How To Communicate With The Financial Media- Bluewood’s Top Tips

Learning how to communicate with the financial media can seem like walking through a minefield, especially if you are new to this area, or if it has been a while since you have had to deal with the financial media or you have had a negative experience with the financial media in the past.

 

 

Handling the financial communications on behalf of your organisation requires a considered approach, and being able to clearly communicate financial knowledge and understanding is paramount. A good communications strategy will help build trust and credibility, as well as boost a company’s reputation to increase potential interest from investors.

We understand how challenging this area of media relations can be, so our financial training team has collated these top tips for communicating effectively with the financial media:

Top Tips for Communicating with the Financial Media

1- Know the numbers – unsurprisingly the financial and business media will have more of a focus on this area, so you need to make sure you can answer the questions.

2- Remember the audience – with this platform it’s likely that you are communicating to shareholders, clients or similar stakeholders – make sure you tailor your messages accordingly.

3- Beware of jargon – the journalist and audience are likely to be more used to financial or industry jargon but if in doubt, spell out what you mean in simple terms.

4- Packaging – unless it’s well put together with newsworthy messages and evidence to back them up, your story probably won’t make the cut.

5- Contacts – carry out research (and/or talk to PR advisors) to find out which specific journalists cover your market – a blanket approach rarely works with the media.

6- Relationships – they take time to build, but a journalist who knows you is far more likely to pick up the phone when you have a story.

7- Be sympathetic – the journalists are under pressure and under-resourced – by helping them, you will be helping yourself.

8- Opportunity – the interview is as much yours as it is the journalist’s – don’t just answer the questions, make sure you, and your brand, get something out of it too.

9- Learn from others – assess how other spokespeople manage and answer questions in interviews – do they look in control and do they get their message across?

10- Competition – don’t forget how many other potential news sources you are up against, you may have to work hard to get heard but keep assessing your performance and improving your skills and you’ll see progress.

11- Practice– make sure you have a dress rehearsal, either in training or with colleagues, before an interview; this will help your argument flow and will give you confidence.

Next Steps:

Now it’s over to you to make sure you are ready to face the financial media by preparing and practicing using our top tips.

If you would like more help and guidance in this area or you have a team who may benefit from this training, we offer Financial Media Training courses which are tailored around you and the specific financial and business media you want to connect with, whether it’s trades, nationals or TV and radio. The training can be run for those who are new to media relations or those who are keen to brush up their skills or even practice new key messages.

If you have any questions, or would like to find out more about our financial media training courses get in touch now on 0845 230 2601 or email info@bluewoodtraining.co.uk.

Written by Will Edwards – www.bluewoodtraining.com

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