Having a strong spokesperson can be an extremely powerful weapon in an organization’s communications arsenal, particularly in times of crisis. A spokesperson speaks on behalf of your organization and is generally preferred over a written statement or fact sheet — people relate better to people.
More and more in our present media-sensitive world, organizations are hiring formally-trained professionals to serve this function. While this definitely can be valuable in avoiding pit-falls and expertly navigating press challenges, in some cases, such a move can be perceived negatively or not as favorably as a spokesperson from within the organization. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach — its best to assess your brand and the specific situation, and come up with a tailored strategy. The company President or CEO, chairperson, comms lead or other individual within the company may need to serve as spokesperson, but how can you be sure you’ve chosen the right person to take on this role? There needs to be a rigorous selection process that involves looking out for the following characteristics:
- Knowledgeability
To be an effective spokesperson, one must have a broad knowledge of the organization and issue(s) at hand. While this knowledge won’t likely need to be incredibly deep, it’s important that your spokesperson has a clear understanding of issues, processes and practices in order to comfortably and effectively convey important information to external audiences in a way they can readily understand.
- Credibility
Regardless of whether your spokesperson search is geared towards crisis situations, campaigns, or paid endorsements, you need to make sure their credibility is intact. Like an unreliable witness on the stand, having an individual with a shoddy history speak for your organization can hurt your case.
- Authenticity
Your spokesperson should never appear as though they’re simply playing a part. It’s important to come across as genuine and not as a paid actor.
- Non-egotistical team player
An effective spokesperson will be willing and ready to take direction. This person is hired to speak on behalf of many and this is a fact you want to be sure they understand. They have to be open to constructive criticism, responsive to suggestions and most importantly, willing and able to stay on message. It’s not uncommon to come across spokespersons that choose to ditch agreed-upon key messages in favor of their preferred messages. Thus, it’s important to avoid choosing egocentric people as spokespersons.
- Kindness
This one is often underestimated but when dealing with the media, it’s highly important that a spokesperson is able to understand the value of relationship-building. While it’s definitely important to recognize that reporters are not your friends, decency and kindness in place of rudeness can go a long way towards receiving favorable coverage.
- Artful ability to ‘bridge’
What do you do when a conversation with the media is veering towards a direction that you’re not so comfortable with? You need to take control in bringing the conversation back to where you want it. That’s called bridging. Being able to masterfully employ phrases like ‘You know, I’m not sure about that. However, what I can tell you is…’ or ‘The heart of the matter really is…’ can help avoid getting trapped into saying something you didn’t mean to say.
- Readily available
This one might seem like a no-brainer but can be easily overlooked. You need a spokesperson who can be reached at all times and is able to work with your schedule.
CONTROL, by Fiayo. 