Being interviewed on TV? Lean in.

Last week, the Better Bankside team welcomed LeFevre Media into their offices for a crash course in broadcast media training. Being interviewed on live radio or TV can be terrifying, but Caroline and Steve, a husband-and-wife team, and ex-broadcasters, provided some really useful tips and practice to build the team’s confidence and effectiveness for these interviews.

Here are four of the many tips we took away from the day-long session:

1. Sitting TV interviews – lean in
   It might seem unnatural, but leaning forward during a seated TV interview will mean you both look and feel more relaxed. The team were filmed sitting upright and leaning forward, and the improvement was tangible.
2. Avoid jargon and marketing speak
   The ‘public realm’, ‘footfall’ and sharing ‘5 goals,’ were just some of the terms the team were encouraged to avoid when being interviewed. SKY News aims to communicate in a way that an intelligent 14-15 year-old child would understand. Unambiguous and conversational language should be used for message clarity and impact.
3. Paint a picture and lead with your most interesting story
   It is all too easy to focus on your current project or on how, as an organisation, we are currently talking about the Bankside area. For broadcast interviews, you need to share the stories that will resonate most with your audience.  Some of the broadcast-ready stories the team mentioned, almost as an aside – the term ‘Drag Queen’ originating from Bankside and Europe’s smallest bee being found in one of Bankside’s skips – were flagged as stories to hero.
4. Difficult questions
   Don’t shy away from difficult questions, or worry that you might be caught off guard with questions you don’t know the answer to. If interviewers ask a question you don’t know, tell them something you do know instead!

What’s your tip for doing broadcast media interviews?