Cue the fanfare… in response to popular demand, I’ve launched a new workshop that will make your future comms easier.
The title of the training is ESSENTIAL MEDIA RELATIONS SKILLS and the aim is to give the skills that are needed to do a specific task.
If you thought media relations was retro thing you’d be wrong.
Here’s why…
Some numbers on the importance of media relations
- 75 per cent of under 24s get their COVID-19 news from traditional media, say Ofcom.
- In Facebook groups, people are twice as likely to see COVID-19 content from traditional media than direct from the public sector.
- The BBC remains the most trusted news source in the UK.
- 22 million people a week consume content from regional newspapers.
The training
It’s not the only show in town but it remains an important show. In the last decade, news companies have been forced into sometimes painful re-invention.
Understanding that re-invention and how to create content for today’s re-invented journalist is a skill.
Dealing with a journalist on deadline is also a skill.
I was approached to create some training recently to help train public sector comms people in how to deal with the media. With the input from some current journalists I did. I was surprised that the essentials remain the same. News is news. Delivering the training was fun.
It dawned on me that there was a need for this.
Many teams have moved towards generalists rather than specialists and people who didn’t start their careers in newsrooms are being asked to pitch a story or pick up the phone to a reporter. Understandably, they’re not brimming with confidence and that’s a considerable risk.
The training is split into three sessions. Firstly, proactive, what you need to do to create content and ‘sell in’ a story. The second element is reactive. What happens when a media query comes in. For each, there is tried-and-tested strategies.
Thirdly, there will be a practical session. This gives some time to practice.
Lastly, do have a look at the detail of the workshop. It will be delivered online and I’m convinced it will be useful to you or someone in your team.