Are You Ready for Your Close-Up?

Get Ready for the Media!

The phone rings, and a well-known producer at one of your targeted media-venues wants to interview you via video in 30 minutes. That’s fantastic! But wait…are you ready?

If so, this could be a great, publicity opportunity to help boost sales, awareness and credibility fast. If not, this could be a PR nightmare waiting to happen.

With this in mind, here are three ways to deal with that potential phone call within minutes…

3 Tips to a Better, Video Interview

1. Prepare bullet points.

The more time you have to create your bullet-points and practice what you are going to say in advance, the better. But if you’re short on time, right down the top, unique benefits of your products and services.

And if you asked the producer what she or he is going to ask you about in advance (always do this!), write down potential, bullet points for the answers you will give. Print your list using a big font you can easily see, and tape your bullet-points right next to your video camera.

2. Check the mirror and your space.

Look in a mirror to make sure you don’t have food in your teeth and that your hair is in place. Sit in front of your video for a test run, and see what is appearing in the background and if the lighting is correct. Clean up any clutter that will appear on the video, and make sure the lighting flatters you. Also check the sound quality and place a “Do Not Disturb” sign on your door.

If you have time, you may want to put on a company shirt or add some company products behind you so they appear on the video. But remember… your appearance, and what appears in the video, all depend on the brand image you want to present.

3. Breathe and try to act normal.

You may be nervous if you haven’t done many of these interviews. Just try to breathe and look into the camera like you are talking to another person. Glance at your bullet-points if needed, but just remember to look straight at the camera… not your computer screen.

And if you don’t know how to answer a question, simply state that you don’t know the answer and will need to get back to the interviewer on that particular question. You can also transition to a different topic that you feel comfortable discussing.

You’re Ready for Your Close Up!

Requests for video interviews may come up quickly. Try to prepare in advance as these can be excellent opportunities to promote your products and services to a wide audience.

But if you don’t have a lot of preparation time, simply write down bullet-points of tentative responses, check your appearance on the video in advance and act like you are speaking to another human being when you look into the camera. This way, you’ll be ready to go and look professional… even if you are a nervous-wreck inside!

What are you going to do today to prepare for your next, media interview?

For additional help with your BtoB, SEO content strategy and public relations, please visit www.rembrandtwrites.com.

Melanie Rembrandt is an SEO, BtoB content strategist and publicist who helps businesses boost sales, awareness and credibility fast at www.rembrandtwrites.com.