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What’s the Best Setting for a CEO Media Interview?
Location, location, location is key to success in the real estate world … but it can also be crucial to your CEO’s next media interview by creating the right impression with the journalist.
According to study results recently shared by our partners in the Public Relations Global Network — PRGN — the top location preferences for a CEO media interview vary:
- North American journalists overwhelmingly prefer the CEO’s office or a company facility (88 percent), followed by a phone interview (70 percent), email interview (20 percent) and a restaurant or public place (10 percent),
- While the top choice for European journalists was the CEO‘s office or a company location (67 percent), European reporters were more likely to prefer a restaurant or public place (55 percent), a phone interview (53 percent) and email interview (27 percent).
Interview setting preferences for journalists in one European country can be very different from the next. For example, according to the PRGN survey results:
- In France, Italy and Spain, the overwhelming top choice (average 78 percent) for a CEO interview setting among those surveyed was a restaurant or public place which allows a more informal and personal atmosphere , while
- In Denmark (100 percent), Ireland (75 percent) and the United Kingdom (100 percent), the top choice was the phone interview – due to time and availability constraints – making it more difficult for the CEO’s personality to come through.
Here are four location-oriented tips to help you make the most of your CEO’s next media interviews:
- If possible, accommodate the reporter’s preference for the interview setting. If the reporter has no preference, use the location that helps the CEO to communicate her/his personality and/or can support key messages. For example, if the key focus is innovation, the interview may be conducted in the company’s R&D center.
- Whatever the setting, make sure that it is free of distractions and interruptions so the CEO can focus on the reporter’s needs. This includes turning off computers and mobile phones.
- Encourage the CEO to be a gracious host for the interview – arrive on-time (or early), well-prepared, make the reporter feel welcome and comfortable, and allow the reporter ample time to get the information needed.
- Get specific local logistical and cultural insight from a PR agency that knows the local market intimately. (PRGN has offices in 50 key markets around the world that are run by local PR experts.)
For more insights into how journalists around the world prepare for CEO interviews and how you can enhance interview outcomes, visit: (http://bit.ly/18DOK4t).
