PRESS OFFICE TRAINING
Live, in-person or online training | CPD accredited
The relationship between journalists and press officers is critical - yet very often what a press team wants from a promoted story and what a journalist is looking for are two very different things.
Mentor’s Press Officer Training is designed to bridge that gap, giving press teams the skills, insight and confidence to work effectively with the media, in good times and during periods of pressure.
WHAT WILL YOU LEARN?
Using Mentor’s tried-and-tested coaching tips and easily digestible techniques, we demonstrate what news looks like from the journalist’s perspective and how to create stories that genuinely whet their appetite.
Workshops can be delivered as open group courses or tailored specifically to your organisation and objectives.
This is a practical, skills-based course, focused on how the media really works and how press officers can operate confidently and strategically within it.
You will learn how to:
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Understand what makes a journalist ‘tick’
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Identify what is and isn’t a news story
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Write press releases that grab a journalist’s attention
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Use digital tools to promote stories effectively
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Contact journalists and newsrooms and know when to follow up and when not to
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Navigate the news cycle and time outreach correctly
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Triage incoming media enquiries, including handling media calls in a crisis
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Distinguish between press, broadcast and converged interviews
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Understand the difference between soundbite interviews and live interviews
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Use messaging, bridging and impactful language
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Identify and prepare the right spokespeople in calm periods and in a crisis
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Coach representatives to stay in control and avoid common journalist “bear traps”
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Set up, manage and rehearse for a press conference
Training is offered live and in person or via e-learning through video conferencing, allowing flexibility around time, location and team size.
When working with the media, preparation makes all the difference.
WHO IS IT AIMED AT?
This course is ideal for:
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Junior to mid-level press officers
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Media relations managers
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Press teams looking to build CPD points across the year
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Press officers needing to up-skill for crisis communications
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Teams dealing with sensitive or emerging issues requiring careful press handling
Get in touch to discuss a Press Officer Training course tailored to your team, your challenges and your CPD requirements.
Strategic Media Training
Great trainers, highly engaging. I definitely feel better equipped for handling these sort of situations in the future. Definitely worth the investment and I would say it is essential for anyone in a role that may be asked to represent the force in the media. Appreciating the transferable skills is an added extra.
Chief Superintendent, Sussex Police
Dave and Rachel recently ran a strategic media training session with our senior exec team at Fairhive and it’s always a pleasure when we work with them. They are professional trainers with a dedication to helping individuals. Throughout the session they demonstrated a deep knowledge of strategic media providing an individualised training session with both local and national examples. They were able to keep the group engaged and positive and have the ability to adapt to the needs of each participant; providing constructive feedback during the recording element of the training.
Katie Ayala, Fairhive Housing, Aylesbury
An afternoon doing Media training with Dave Mason from Mentor was pure gold for me. It was fun, challenging and full of journalistic and business insight. Dave is a seasoned professional whose understanding of print, broadcast and social media is hard to fault. His real skill is to help you articulate your own story and ensure that you enter any media interview on the front foot, with an arsenal of tactics to help you. I can’t recommend him highly enough.
Professor Tansy Jessop, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Education, University of Bristol
Thanks for the engaging and knowledgeable session. It was great for our senior team to have the opportunity to practice and gain feedback in a real studio setting that the Mentor Media Training team made feel very relaxed. We look forward to putting it into practice.
Jo Gillow, Head of Marketing, Bath Building Society
Crisis Training
Thank you so much for the training yesterday. It was the perfect combination of insight and practical application, brought to life through the experience, knowledge and the stories yourself and Chris shared. We all enjoyed the day and took so much from it: definitely one of the best training sessions I’ve been on.
Juliet Allister, Head of Brand and Sustainability, Cornish Mutual
Thanks to Mentor for a brilliant day of training around crisis comms. It’s amazing how comfortable you can get in front of the camera if you just follow the techniques! Really worthwhile business continuity preparation for the team.
Gemma White, Woodbridge School
Presentation
Hugely informative. Getting a ‘magic formula’ for structuring a presentation and targeting the audience was most useful. Relaxed and professional tutoring.
Jon Buck, First Vice President, ProLogis
Strategic Communication – AI in Comms Workshop
The communications team really enjoyed it and found it quite inspiring. Appreciate your time and dedication to making the session useful to us as a University. It really hit the points we wanted to.
