How to Select Media-Friendly Spokespeople

The success of a brand-supportive awareness/educational campaign can often lie in the spokesperson. An awareness campaign without hard, unique news will require a strong spokesperson who is not only recognizable but who can offer usable tips/messages that can tie in to the campaign as well as topical news. Here are some tips for choosing doctors and celebrities as spokespeople for upcoming campaigns.

When considering doctors:  A highly recognizable spokesperson resonates better with media, even if the spokesperson is a physician. For national as well as local, morning show producers will not book a spokesdoctor who lacks prior television experience. Having media experience is critical, particularly for live broadcast programs, because producers want to see how a spokesperson will handle the pressure of an un-edited interview format. Some national outlets even require television doctors. Additionally, the doctors must be highly visible/an expert in his/her field. For example, if pitching a study, they should be the lead investigator; if pitching a physician, they should be a pillar in the community and affiliated with a top-tier university/medical program. If you are using a “women’s health expert” or “parenting expert,” they need to be viewed as the leading expert – the author of the best selling parenting book, etc.

When considering celebrities: A celebrity spokesperson for a national campaign must first and foremost be current – they will be viewed as relevant and therefore bookable with national media if they have a current project that they can discuss (have a sitcom/show/movie/album coming out within a reasonable timeframe of the campaign). If they are current, they MUST be willing to discuss their current projects. If the celebrity is not current, they should either be A-list or beloved among key national outlets the client is hoping to reach. Additionally, national outlets are increasingly asking that celebrities they book be willing to discuss news of the day or current hot topics within the entertainment industry.

In addition, experts for breaking news…

Producers are always looking for experts who can comment on breaking news. Any way that your spokesperson can be on-hand to discuss news of the day or a big news story that breaks, we will be viewed as a tremendous value-add to the reporter/outlet and can help establish C&W as a resource for reporters. When offering an expert for breaking news, sometimes the spokesperson is able to communicate the campaign messages, when appropriate and if a perfect fit, but other times, offering experts for breaking news is an exercise in relationship-building with influential outlets. It is critical, however, that if we offer an expert to comment that we can ultimately deliver.