May 2014 archive

Five more things to know about television interviews

By Chanda Temple

Be prepared before you do that TV interview. Image by Barend en Barend via Flickr/CreativeCommons

Be prepared before you do that TV interview.
Image by Barend en Barend via Flickr/CreativeCommons

 

Yesterday, I posted eight things you need to know about doing a live television interview. I received great feedback and decided to post a few more tips. Here they are:

  • Toss the gum 

This should go without saying, but it still needs to be mentioned. If you have gum in your mouth, get rid of it before you appear on television, radio, a podcast or a video. You can’t hide it.

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How to get ready for a television interview

Alabama 13's Ashley Roberts and I took a selfie in the NBC studio before my on-air interview. I decided to wear green because it popped for me. Ashley wore green, too, totally by accident. What a way to usher in spring!

Alabama 13’s Ashley Roberts and I took a selfie in the NBC studio before my on-air interview. I decided to wear green because it popped for me. Ashley wore green, too, totally by accident. What a way to usher in spring!

By Chanda Temple

You’ve booked a live, on-air interview for television. But are you truly ready for the lights, camera and action? Here are some tips to help prepare you:

  • Don’t say, “Um”  
  • Do you know what you sound like when you are talking? Do you have a tendency to say , “um?’’ If you don’t know, record yourself with a  smartphone, video recorder or tape recorder. If you say, “Um’’ more than twice, chances are that you say it a lot. One quick way to kill the “ums’’ is that when you feel it coming on, take a pause and then start talking again. When we say, ‘’um,’’ it’s because we are thinking about what to say next or we are looking for a transition. When we say it a lot, people focus more on our “ums,’’ rather than our message.

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What does your business card say about your brand?

 

Sherrod Shackleford, left, and LaVon Lewis founded their branding and marketing company, PDG, in a dorm room, 14 years ago. Today, they are handling accounts for major companies. They are based in Atlanta, Ga.

Sherrod Shackelford, left, and LaVon Lewis founded their branding and marketing company, PDG, in a dorm room at Alabama A&M University, 14 years ago. Today, they are handling accounts for major companies. They are based in Atlanta, Ga. (Photo by Chanda Temple)

By Chanda Temple

Before you hand your business card to Sherrod Shackelford or LaVon Lewis, make sure the card is truly what you want to say about your company.

If not, be ready for their feedback because the two founders of PDG, a branding and marketing firm based in Atlanta, Ga., are not shy about sizing you and your card up and  saying what they like and don’t like about it. 

“I don’t know what you are selling,” one of them told an entrepreneur during a recent branding workshop, where attendees provided their business cards for critiques.

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Five things that annoy photojournalists

Respect photojournalists. They know what they are doing.

Respect photojournalists. They know what they are doing.

By Chanda Temple

At a recent pr event, I caught myself doing something that I’ve seen annoy photographers to no end: I was TOO helpful.

Let me paint you a picture: I was handling public relations for a big community event and the TV cameras arrived. Once the television cameramen set up, I asked if they needed anything. They were good. But as the event progressed, I kept checking in with them to see if they needed this or that. They didn’t.

It finally occurred to  me that if they needed anything, they would ask me.

While public relations pros go the extra mile to help reporters, sometimes, we can be so helpful that it becomes hurtful.

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