99: Learn How to Create a Memorable Quote

Hey there. Welcome to the podcast. Well, it's mid September, but my recording schedule is still in late August, which means you are listening to a second episode. Rewind, but don't stop listening. The episode I chose is as relevant today as it was when it first aired in March 31st of this year. In Covid terms, that seems like a lifetime ago. But the importance of the skill that I talk about in this episode is just as relevant today. It's the ability to craft a memorable quote. Now, at this point, you are still likely watching a lot of cable news, reading local and national newspapers, or reading it online or in your hands. You're following social media as much as you were then as you are today. You are seeing and hearing a lot of quotes flowing fly by you. Some enrage you, some inspire you. Quotes are usually unforgettable when they're just okay. But you always remember the good ones and you always remember the very bad ones. So if you are developing a news release or a media statement, or if you have your hands in developing one, perhaps prepping for a speech or a live interview online, a solid quote will make all the difference in framing your announcement issue or emerging crisis. Take a listen to learn how to create a memorable quote. You know a notable quote as soon as you hear it, and how do you know it's right when you see it printed in a news story, quoted in a news clip, or going viral on social media? Or even better, a quote that lives on for the ages.

So first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

Isn't that quote more timely than ever today on the podcast how to create a Memorable Quote Bottom line up front. We are weeks into a global pandemic, and there are many heads of organizations and CEOs out there who are aiming to make their mark. You don't have to scroll too far on social media to determine which communication tactics produce a leader who will stand out. It's the quotable quote, the perfectly placed, tailored for Twitter, a wallop of words that sticks when it lands. Now it's the politicians and world leaders who have a better track record with memorable quotes over CEOs and other people in the business world. Because campaigns and politicians, they have their speechwriters and their communicators who are tasked with creating indelible language. The business world, those folks that job tends to fall into the corporate hands of communicators who get into corporate speak and. And it's just a lot easier to fall into it. So in this episode today, we are going to talk about how to create a memorable quote. Examples of these memorable quotes and why they work. But before I dive in, a quick media term tutorial. A quote is short for a quotation and that is from a text or speech. A sound bite is a short extract from a recorded audio interview or video interview. A message, as in a PR message, a key message, a talking point. Now, these are statements that support your argument or your side. A quote can be a soundbite, and a soundbite can be originated from a talking point. They can all work together. But in this day and age, especially in the age of social media, online media, digital media, quotes go across all platforms, all mediums. In other words, it's the statement that sticks. Now, how do we make it work? Let's get to the quick of a good quote. Now, overall quotes, they should convey humanity, passion and a point of view. And this goes for any quote, whether it's during the time of the COVID 19 or any other time. You always want to speak to the people, the person, the passion behind it. Your mission, your value statement, and then your point of view. Quotes must be clear. They have to be understandable the first time around. And they should be shorter, especially nowadays.

Why?

Because audiences now have a much shorter attention span. The same applies to your interviews. Just saying. If you're doing a television interview, radio podcast, the shorter the better. When it comes to your answers. Don't get lulled into a conversation. It's very difficult to pull out a quote if you are in the middle of a conversation. Podcasts, this happens a lot when you go into any type of interview. You want to make sure that you're going in armed with a good quote. So when it comes time to sit down, craft that ideal quote, you want to look for things that are memorable. These are the memorable phrases they contain maybe just a generic thought, but it's expressed in a way that has an unusual combinations of words or sounds just from ordinary sentences and stories. It's all about the semantics, but how you use the words to make it land. So for this episode, I used a guide. I went to the PR News Writer's Guidebook written by Pauline House. She's an associate professor at Kennesaw State University School of Communication and Media. And she provided tips that I saw across the board, some that I use myself, but I thought she pretty much covered everything that needs to be said about how to create a perfect quote. Number one, write like people talk. And not just highfalutin people. Real People, be conversational. Avoid trite filler language. If you can think of one speaker nowadays in the COVID 19 crisis landscape, who better than Governor Cuomo? Andrew Cuomo from New York. He nails this one in spades. He's tough talking. He's straight to the point. He looks in the camera and he's going to tell you exactly what he means. And he does it with memorable quotes. Now, as an aside, one of the reasons why Governor Cuomo, I think, is so successful in his press conferences is because he understands that he is creating a moment in time for the time that we're in. He's delivering news, and he delivers it almost daily. And his press conference is set for a place and time where we need social distancing, where we need answers, where we need straight answers. Governor Cuomo doesn't want to waste any time with fake news or misinformation. He wants to get to the point directly. He is very, very protective about his state of New York. And that is very clear. I think Governor Cuomo and his press office, they are rewriting the book the Playbook for how to nail a press conference. Now, if you were to watch Governor Cuomo's press conferences, you will notice that they are much different than any other press conference that you see. As I mentioned, he is rewriting how to do and how to conduct a very, very effective press conference. He deploys this new tactic. It's a split screen graphic. Now, we've certainly seen it before, but not in precisely this way. You'll see Governor Cuomo to the left of the screen. The camera rarely moves off of him, so he can constantly be directed, looking at the people, looking at the camera and speaking to them, because he knows his staffers know that part of his nonverbal, his tone, his voice, his look is all about the power and the power of his communication. To the right on the split screen, it's almost like watching a PowerPoint. You'll see a slide deck with bullet points that are laying out precisely what he's talking about. It's incredibly effective. And you don't need to live in New York and be a part of the New York media market to see these press conferences. They're on air. So that is the reason why President Cuomo is trending on Twitter. So what does it sound like when you get a real person talking? It sounds like this.

So I say, my friends, that we go out there today and we kick coronavirus ass. That's what I say. And we're going to save lives. And New York is going to thank you. God bless each and every one of you.

Next, to create a memorable quote, you want to use phrasing that is memorable and and helps create a picture in a person's mind. To wit, 1988, you had the vice presidential debate. The candidate for the Democrats, Senator Lloyd Benson, to the Republican, Senator Dan Quayle. Dan Quayle brought up the name of a previous popular president, John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States. And on a depressing side note, if you have Gen Z kids or junior staffers in your office a millenn, go ahead and ask them if they've ever heard of Lloyd Benson or Dan Quayle for that matter. Go ahead, go ask them. That will not make your day. So a memorable quote for people who are old enough to remember it came from this exchange.

I have as much experience in the Congress as Jack Kennedy did when he sought the presidency. I will be prepared to deal with the people in the Bush administration if that unfortunate event would ever occur.

Senator Benson.

Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy.

I knew Jack Kennedy.

Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.

It was the phrasing that made that quote so memorable. Next, providing meaningful insights and perspectives in a quote that increase the value of the quote and the likelihood it will be picked up by the press. It is okay to have an opinion, but you don't want to hype anything because that's counterproductive. Let's go to our coronavirus quote machine, Dr. Anthony Fauci. He's the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. And he, in this quote, is telling the House Oversight Committee that the number of coronavirus cases will continue to grow.

So I can say we will see more cases and things will get worse than they are right now. How much worse we'll get will depend on our ability to do two things. To contain the influx in people who are infected coming from the outside and the ability to contain and mitigate within our own country. Bottom line, it's going to get worse.

Now, staying with the good doctor, it's also important to avoid jargon, any technical or scientific terms that might need further explanation or definition. You want the listener and the reader to understand precisely what you're saying as soon as you say it. Here's an example.

If it's California and there you have the governor and the mayor discussing the Los Angeles mayor that it's going to be months. It's going to take months for them. And then you're hearing here in New York, Andrew Says the governor here says we're two or three weeks from seeing the worst crush at the hospitals. I mean, it seems that the timeline is getting extended farther out. Not that things are going better than expected anywhere.

What you've got to do, Chris, you've got to be realistic and you've got to understand that you don't make the timeline, the virus makes the timeline. So you've got to respond in what you see happen.

So Here we have Dr. Fauci taking to mass media to explain a complex virus while intercepting misinformation that is spreading as fast as the virus itself. Fauci also strikes a balance with quotation length. If you watch him in a long interview, and he does many sit down interviews that are long, he says enough to convey a complete thought, but he doesn't go on too much. Now, when it comes to your quotes, think along the lines of Goldilocks. You don't want to go too long, but you don't want to go too short, but you want to have it be just right for the purpose. In other words, for the purpose of getting your point across. Like I always say to my clients, get in and then get out. Next, include information that adds detail and depth to the story, but not just the basic facts that can be covered in the body of a press release or a story or further on in a speech. Now, I noticed this detail when my 18 year old daughter forced me to watch Pearl harbor with Ben Affleck. I don't even know how many times I've had to watch this movie. It's over three hours long. It was one of those guilty quarantine nights where I was, we started the movie at 10:00 at night. Now, as I was watching the movie again, I was reading a lot of trivia about the movie. And Jon Voight played the role of fdr and it turns out that he considers himself an expert in Franklin D. Roosevelt. So much so that he felt compelled to improve on this memorable speech in the movie Pearl Harbor. But I'll save your ears for that bad impression and I will give you the real deal. Here is just enough detail to make this very striking statement even more so.

Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.

It was the dates and the details that helped create that statement. A statement for infamy. Next, use a straightforward style when attributing a quote. Now listen, the verbs said and says provide a direct way to attribute a quote. But if you use attribution phrases such as according to or stated or commented, any type of that stilted writing, it's going to sound stilted if you speak that way. You want to be able to write a quote how you speak. Here's an example where he said it the right way and while I'm very.

Proud of what we've achieved together, I'm far more mindful of my own failings, knowing exactly what Lincoln meant when he said, I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go.

Next, consider the appropriate tense for the subject and the type of news story. So when you're referring to a completed action or referring to something that has already happened, use the past tense for a more timeless tone. The present tense works as well, and that's where stories come in. Stories are a great way to get noticed, to get your story noticed, to tell a story, to get to a point. But you're also using the appropriate tense for the subject matter. Here's a quote and a story from the director of the Ohio Department of Health, Dr. Amy Acton. Now she's another rising star and is in that orbit with other big names in the spotlight around COVID 19. Here, take a listen from a quote by Dr. Acton.

That's a story Ruby said. She's nine years old. She's at home with her little brother. I had a little brother growing up, she said. I'm happy you see a bright future for us. And I want to tell you Ruby, I see. Not only do I see a bright future for us, I see a bright right now for us.

Embedded in a story about nine year old Ruby is a great quote because not only did she see a bright future for us, she sees a bright future right now for us. She is yet another quote maker with a fan club of people calling for her to run for president. Next with quotes. Especially in the age of the call out culture where people want to bring you down, make sure your facts are real and right. No fake news. Check the stats, the facts, and proofread to avoid any grammar or punctuation errors. If it is a statement that is going to go out or go online, you don't want any typos. And finally, be sure to provide accurate names and spellings of anything that you're going to cite. Get your numbers right. However, here's a case where the math wasn't right, but this leader nowadays does no wrong.

FEMA is sending us 400 ventilators this is on the news this morning. We are sending 400 ventilators to New York. 400 ventilators. I need 30,000 ventilators. You want a pat on the back for sending 400 ventilators? What are we going to do with 400 ventilators when we need 30,000 ventilators? You're missing the magnitude of the problem, and the problem is defined by the magnitude.

I had to add that quote in there as well, because here's a fact that he got completely wrong. But I'm sure you've heard this quote from him because it was still a powerful quote, even though the people who reported on it noted that he got the facts wrong, the math wrong. The point was, right now, the last thing that you must remember, especially in the age of social media, your quotable quotes must get boiled down to a tweetable truth. 280 characters is all you're going to get. So when you are creating that quote to last a lifetime, be sure that you create a quote that will make it. In this time, the time of social media. 280 characters isn't a lot of real estate. And that's not just the letters. That's the space and the letters. So if you're creating any type of memorable quotes or banding quotes together, make sure you have one killer quote that will fit within the 280 characters. Thanks so much for listening to the podcast. Next week we'll be back with a new episode and it's a memorable one because it's my 100th episode. I am sharing new ideas, new offerings in a new format, and I can't wait to share it with all of you. Thanks again for listening. Bye for now.