I was shaking my head while reading a news article about an organization that was going to have its kickoff press conference. This organization is made up of people from various backgrounds united for a single cause, and all of them were listed as speakers. Like press releases, press conferences should limit the number of people who are given a voice.
I know from experience that when multiple organizations are involved in an announcement, there’s the pressure to fit in quotations from all parties involved. A lot of times it’s done to appease all parties. However, that just makes the press release way too long, and none of the subsequent quotations after the first typically add much value to the announcement.
Similarly, there’s often a temptation to have a person from every organization speak at a press conference. Or sometimes, it’s multiple people from one organization speaking. Either way, I would never recommend more than 2-3 speakers.
The first one can provide an overview of the announcement from the (main) organization’s point of view, and the other 1-2 would provide subject matter expertise. Beyond that, the press conference will experience diminishing returns in terms of what value or new information the subsequent speakers add.
Here’s an example. A coalition of five organizations is formed to support a proposed bill. In the press conference, the de facto leader explains the merits of the bill and what it means to his/her organization. A representative from the second organization then speaks, citing benefits to their industry. The third, the fourth and the fifth all do the same. Now the media have heard essentially the same talking points five times.
As an alternative, the organization or organizations should offer additional people to the media after the press conference is done to avoid wasting everyone’s time (speakers included). The key is remembering that less is more–in other words, the more information you try to cram into a press release or press conference, the more likely it is that your key messages get buried.