interviewed by Nine Media’s Karen Attwood Picture by Andrew Parsons / i-Images
Rolling news channels, documentaries, magazines and trade titles are looking for experts every single day. Whether they need comment on Brexit or rising obesity rates or insight into the latest fashion trend for men, everywhere you look in the media there are commentators voicing their opinion.
Whether your specialist subject is sport, business, health and beauty, politics, sex or oil and gas, there will be journalists looking for your expertise right now. And it’s not as hard as you may think to become the go-to spokesperson on your given topic.
Here are some ways you can make the media find you and ensure they invite you back again and again
Be finable on Twitter
Make sure your LinkedIn profile is up to date with your area of expertise, but bear in mind that many journalists are looking for their experts on Twitter. Twitter is a great place to become known as a thought leader in your sector and there will be subject chats you can get involved in. But even if you can’t bear the thought of spending time tweeting, just by having a profile stating your expertise, with the email of your press team, it’s enough to make you findable as an expert.
Write comment pieces
Almost every print publication will have a section for opinion pieces and all editors will start – whether on monthly weekly or daily deadlines – with blank pages to fill. If you can offer a reactive expert opinion on that day or week’s breaking news story and can be insightful without weighing the piece down with jargon, this can be an ideal forum for you to showcase your knowledge while getting your name and organisation in the media.
Remember you have something unique to offer
Broadcasters generally have experts on for two reasons. You may have published a report and will be asked on to discuss this. However, you are much more likely to be asked on to comment on a story that you have no part in but can provide expert analysis, comment and background information. There is nothing to fear from this kind of interview. You are not there like a politician to be grilled and to justify but to showcase your expertise and provide the viewer or listener with some colour and insight. You are the experts after all!
Nine Media specialises in running training courses for academics and analysts and experts from all kinds of industries. Get in touch if you’d like some information on how we can get your professionals media-ready.
