The MediaCoach

Hi John,

One of the greatest minds on the planet, Professor Stephen Hawking, died this week, having revolutionised his field of theoretical physics, and made complex cosmological theories accessible to a huge audience. Despite having to speak for much of his life though a painfully slow digital system, he was a superb communicator. In a 2010 interview, he outlined his three-part philosophy of life: "One, remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Two, never give up work. Work gives you meaning and purpose and life is empty without it. Three, if you are lucky enough to find love, remember it is there and don't throw it away❞ Perfect. He was pretty cool in the Big Bang Theory too.

We also lost another superb communicator, but in a slightly different field of endeavour. Sir Ken Dodd was the last of the great front of cloth comics - those variety performers who entertained audiences while the scenery was changed behind the stage curtains. He was known for the astonishing lengths of his shows - he could easily deliver one-liners for three or four hours. Not only that, he was a superb balladeer, with his song "Tears" being the third highest selling single of the 1960s. No-one was better at getting an audience laughing.

A few weeks back, I played an interview with the legendary Irish singer Mary Coughlan. Supporting her that night was a very talented Irish singer songwriter called Clare Sands, who I spoke to that night, to a backdrop of Bobbie Gentry. It will make sense when you listen to our chat in the Media Coach Radio Show. and there's also of course, a song from Clare.
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The MediaMaestro would obviously be Professor Stephen Hawking. In fact he may already have secured the MediaMastro of 2018. But just so he is not overlooked, allow me to give a mention to a much-loved TV presenter and comedian who died this week. Jim Bowen was best known as the host of the darts game show "Bullseye" (Look what you could have won), and he honed his skills in the workingmens clubs in the north of England. He had a wonderful story about an episode of the show that was so disastrous, it could never be aired. Here it is. It's rude, but very funny.

The MediaMug, yet again, is President Trump. I couldn't avoid giving to him for an extraordinary statement he made to a fundraising event in Missouri where he boasted of making up a story about US trade with Canada when he met the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau. Mr Trump said he had no idea what the figures were, so claimed that the US had a trade deficit of 17 billion dollars with Canada. In fact, the US has a trade surplus of 12 million dollars. According to reports, the audience enjoyed his admission, and the fundraiser was a great success. You couldn't make it up. But he does.

SEARCH FOR THE HERO INSIDE YOURSELF

If you use storytelling in your speeches (and you even if you don't) you will probably be familiar with the concept of the "Hero's Journey". It is the classical structure of tales told for thousands of years, and is still used everyday by speakers and storytellers. (If you want to look into it in detail, I recommend Joseph Campbell's book "The Power of Myth"). However, I'm going to use a highly-simplified version of it to make this week's point about speaking.

The Hero's Journey has three parts -

For example, The Wizard of Oz sees Dorothy leave Kansas, undergo an amazing adventure, and return to find her perception changed. If you examine stories that you tell, most of them will include a journey, a transformation, and a change of outlook. You take your audience on a mental journey of transformation as you speak to them. Think about how the principle applies to your speeches. But don't think that the hero has to win - sometimes the most powerful messages come from things that don't go to plan.

(N.B. Yes, to prevent a flood of email, the term "Hero" covers both genders)

THREE KEYS TO MEDIA SUCCESS

There are a number of things to think about when you are on radio or TV. I have spoken about many of them to you before. However, there are three things to think about which will set you apart from the run-of-the-mill interviewee. Here they are:

1) Understand what the station/channel is about. You wouldn't go into a job interview without finding out about the company. In the same way, you should do some research about the show you are due to appear on, and the station/channel that broadcasts it. The easiest way of course, is to watch or listen to a previous show, using iPlayer or a "listen again" feature on their website. Get an idea of the type of guest and presenter who appears, the style they use, and the audience they serve. it will make a huge difference to how you come across.

2) Take a stand The last thing they want is a bland interviewee with middle of the road views. You should be prepared to take a stance and explain why. If it goes against conventional wisdom, so much the better. You are there to express your opinion, not to agree with the host.

3) Stay with your subject It is easy to be diverted away from the issue you were invited to speak on, especially if a news story has broken in a similar topic and you are asked for your views on it. Should that happen, answer briefly and concisely, and then steer the conversation back to your original subject. Never say "I'm not here to talk about that", or you will never be asked back. Be polite, and make sure you deliver your prepared message.

LIFE IN THE FAST (COMPANY) LANE

A few years ago, Fast Company magazine asked social media companies for their best advice on using social media for business. Here are my favourite five from that list, with a bit of extra commentary from me.

1) Stop and ask' "Would an actual person talk this way?". This is my favourite, and one that I see often ignored. Social media is conversational, and posts and tweets should sound like part of a conversation. Stilted language and use of the third person make people think you are a machine.

2) If all you do is respond to complaints, that is all people will send you. Of course, it is important to handle complaints well, and be seen to be doing so. It is also important to acknowledge praise, offer advice and ask questions.

3) Update your page or delete it. You don't have to change your information every week, but if people never see anything new from you, they will simply go elsewhere.
4) Social is 24/7, not a one-off. You can't just launch a social media campaign and sit back waiting for the results to come in. You need to be in the conversation.

5) Not everything will work, and that is fine. One of the beauties of social media is the ability to change things very quickly. You should experiment, and if things don't work, try something else.

Sometimes you love a song so much that you like to keep listening to it. The infinite Jukebox creates a series of loops through your favourite song, so it never has to end.

You need to be well prepared.

The information in this ezine may be freely re-used in any online or offline publication, provided it is accompanied by the following credit line - "This information was written by Alan Stevens, and originally appeared in "The MediaCoach", his free weekly ezine, available at www.mediacoach.co.uk."