Ep. 81: Make The Media Want You - Lisa Brandt

Journeys with the No Schedule Man

Can you step out of your own story long enough to see yourself from an outside perspective? Are you able to honestly and objectively consider yourself and your activities from someone else’s viewpoint, and then ask and answer the question: Why would they care?

This week, we’re joined by Lisa Brandt, who describes herself on her website as "An experienced author, reliable writer-for-hire, long-time broadcaster and versatile voice-artist."

At the time of this recording, she has just released her latest book, “Make the Media Want You.” It's her fifth turn as an author, with some of her other more recent books including “My Sepsis Story” and “The Naked Truth.”

Lisa is presently the morning show co-anchor at News Talks 1290 CJBK radio in London, Ontario, the most recent stop in a distinguished broadcasting and journalism career (she tells much more of the story of her background when she joined me a couple of years ago, in Episode 6: "Balancing Multiple Creative Passions”).

I've read “Make the Media Want You” and I loved it. Its principles truly speak to the challenges that come up in the work I do with small businesses, non-profit organizations and community groups, particularly as it relates to marketing and communication.

While this episode is very much a conversation, Lisa's part of it is loaded with valuable insight on what to do, and what not to do,if you are looking to reach out to members of the media in hopes of securing more exposure for whatever it is that you're working on.

Just a sample of some of the areas where Brandt suggests people often misstep include:

• Making it easy for the person you're asking to help you.
• The basic courtesy of getting names correct.
• Being aware of your own "industry jargon."
• Thinking things through from the listener, viewer or reader's perspective.
• Having an interesting story to share as opposed to just more "dates and locations" to toss on the pile.

If you're looking to connect with members of the media or just do a better job of effectively communicating in general, there are all kinds of key tidbits and takeaways in this discussion that will help you!