The journalist happened to hear some information second-hand that was generated by your company, and it happens that this information could be incredibly useful to the article he is currently working on.

He calls your marketing/PR manager to get an update on the data and tells you that he needs the information by end-of-day. As soon as your marketing manager hangs up the phone, she is immediately set into motion, determined to make the most of this golden opportunity.

It is likely that she will quickly fire off an email or pick-up the phone to let her president know about the opportunity. For obvious reasons, these communiqués are usually brimming with excitement.

Everyone in your company from the president on down recognizes that favorable coverage in the is incredibly beneficial for your company. It may help communicate your company’s status as an industry leader (why else would the want your executive’s opinion) and could provide an opportunity to talk about how your company will continue to lead its market by achieving its goals for the coming year.

The opportunity to talk with an important journalist will not come along every day, so you need to take full advantage of this unique opportunity and be flexible regarding logistics challenges.

Before deciding what kind of messages need to be communicated, make sure you have the basic facts covered beyond the story deadline and a phone number to reach the journalist. For instance, do you know what the journalist is reporting on?

There is a long and varied list of potential questions that your company’s marketing or PR manager can ask a journalist who has requested information or an interview. However, among those questions, these ones below should be included in the checklist in order to ensure that your company is able to capitalize on its next big, 11th hour media opportunity.

First, above all else, get the story topic. This will help your spokesperson understand right away whether his/her own message agenda needs to be tabled, or whether it can be worked into the interview process.

Next, ask what other sources are being used for the story. The journalist doesn’t have to tell you, but in many cases will do so. This will help you understand whether any competitors may also appear in the article. The fewer competitors being considered, the better.

Also, if it is not possible to arrange an interview in the requested time (busy executives, after all, may not be able to field such a request on short notice), find out if the journalist would accept a written response to a set of questions instead. This is better than nothing.

In the minutes after learning about this 11th hour golden opportunity, your company spokesperson, most likely a senior officer, will want to begin reviewing key messages that could be communicated during the interview.

However, there is no better way to turn off a journalist than to behave as if you are uninformed about the journalist’s request and instead try and push your own agenda during an interview.

GIVE THE REPORTER WHAT HE WANTS
Sometimes, a reporter may not even need to interview your company’s spokesperson. Instead, he may instead need to have some facts verified. Be sensitive to the journalist’s needs. Don’t force an interview on the journalist if not necessary. And make sure your spokesperson doesn’t walk away with hurt feelings if he or she is not interviewed by communicating the big picture.

The bottom line is giving the journalist what he needs. In the process, your company will position itself as a reliable resource that the journalist will enjoy going back to in the future for any related opportunities.