson say something like ‘as a father / mother myself’, ‘as a divorcee’ or ‘as someone with an elderly parent’. This personal detail provides context to the message and can resonate with the audience.
But it is those spokespeople who are prepared to go to the fourth level who produce messages which are truly memorable. They go beyond providing personal context and take the audience on a journey by delivering a story from their life. So a spokesperson talking about a new financial product, for example, could say something like: “When we were sitting down to figure out how we could make this product we knew we wanted it to be easy for people to understand and simple to explain. I used to go home and try and explain elements of the service to my kids. They’re seven and ten and unsurprisingly have no previous experience of pensions and investments, so were a perfect audience for me and really helped me to know what we were saying was easy to comprehend.”
Of course, no spokesperson should feel forced to make passing comments or share stories about their family and home life, but you can see how it adds to an interview and it is important comms professionals know whether their spokespeople are prepared to cross this boundary.
One concern we find spokespeople have about including personal stories is the longevity of the information they are sharing. Could it come back to embarrass them or their family in years to come? It is often said that today’s headlines are tomorrow’s fish and chip paper, but the internet has muddied this proverb by making old stories much easier to find.
And even broadcast interviews are now widely available through websites long after they were aired. But it is worth remembering someone would have to actively seek that content to be able to find it and in most cases once it stops being relevant; no-one is going to search for it.
If a spokesperson is prepared to share personal anecdotes they should first work with their comms teams to ensure the stories are told in a media friendly way to maximise their impact. The key is to ensure the story is told with powerful, simple language which stirs up emotions in the audience, makes the company relevant, and provides a human face to the brand.
So, now it’s over to you - if you are a spokesperson, what stage of sharing would you be willing to go to in your next interview? Does your comms team know?
If you are a comms professional, when was the last time you checked with your spokespeople to identify their level of comfort with sharing personal examples in media interviews?
Media First are media and communications training specialists with over 30 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers.
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