Flag, Message, Repeat

Flagging follows a formula like the instructions on your shampoo bottle – lather, rinse, repeat. When conducting interviews, using a flag-message-repeat mantra can dramatically improve the control a source has over an interview, no matter how difficult the subject matter.

Like waving a flag to get attention, a flag signals to your audience and the reporter you are about to make a critical point. This tool empowers sources to take control of an interview and drive home the most important points.

Reporters use six basic question types as they conduct their interviews, and what we found in the development of the Predictive Interviewing Model is that these question types are asked in a predictable sequence. Knowing the sequence is like having a secret weapon against any accusatory or off-the-wall questions, but in order to capitalize on every opportunity in an interview, sources should use the flagging formula.

Like waving a flag to get attention, a flag signals to your audience and the reporter you are about to make a critical point. This tool empowers sources to take control of an interview and drive home the most important points.

How Flagging Works

Flagging signals to a reporter that the information you are about to share is important. Before responding fully to the question asked, a flag provides a preamble to ensure the message to come is tagged as important. Flagging helps you drive an interview and keep a reporter focused on your news, the way you want to see it appear on air or in print.

When Flagging Works

Use the flag technique when your response to a reporter’s question includes one of your key messages, or to demonstrate that the next message point is critical. For example, when answering a prickly question about a hot button topic, you might say:

“The most important thing for people to remember is…”

“The critical issue is…”

“The focus of the debate should be…”

Flagging is best used as the preamble to your first and final responses during an interview. It’s also a good technique to use during phone interviews. Without your physical presence and body language, it’s easy for the reporter to get distracted or lose interest. Flagging prompts people’s attention spans and re-focuses their minds on the moment.

Why Flagging Works

Simply put, flagging is the best way to signal to a reporter, “Listen up! I’m about to tell you exactly what I want you to know…” In broadcast editing, producers often listen for flags and use the sound bite that follows. It’s the best way to draw attention to the information you want to see on the news, and using the technique greatly increases the odds that your best sound bites are actually used in the story. It’s the equivalent of drawing a star or placing an exclamation point by your quote in a reporter’s notebook.

Flag-Building Skills

We actually use flagging without knowing it, so it’s a natural part of our language we can consciously improve. Practice the flag-message-repeat formula at an upcoming meeting. It’s almost guaranteed that half the people in the room will pick up their pens and start writing when they hear a flag. Seeing the reaction others have to the use of this technique can help make it a top-of-mind skill for use in a media interview.

Below are 10 great flagging examples to practice with before your next media interview:

• The most important fact for people to know is…
• The biggest issue in this debate is…
• The important thing to remember is…
• If there’s one piece of information I’d like you to walk away with today…
• Let me tell you what this announcement is about, in a nutshell…
• Let me summarize our announcement in three quick points…
• This is the bottom line…
• If you remember one thing about…
• What I’ve said today comes down to this…
• The best part about what I’m saying is…

Practice flagging on your spouse, kids, friends and pets. Use lines like these to sharpen your flag-planting skills:

• “I want to make dinner for one simple reason…”
• “Who’s a good dog…?”
• “Here’s why cleaning your room is smart…”
• “Borrowing the mower was fine, but here’s the big issue…”

Enjoy the practice, then use the same technique to prep and deliver well during your next interview.