ABOUT THIS EPISODE
From Emmy award-winning consumer reporter to TV host, Katrina Cravy has become a trusted and well-known name. Listen as she shares her networking secrets with you.
Besides being a Professional Speaker and Publicity Coach, she is also an author. Her book entitled, “On-Air – Insider Secrets to Attract the Media and Get Free Publicity” will make you think like the media and transform the way you market your business.
Katrina also loves engaging with an audience, almost as much as she loves her husband, their son, their two cats.
How did you get over your fear of public speaking?
· “I think everyone is afraid of public speaking and I’m no exception. In 6th grade I was valedictorian and I gave my first speech in front of my class and I was telling my mom I couldn’t do it and she whispered in my ear ‘If you don’t get up there I’m going to spank your butt in front of everyone!’ and I’m so glad she said that because that’s how I got over it.”
Is TV glamorous for women?
· “No, if you think about it, when I had my son I was breastfeeding at work and someone told me that cabbage leaves in your bra would stop any leakage. When I was anchoring the nightly news I had cabbage leaves in my bra and I was more nervous about losing my cabbage leaves than giving my nightly news.”
What’s the one thing that all businesses and non-profits should remember before contacting the media?
· “You’ve got to go through the so what test. So what that you’re having your 40th anniversary or a walk for charity. You need to think about the audience attraction for the viewer because that’s what the networks are looking for.”
Share with us one of your best networking stories
· “I really had to overcome a fear because I was invited to go to a book of lists party for the Milwaukee Business Journal and I really didn’t want to go. I ended up running into the editor of the paper at lunch and said ‘I don’t know if I can make it tonight.’ And he said, ‘You have to come!’ Thankfully I listened to him and I did come and right off the elevator I met someone from TEC which lead to three presentations with his groups.”
How do you stay in front of your network or community?
· “I think I always want to be of service to them so if I see something that I think, ‘Oh this is cool, I think so-and-so would like this’ I send it to them.”
What advice do you have for business professionals looking to grow their networks?
· “I would say to open it up to everything. When a company first starts, what you think you’re going to set out on is probably not what’s going to happen. You need to be able to shift.”
Digital networking or traditional networking?
· “I would say traditional. I have gotten more business face-to-face. Digital networking isn’t bad and it’s good to attract the media. If you want to get in touch with a reporter, follow them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter and that will give you insight into what type of stories they like.”
If you could go back 20 years, what would you tell yourself to do more or less of regarding your career?
· “I don’t know if we would ever really know. I guess, take chances which is what I’m doing right now.”
Who would you love to connect with and do you think you could do it within 6 degrees?
· “I always say that I would love to spend a day with Tina Fey because her and Amy Polar are such good comedy writers.”
What book are you reading right now?
· “I actually just got Patrick Lencioni’s ‘5 Signs of a Dysfunctional Team.’ I’ve also finished his ‘5 Temptations of a CEO’ which was really interesting.”
Any final words of advice for our listeners??
· “Be a good person, that’s really all you have to do. Just hold other people higher than yourself sometimes.”
