2008 by admin.

The reporter is calling or e-mailing, or the news cameras are on and in your lobby. You are already prepared with a statement or information. But interviews can often get off-track and result in statements that do more harm than good. Do you know the three things you must NEVER say to a reporter?

“Off the record “– Take this out of your vocabulary – there is no such thing. If you don’t want something in print, don’t say it.

“No comment” – This only makes you and your company look bad. Consider responding to questions you do not want to comment on with a statement like this: “I’m not the best source for this information. You should speak to so-and-so.” Or “Once that information is available from the such-and-such agency, we can share it.”

Jargon and its first cousin, rhetoric – You may know what the M-Quat is, or the CAGR, but your audience won’t. In addition, any reporter worth his or her salt will read between the lines of a rhetoric-laced response and dig deeper, possibly causing you so much more discomfort. Stick to short, simple and specific answers.

–Amy Biemiller

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2008 by admin.

You may never know which of your e-mails will languish in someone’s spam mailbox. But you can decrease the risk by being more careful with the words you use in your e-mail subject line.

There are certain key ‘spam’ words that most filters will recognize in a subject line and automatically dump as junk. To prevent your e-mails from relegation to spam purgatory, make your subject line more actionable and specific. For example:

Instead of As per your request, detail what the e-mail is about (i.e. Information for the inventory report).

Instead of Confirmation, communicate specifics such as 2/15 meeting details, or San Antonio trip itinerary.

Instead of Read now or Important, drive home urgency with a needed action, as in Bring attached to Tues. meeting or Presentation input due Wednesday

–Amy Biemiller

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