Page 6
page 1 | page 2 | page 3 | page 4 | page 5 | page 6 page 7 | page 8 | table of contents | references | test Building a Verbal Bridge In any interview - but especially if the interview is live It's important to be able to "bridge" back to your message point if you're sidetracked. If needed, buy yourself a few seconds by stating a "mantra" such as "Nurses care about the health of all our patients." Or simply answer the question you wish you had been asked! You'd be surprised how often interviewees do just this! Watch and listen to interviews, and you'll see that often the interviewee's answer doesn't "follow" the question, and the reporter will simply move the interview along from the answer given instead of backtracking to his or her original question. You also can bridge back to your message point with a lead-in statement like, "I want to keep focused on the patient here." Message Points and Soundbites From a media relations perspective, the best message points are ones that couple the issue you want to raise with the action step you want your audience to take. An example is: "Pain can be managed. Speak up for yourself or your loved one. Ask for a registered nurse and tell him or her how you're feeling. Don't suffer in silence." There is no "magic number" of message points to deliver in an interview, but approach the interview knowing what you feel you must convey and want the audience to remember. Paradoxically, the more message points you try to convey, the more muddled and "pointless" your interview may seem. Three, two -- or even "just" one -- message point(s) are sufficient for all but the longest, most in-depth interviews. Remember that your interview will likely be edited, unless it is live. You want your key message point to stand out, to reach the audience, so keep that point as your focus and don't hesitate to express it more than once. Practice beforehand with a colleague with a "mock interview." Can the other RN discern your message point and action step when you respond to the interview question? One of the best ways to deliver a message memorably is to use a soundbite. A soundbite is simply a brief and memorable statement of your message. Compare the following: (1.) "Reducing the RN-to-patient ratio adversely impacts on patient safety and quality care." (2.) "When you cut nurses, patients bleed." Which one sticks in your mind, is livelier? Which is more likely to be picked up by a reporter or editor and used in a story? There is no magic length for a soundbite. However, experienced interviewees often speak of the "seven-second rule." Don't necessarily take out a stopwatch, but do keep your soundbite short. Message points and soundbites should be stand-alone statements. Beginning your statement with, "Yes," "No," "But," or "Well," and the like can reduce your message's chances of being used. Because that initial word may have to be edited out, a producer may simply choose not to use the statement that follows. The same holds true for starting a statement with "Today," "This morning," or "Yesterday." Suppose your interview is broadcast tomorrow or the next day? Preparing and using stand-alone statements, without extraneous lead-ins, will increase your message's likelihood of "surviving" to reach the audience.
previous: The Inside Scoop on Reporters next: Panel Discussions