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Common Mistakes when talking to the Press

Written by: Charles Bows

Article Overview: This is an invaluable guide to how to talk to the Press.

Common Mistakes when talking to the Press

The following things are worth bearing in mind before you start talking to the press – or indeed before you do anything in a business! Whilst it is not meant to be an exhaustive list it should suffice for most interviews.


Interview Do’s

 Listen carefully.
 Keep your answers short and to the point.
 Always be sure of your facts.
 If you don’t know the answer, say so and tell them that you’ll get back to them with an
answer. Please remember to do so though; remember the press won’t give you a second chance.
 Always tell the truth.
 Steer every question back to the message that you want to make.
 Always reinforce your points with proof points – where has this deployment been successfully introduced.

Interview Don’ts

 Remember the golden rule “If you don’t want it printed – don’t say it in the first place”.
 You should never knock the competition, whilst trying to promote your own product.
 Never say “No Comment”. Since at best the journalist won’t bother to print anything and at worst he’ll assume that you’ve been found out.
 Never, ever lie. You never know when it will come back and bite you.
 Use unnecessary jargon.
 Patronize the interviewer.
 Get emotional or confrontational.

Some common mistakes to try and avoid

 Trying to “sell” your product to the editor.
 Following instead of leading.
 Talking too much or too fast.
 Not listening.
 Failing to communicate the key messages.
 Answering “Yes” or “No” – Instead try “I’m very glad you asked me that question, .” and bring it back onto message.
 Answering when you don’t know.
 Making projections, that could prove to be misleading.
 Putting word’s into partners mouths, without their prior agreement.

If you can achieve all of the above points then you should be well on your way to conducting a good interview with the press.

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