Tips for Live Interviews (pt 2) ~ Kathy Willis, Publicist

To continue our discussion about being an effective interview guest, here are more helpful tips for you whether you’re on television, radio, or being interviewed for print and Internet publications.

DO:
· Use humor (but only sparingly). Improvisational humor is better than canned jokes.

· Smile—Have Fun. Being prepared, relaxed, and confident helps a lot.

· Focus on the host and not the camera (or crew).

· Tell brief stories to make your points instead of rattling of statistics.

· Know what you want to say, practice it, and then say it when the camera's rolling.

· Think in terms of 8-second sound bites. Have about 5 points to make and learn how to integrate them into the interview no matter the questions.

· Forget that youʼre talking to millions of people. Just speak to the interviewer naturally—in your normal tone and volume—as if he is a good friend.

· Stay calm. A TV studio is a hectic place, whether itʼs a local news station or The Today Show. Donʼt panic if the staff seems stressed and disorganized; thatʼs just life in television. Ignore the hubbub and take control.

· Stay on track.

· Be yourself. Try to relax and speak to the reporter in conversational language. Avoid using "buzzwords" specific to your industry or organization that the reporter or the audience will be unfamiliar with; they will likely not make it into the story.

DONʼT:
· Over-think your responses or they will sound canned.

· Repeat the question, because it comes across as giving yourself time to fabricate the answer. So, reword the question only as a last resort to buy time to think of the right answer.

· Take notes with you except to review briefly before the show.

· Answer questions that are either irrelevant to you or for which you do not know the answer.

· Argue with a reporter, especially when you are on-camera.

· Feel that you should fill empty space after you've given a response. If you are not prepared to elaborate—donʼt. Sometimes interviewers use the pregnant pause, hoping you will panic and blurt out something to fill the quiet space. Just sit there and smile and wait for the next question after you believe youʼve sufficiently answered the question. If the pause is awkward, then if all else fails, offer to fill it with an anecdote rather than a fact you arenʼt sure of.

BONUS TIPS:
· Whether youʼre on TV to promote yourself or something else, youʼre there to convey a specific message. When itʼs your turn to speak, make sure you get your point across.

· Avoid being sidetracked into a subject not directly related to the subject of the interview. Also avoid rabbit tracking.

· Watch the pace of your reply. Talk too fast and it will appear you think you have more material than time and youʼre trying to cram it all in. Too laid back and you donʼt appear passionate about the subject.

· Beware of being monotone. Allow your voice to naturally rise and fall in pitch, volume and tone.

· Enunciate. Thereʼs nothing worse than an audience misunderstanding because you didnʼt properly enunciate a word or phrase.

· Beware of the “s” and “p” sounds because they tend to hiss and pop with certain mics.

· Make sure you know which time zone you are scheduled for any phone call interviews.

· Be clear in advance if they are to call you or if you are to call them, and have phone numbers for both parties (the guest and the host), just in case.

· Set up your phone so you don't get call waiting, which can interrupt the interview and create a silent pause each time it rings.

· Use a landline if at all possible for phone interviews, to cut down on risk for cell phone static interference and disconnects.

· Send an interview sheet in advance, but be prepared for other questions aswell.

· On the interview sheet, also put your bio, and your photo. Even if theyreceived your press release, it might not be in front of them. This will help the host know not only know what questions to ask, but also feel like they are connecting with you since they see your face on the sheet.

· Don't forget to ask permission to get an mp3, CD or DVD of the interview, to use for promotional purposes after the show. See if you are allowed to post it to your site. Some prefer you to link to their online archives and others will give you full permission to use as you wish.

· Have talking points, but don't be obvious about your talking points--youwant to come across as an expert on the topic or someone passionate about the topic, rather than a politician.

· The same goes for mentioning your book--you want to mention it, but limityour phrases of, "Well, in the book..." "When you read the book, you'llfind..." And the worst is, "I'm not going to answer that question. You'll haveto get the book to find out!"


The final word on interview guesting is this: if your main goal is to sell books, you will come off sounding like an infomercial. But if your main goal is to connect your message to the audience, then God is going to use you in a might way. He’s all about making sure your motives are pure. And the great thing is, when your motive is to shine HIS Light, He takes care of those other loaves-and-fishes sorts of needs in your life, such as selling books and getting exposure.


Kathy Carlton Willis own her own communications firm and enjoys shining the light on others as they shine THE Light. She’s also wife to Russ, mom to fur babies, family and friend to many, and pastor’s wife to her church family. Find her on all the social networking sites, as well as her professional blog: http://kcwcomm.blogspot.com/

Write Kathy at WillisWay@aol.com with your questions on how to promote your books and your branding.

Read More

What's in a Tagline ~ by PR Lady Kathy Willis

Kathy Carlton Willis will be one of our guest bloggers over the next six months. In this and future visits she will share some tutorials with our readers, to coach authors in skills that will advance their writing careers.

What’s In a Tagline?

What’s in a name? In days of old, parents named babies in a way that would be almost prophetic of what that child would become or what that child represented. We’ve gotten away from that tradition, but today, we use taglines. Part of branding for an author is to come up with a tagline.

A tagline isn’t a commercial jingle or a mission statement, but it has that same sort of feel. It is a punchy slogan that defines your body of work. A successful tagline evokes an instant image of the one being described, succinctly leaving a positive impression. You want to pick a tagline that will be broad enough to cover the entire scope of your work, but narrow enough to be unique in capturing your essence—your passion. It’s not just telling others about you, it’s telling them what’s in it for them when they read your work.

Sometimes a tagline is also referred to as a strapline or even a slogan. When identifying the components of a good tagline, I look for three elements: 1) Does it succinctly voice your mission? 2) Does it offer the consumer a promise of what’s in it for them? 3) Does it fit consistently with the rest of your branding elements (logo, book titles, speaking titles, bio, etc.)? It’s important to not merely focus on the product itself, but what you as a total package offers.

Make sure your tagline doesn’t only define, but uses pizzazz to punch up the sell-factor and make you a household commodity—at least to your identified niche-markets and target audiences.

Keep your tagline short—long ones are hard to remember. Make it catchy. And be sure your tagline holds interest for anyone beyond your mother or spouse. You don’t want to leave the potential consumer going, “So what?” Use originality, humor, or drama to make your tagline memorable. Some use puns and use them well, others use puns in a tired, corny way. Be sure you know the difference if you try this technique.Once you have brainstormed a tagline, you can use it in all sorts of ways: on business cards, with your logo as a header on your Web site or blog, as part of your signature line on e-mails, as part of your print materials and letterhead. Also, your tagline might be a good thing to use on your query letters, one-sheets, and proposals. It gives others a quick snapshot of what your heartbeat looks like. Much better way for them to get to know you than showing them your 6th grade school photo!When you use a tagline as part of your branding efforts, you funnel all of your work into this one defining description. It gives you a consistent message, voice, stylization, and image. One goal is to build a specific perception with your audience and potential audience. It causes your audience to feel a certain way, and when they read your work, they seek that same “something unique” in each of your books. Your tagline helps define what makes you distinctly different from other authors.

Taglines will help you build your public exposure, your name recognition, and even gives an implied promise that the consumer will get a certain special “something” consistently with you as the “product” being described by the tagline. The tagline will hook your target audience because it’s relevant, real, and fits the consumer’s implied need or want.

If your tagline defines you, defines your work, and grabs readers at the heart and the mind—then you’ve discovered the right tagline.

Here are some samples of great taglines. (Permission granted by each author for me to use these taglines in this article.)

Where romance meets therapy
Jeannie Campbell, LMFT http://charactertherapist.blogspot.com

Stories of Unscripted Grace, Christa Allan http://christaallan.com/

Uncovering the Unthinkable, Deborah M. Piccurelli http://www.deborahmpiccurelli.com

Southern-fried Fiction, Ane Mulligan http://www.anemulligan.com

Cozy mysteries - with a kick! Lorena McCourtney http://www.lorenamccourtney.com

Exploring the Deep Questions of Faith, Cheri Cowell http://www.DirectionAndDiscernment.com

Stories of Hope-that-glows-in-the-dark, Cynthia Ruchti http://www.cynthiaruchti.com

Yesterday's women—Today's issues, Ann Shorey http://www.annshorey.com

Finding the extraordinary God in our ordinary lives,
Patty Wysong http://pattywysong.blogspot.com/

Small Towns, Big Hearts, Amazing Grace,
Winnie Griggs http://www.winniegriggs.com/

What’s In a Tagline, by guest blogger Kathy Carlton Willis, owner of the same named communications firm. Kathy and her team get jazzed shining the light on their clients and their Lord. See more at their blog: http://www.kcwcomm.blogspot.com/.

Read More