Some of the best opportunities are lost when we don’t properly prepare for and follow up with the media that we engage with. I am not referring to emails or texts to media before and after the engagement, I’m referring to how we share and leverage our media appearances via social channels.. I have always thought that the actual media engagement is only 50% of the total process, there’s work to do before and after the event.

Your social media platforms play a crucial role and are the perfect  place to document your media success. The best platforms to showcase your successes  in my opinion, and only if you are an active participant on them, are LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. I say active participant, meaning they are platforms where you have a following, are known, regularly post and are part of the platform’s community.

First, let’s consider preparation for the media interview. Take a photo or screenshot a logo, announce to your followers that you will be in that particular media with dates and times. Make sure that you tag the media outlet as they appreciate the further promotion of the interview and also highlights them, particularly if it builds some interest in the topic.

It’s not completely natural for you to ask the journalist, the presenter, the producer of the media to do a selfie or get a picture taken. I used to be really self-conscious about this but now I am completely comfortable getting that perfect picture to share on social media, our website or show-reel. Funny, but true story, a couple of years I was having lunch with media legend Derryn Hinch and he said. “Nic, I don’t want to freak you out but I’d like to get a pic of you and I for my HinchAGram”. I loved that he had changed the name of Instagram to Hinchagram. This was the day I realised that it just isn’t the experts that need to raise profile, the media needs to do it just as much.

The perfect platform for presenting your pictures in the media is LinkedIn. It is the absolute lock when it comes to demonstrating authority in your area of expertise. It’s not just you saying I’m influential but also that the media sees my opinion and view as worthy. Don’t underestimate the value of a great photograph as it speaks more powerfully than your words ever can.  Sharing your media appearances on LinkedIn ensures people within your network, and more broadly will also see it.

Engaging with the media is 50% post and pre-production and 50% performance.  Make sure you keep that in mind with every engagement and make it part of your routine every time the media calls.

Nic Hayes is the Managing Director of Media Stable, host of communications podcast Brand Newsroom.