The Media Coach

Hi John,

We took a few days off last week to visit Krakow in Poland. It was a remarkable experience, being poignant, fascinating and somewhat fun too.

The poignant aspect came from our trip to Auschwitz and Auschwitz-Birkenau, two of the camps where Nazis killed hundreds of thousands of Jews eighty years ago. It was a tough place to visit, and a place where very few people spoke, as we tried to take in the horror of it all. I think anyone who has the chance to see it should go, to help ensure that such a thing never happens again.

The fascinating part was staying in the Jewish area of Krakow, not least visiting a small restaurant and bar that used to be three shops - a tailor's, a carpenter's and a general store. We ate and drank well, and we were entertained by a wonderful pair of musicians. The surprise was the Passover slivovitz plum vodka that I ordered to end the meal, not realising it was 70% alcohol. It did go down a treat though!

As for the fun - well, the sun shone and we met some wonderful people!

I had to say goodbye to my driving licence this week.

No, I haven't given up driving, it's just that it was an old paper licence and was in need of replacement. Also, I am about to reach the age where I have to renew my licence every three years.

I applied online for a new licence, and then nervously cut up my old licence and sent it back to the DVLA. My expectation was that it would be several weeks before a new licence appeared.

To my amazement, it turned up three days later. The only downside is that it has my passport photo on it, so I now have to look grim and bored whenever I use it for ID.

Thinking of working with me as your speaking coach? Here's what someone I've worked with, Andy Lopata, says.

"Alan has worked with me on a number of occasions, helping me to develop and finesse major presentations. He helps me to organise my ideas, develop the right stories and, most importantly, challenges me to ensure that every part of the talk is relevant, impactful and on point.

Most recently Alan coached me through my talk for the Global Speakers Summit - a keynote to over 200 leading speakers from around the world. Not only did he help me to craft and refine the talk, he also gave me the confidence I needed that the talk I had developed was ready to deliver to such a discerning audience. And it landed, with a standing ovation and overwhelmingly positive feedback both at the conference and in the weeks that followed.

It's essential for every speaker, however experienced they may be, to have an 'Alan' in their corner - or if possible, go for the original!"

If you'd like to speak at the highest level, like Andy let's have a chat.

My coaching programme still has a couple of places open

In a heart-warming story reminiscent of the famous Cool Running's Jamaican Bobsled team, The Reggae Warriors, Jamaica’s National Rugby team have become the first ever Caribbean country to make it to the Rugby League World Cup Finals.

What could be better to celebrate this momentous achievement than a song written and performed by British-Jamaican reggae musician, television personality, celebrity chef, author, and businessman Levi Roots and featuring the wonderful Cara Crosby-Irons.

Levi wrote the song to inspire the Jamaican Rugby league team after they did the unthinkable and qualified for this year’s World Cup. He is also sponsoring the team and acting as an ambassador for them as they prepared for the games this month.

I spoke to Levi about his involvement with the team, as you can hear in the Media Coach Radio Show.

And of course, you can hear Levi's fantastic song for the Jamaican team too.

The MediaMug is that well-known self-publicist and mangler of Queen songs, Kanye West.

Mr West, or "Ye" as he likes to be known currently, has been dropped like a hot potato by many of his sponsors for making anti-semitic remarks on social media.

As well as losing the support of Adidas and Skechers, investment bank JP Morgan and fashion house Balenciaga have parted ways with the rapper. He has also been dropped by his talent agency.

Also this week, Madame Tussauds in London removed its wax figure of Ye. It said the figure had been "retired from the attraction floor to our archive. Each profile earns their place at Madame Tussauds London and we listen to our guests and the public on who they expect to see at the attraction".

He has still not apologised for his comment about Jewish people.

How quickly a reputation can be tarnished.

And lest we forget...

When you deliver a speech, the audience makes a very quick decision about whether you are worth listening to.

They can make that decision in just a few seconds, which is why it is so important to get to the point of your speech as quickly as possible. Of course, you will probably have been provided with an introduction that promises a valuable message, but you still have to prove that you can deliver on that promise.

So your opening words should not be about how glad you are to be here, or any suggestion that you aren't right across your topic. And please, don't ever, ever start by telling a joke.

Your opening line should be carefully crafted to do several things:



If you can't get to the point in the first fifteen seconds, many people in the audience will turn to their phones instead.

Media interviews are designed to create a level of conflict. It may be through challenging questions from the interviewer, or a lively debate with another guest who takes an opposing view to you.

There is one golden rule. Never criticise your opponent or competitors. Instead, always focus on your own benefits.

It's not about them. It's about you. That is why you are there - to tell people what your point of view is, and how that is of benefit to viewers or listeners.

A classic question is "How do you think your competitors fail?". Don't fall for that one. Either ignore the premise in the question, or say "You'll have to ask them" and then go on to list the positive aspects of your business.

Here's another: "Which of your competitors do you most fear?" Again, don''t take the bait. Your response should be something like "We don't fear anyone, instead, we are focused on providing the best service for our customers"

And if you find yourself in a debate with people who just want to criticise you or your business, never respond in kind. Never criticise what they do. Instead, point out where their criticism is misplaced, and go back to your positive features.

Don't ever let it be about them.

Alas, some people's social media feeds are simply broadcasts. Their posts may be automated, or posted by someone else on their behalf. They never respond to comments, questions or criticism.

That's a guaranteed way to lose followers. If people think you aren't engaging with them in any way, but just posting marketing messages, they will lose interest.

Of course, it's not possible to respond to every comment on social media, and you don't have enough time to do so. However, it's not only possible but desirable to engage in debate with some comments, as many others will see the debate taking place.

Sometimes a simple thank you is enough. If someone asks a question, providing a short answer isn't difficult. If someone challenges you, then you should be able to respond to them respectfully.

The only time when I suggest a comment is not appropriate is when someone delivers a crude insult. That's what the delete button is for.

Someone contacted me and said "Why don't you include one of those work fail videos? OK, here you go...