After the competition: speaking to the media

Have you been in a sports, corporate, club or other competition lately? What should you say when you speak to the media?

Kieran File, of Reactive Sports Media, did his PhD research on common patterns many players use in media interviews after games. He found that patterns did vary depending on whether it was a team sport or an individual one, such as running, and the actual sport involved. In general, his research showed that winners de-emphasized their victories. Losers, on the other hand, while acknowledging their loss, focused on what went well and how they plan to improve.  In other words, both sides focused on the positives.

Other media coaching firms teach players branding strategies, based on how various people perceive an athlete, the 7 second sound byte, staying positive, avoiding the use of filler words such as "like" and "uh", and mentioning a vivid moment or emotional moment (that was positive) in the game.

By the way, sports teams often receive training in social media skills as well. From a Twitter post to a picture on Facebook that has a poorly chosen outfit or activity, everything combines to build a player's brand.

When you watch  post-event interviews, remember most players have been carefully coached in how to present the best possible image for themselves and their team.  Media skills are vital to their success.

If you are a family member of a competitor , use the same techniques. Stay positive, even if your family member wasn't on the winning team. What did he do well, or better, than before? What are the positive parts of the experience for you as a family member, from the housing to the coaching to the weather?

How can you apply some of these techniques to your own career development? Even if you don't face banks of microphones and eager reporters, your daily image, including what you say and how you say it, is being noticed.

Business Speech Improvement provides intensive speech training. Both in-person coaching and e-books are available; check them out here! The e-book on Public Speaking:You Can Do It! is especially applicable. Learn how to write and deliver powerful presentations, from coping with many different types of stage fright to the final glorious applause!

Telephone behaviors that are so irritating

On a LinkedIn group, I posed the question, "When you call a company, what does the other person or company do that is so irritating?" A remarkable number of people responded, very fast. Comments ranged from not speaking clearly enough so that the caller could understand the greeter, to sounding angry when answering the phone, to speaking too fast,  to being placed on hold for long periods of time, and a lot more.

Most of the respondents I presume were Americans.

What behaviors irritate you when you call a company? Please let us know your country. Irritants may be different in various countries.

Business Speech Improvement provides intensive training in verbal skills, including telephone skills.
Click here to learn about our new pre-recorded webinar on professional strategies to understand those with strong accents, and also to discreetly help customers with hearing loss!

Random acts of kindness

Do you know a person or business that is about to move, or has recently done so? Business Speech Improvement, my company, has recently relocated. Random acts of amazing kindness have made a real difference in our settling in to our new state and community. In many communities, who you know is as important as what you do. As a newcomer, I know connections will make or break my business's success - but they take time to make. Today, for example, a business expert spent time helping me make crucial connections. Can you help a newcomer make friends or business connections? Other great things to do include bringing over a plant, a plate of brownies or a fruit basket. Invite him or her over for coffee. Maybe you could gather some information from the local Visitors' Bureau about great activities in the community, or offer the person a tour of the community. Little things like this make a big difference in how a person perceives his new community! Business Speech Improvement

Training adults?

Are you giving a presentation to adults to train new employees or group members? Here are some training tips you can use.

Adults are not little sponges, eager to soak up every last word you say. Although they may sit still and not interrupt, they quickly decide whether to pay attention or not. Presenters who ignore this fact risk losing their audience's attention - and may never know it.

1. Get adults involved in a brief interaction with the person sitting next to them or a small group, or involved in an individual exercise, every 20 minutes. Possibilities: Remember the best/worst ______ (e.g.teacher, pet, friend) you ever had. What made it so special? (Note: Memory and emotion are connected in the brain. You remember things that are emotional.) Interview the person sitting next to you, and tell your small group about his interests. There are many books and probably websites with similar training exercises.

2. Quickly show how people in the audience will benefit from your presentation. "Today, you will learn _______. This will help you by ____________."

3. If appropriate, put some clean and appropriate jokes or a funny story in your presentation. Other stories involving people using the information, or how they were affected by a situation, also help people learn.

4. Make certain your Power-point or other visual is big enough for people in the last row to see. In a recent presentation, the speaker held up a book of materials she was demonstrating.
She was apparently showing some of the exercises on a page. The people in the back row could not see anything other than the fact that she was holding a book of some sort. They were frustrated and patiently waited until she finished. If she had put the page on a Power-point slide (as she represented the publisher, copyright was not an issue), it would have been much better.

Business Speech Improvement provides intensive training and e-books in verbal skills, including public speaking, diction, accent modification and more.

Front line staff and your PR program

What are the first people prospective customers/clients/patients see doing to increase your organization's public relations?

In one healthcare organization I visited yesterday, the first employee I was directed to see appeared ironically to be very sick. When I asked her why she was at work, she told me that her department had let many employees go, and was very short-staffed. The next person I was sent to had her head down on the desk. When I expressed concern about her health, apparently conscious that everyone in a crowded waiting area could hear her, she self-consciously laughed and said she was mostly bored - despite the place being very busy. If this facility took such poor care of the front line employees, I wondered how they expected the employees to take exceptional care of their patients.

Regardless of your industry, how are you taking care of your front line employees? What are you doing to show them that you care about them? Are you teaching them the critical role they play in getting new customers or patients? Are you doing it with frequent spoken and written compliments, flowers, occasional free meals or gift cards, making sure they take time off when they need to, a career ladder to help them develop skills for other jobs, or some other method? Times are tough in many companies, but often without meaning to, front liners can derail your expensive public relations efforts.

Please let us know your company's efforts to make your front line team feel special!

Are you ready for your PR opportunity?

A businessman sponsored a formal professional seminar. He provided refreshments and a room. He was invited to talk about his business before the audience, some of whom were in a position to hire his company. Although very friendly, he was dressed quite informally and rambled considerably during his presentation. He had not thought to bring any business cards, either. The overall result was that his verbal and visual image wasted his public relations investment in this opportunity.

Are you prepared for your next PR opportunity, even when you don't expect it? Are you dressed appropriately enough for your work? If a TV camera captured film of you representing your company or at work, would you cringe? If there is the possibility that you will be asked to "say a few words", would you sound poised and professional, with a concise and relevant speech? Be prepared!

If public speaking is not your specialty, the e-book Public Speaking: You Can Do It!
gives easy ways to start, continue and gracefully end a presentation.

Business Speech Improvement also provides intensive coaching in public speaking, accent modification, reducing speech rate, executive/managerial communication for leadership and more!

What is your body language saying in your photograph?

Do you have professional or personal photos posted online in networking sites or in paid advertisements? What is your body language conveying to viewers?

A remarkable number of photos show people with their arms crossed. This indicated a closed, or defensive, attitude. People looking at them often perceive this as someone who is not open to
others, which is exactly the opposite of what you should be conveying. Get your arms down!

Other photos show people frowning or looking very serious. While a serious expression may work in some professional settings, in a social networking site that indicates someone may not be friendly. The frowning expression is bad for all photos for publicity.

A third issue is whether a person appears relaxed in the photograph. People want to associate with others who appears comfortable with themselves.

Business Speech Improvement provides intensive training in verbal skills (and body language). Seminars and e-books are available.

Well vs Good: Is Your Grammar Missing This Distinction?

Recently I heard a leader state in public, "He did it good". I both winced and lost my some of my respect for him.

"Well" is an adverb, and modifies a verb. For example, in "He ran well", it modifies "ran". "Good" is an adjective, and modifies a noun, as in "He is a good runner".

This is such a simple but easily correctable mistake! Is it appearing in your grammar or that of your employees who speak in public for the company?

For intensive training in verbal communication, including grammar, diction, accent modification, presentation skills and more, visit www.BusinessSpeechImprovement.com.
Coaching and targeted e-books are available on many subjects.

Is your enthusiasm showing?

Have you ever noticed that people with enthusiasm are more charismatic? They draw others to them.

Have you checked the apparent enthusiasm level of your employees who deal with the public, especially those who answer the telephone? Enthusiasm and clear diction can be potent allies in your public relations effort! How is your enthusiasm level for your work?