HOW TO GET THE LOCAL MEDIA TO CALL YOU!

How’s your summer been? Where did the time go?

Last week I got a last minute call from Fox 5 San Diego to do a segment for their 5:30 evening newscast.

How do you get the media to call you?

I’ll give you that secret in a second, but more importantly what do you do when they DO call. It wasn’t just a quick interview, but a full segment with tips and props so I had to get things together fast.

That’s usually how the news works. When the media is interested in something, they need it now. The next day, next week it may be old news and you may have missed your opportunity.

That’s right, when they call, you need to be ready!

So today I want to share with you not only how to get them to call you, but why you always need to be prepared and camera ready to promote you and your business.

I’m also going to show you what’s it’s like behind the scenes of a local news set.

That’s why it’s important to always be prepared even BEFORE you book an interview. You never know when the news will call. It could be that they finally got to a pitch you sent or they saw a blog post or mention of you and your company somewhere.

When you start getting out there, more and more opportunities will come up and you need to be ready to go and not let fear or uncertainty or that voice in your head tell you you can’t do it.

You can, but it does help to know what to expect and have some tools and tactics when the media comes calling.

What if the media isn’t calling, then you should check out my “How To Get On The Today Show” post that gives some tips on how to pitch.

You may also be wondering how I get the media to call me?

The secret is to be camera ready.

When someone books you they want to be confident that you know how to handle an interview. You may be the perfect fit or they would love to feature your company, but if they don’t know what to expect from you or have never seen you on camera, you probably won’t get booked.

By being prepared and letting them know you are media-savvy and camera ready you make their job easy and they will be more likely to give you coverage. Whether you have been on TV before or you have some video interviews on your site-you need to highlight them.

So what’s it like on a local news set?

Here’s a behind the scenes look.

This is a view of me waiting for the segment on the side set during the newscast.

Here’s what a green room (waiting room before an interview) looks like.

This is a really new modern looking green room. This station is only about 5 years old. At other stations it may just the lobby or be an office with a couch and table, some have a mirror and lights to freshen up before you go on, but almost always there will be a TV so you can watch the show while you wait.

This was a live sit down interview with props, usually when you have props you are standing . For each type of interview there are different ways to prepare and handle it.

The interview was for my other blog The Zen Mom.

If you want to be more media savvy, boost your credibility, have the media start calling you, or you want to break through your barriers. I’d love to work with you!

The media needs you as much as you need them, but you need to be prepared and be camera ready!

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Now I’d love to hear from you! If you’ve never been on camera what’s holding you back? If you have, what was it like for you? What were your challenges? Your successes?

Share in the comments below.

Thanks for taking the time to read and share.

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