It’s no surprise that the most powerful messages are those that are personal, evoke emotion and demonstrate impact. Sometimes it can be a challenge to add that personal touch at a press conference, which often tends to feel overly official. Being the center of attention at the podium and in front of lights and cameras can be very intimidating for someone who is about to share his/her own personal story. Plus, you run the risk of their story going off-script. Awkward.
ECPR has the solution. Video. Pre-producing a brief video that complements a press conference is not only effective, but also entertaining, and it adds another element of sophistication to the presentation.
ECPR was proud to announce the opening of the new Heart Hospital of Austin at St. David’s Round Rock last month. People from the medical community, as well as the Williamson County community, were there to check out St. David’s HealthCare’s latest service line.
The president and CEO of St. David’s HealthCare took to the podium, along with the CEO of St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center, two partnering doctors and Round Rock’s mayor. But we were missing a voice, perhaps the most important voice of all—the patient. That’s when a short video was introduced.
By implementing a video, the patient’s complex heart condition, her surgery, and her extensive recovery and rehabilitation were all depicted clearly and concisely in just two minutes. Plus, there’s no mistaking the smile on the patient’s face after her open-heart surgery experience—which is exactly the message we wanted our client to convey.
The patient featured in the video was recognized at the press conference, and she was willing and prepared to talk with media.
Another advantage to pre-producing a video for your press conference: you have video and an interview readily available to hand over to the TV stations. After all, earning news coverage is the purpose of a press conference. Let’s make it easy for the news crews to cover the event, and let’s make an otherwise bland press conference a compelling event for participants to attend!
Watch the video that was incorporated into the press conference at Heart Hospital of Austin at St. David’s Round Rock below:
[youtube-embed id=qyEUBye8BDU]
-Keri Bellacosa
Video Strategist
