ALLOW ME TO BE BRIEF… Greg Diamond There’s nothing quite like listening to an on-air performer talk until something happens in the break… or doesn’t happen, at which point, the bit simply continues on indefinitely.
In conversations with announcers I hear many of the same reasons for this. Usually it has something to do with the belief that they are at their best when being spontaneous. My favourite reason though, is that, “all my friends love it.” The fact is this is yet another indication of lack of confidence, which is at the root of almost all performance-based issues. In this case, it is the lack of confidence to get to the point, say it once, and then leave it with the listeners to do with as they wish. Talking, seemingly without end, indicates the jock is grasping and is unsure of where he is going in the break and how he should get there. You may receive vehement denials to this by air talent, but this is the truth, whether they accept it or not. By the way, you will get the biggest argument from those who are most unsure of themselves. They are the easiest to spot, too, as they will be the most overtly egotistical. That in itself is the biggest indicator of a lack of true, deep-rooted, quiet confidence
There are reasons why PD’s constantly tell jocks to “Keep it tight… keep it bright.” Announcers may loathe that aside but it is the most effective way to achieve listener retention.
As I have written on numerous occasions, the listener does not use the medium in a way we often believe. Radio is a utility that exists in the background. In fact, the most deliberation the average listener ever gives to the radio is whether he or she likes the song or not. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that and it should not be denied nor fought, but rather embraced and allowed. When accepted as truth, this fundamental premise is capable of helping us mould the way we communicate to be as effective as possible in our content and performance.
If the listener isn’t hanging on our every word, the onus is on the announcer to make sure the words used have relevance and will generate retention. The easiest way to perform this is by first hooking the listener with something that triggers the attention. I often speak with news people about the “Effect-Cause” (not “Cause-Effect”) style of story construction. The “Effect” is what has happened. This is normally a strong, concise headline. Such a line grabs the listener and then allows for much higher retention with the supporting “Cause” sentence that provides the background or “why” information. The same method works well when applied to an announcer’s content. The style and execution will be much different, but the construction is similar.
Another important thing to remember is that this “trigger” should be performed near the start of the break. The most opportune time to “pull the trigger” is just following the surveillance (Calls, Positioning Statement, Backsell, etc.) information. Often, though, I hear long drawn-out set-ups for bits that could possibly grab the listener’s attention, but unfortunately, by the time they actually reach the bit, the opportunity is lost as most of the audience has tuned out mentally. Again, this is a natural conclusion to the way in which the medium is consumed.
Jocks that talk until something does or doesn’t happen must understand that while they may get some positive response to lengthy, rambling content, they are in fact falling into another great trap of our medium – listening to the vocal minority.
Once the jock buys into the fact that these people are in no way representative of most of the audience, they can then begin to tailor their execution to the other, more important segment of listeners – the silent majority. The announcer staff should not be singled out here, however, since PD’s, MD’s and the rest of the staff often falls into the same trap. In short, gear what you do to the silent majority as they are the ones who are heard from when the ratings come out – i.e. the ones that keep us employed.
Now, don’t let it be said I’m preaching a certain time limit on a break – nothing could be further from the truth. A break is as long as it is… no more and no less. In other words, if the performer is being relevant, he or she needs to play the break out in full regardless of length. As long as the relevancy factor remains, so will the retention. When PD’s speak of “compelling content”, this is what they really mean.
Okay, so how do we go about this? There’s only one way and that’s through the grunt work performed before entering the control room – the prep!
When an announcer prepares his/her show, the goal is to find and use as much relevant material as possible. If the listener is not giving full attention to the radio, then the content must have the relevancy necessary to “hook” the ear of the listener, thus gaining greater retention. Local content works best for this purpose. Local, perishable prep is the most effective of all. In fact, this type of content is so relevant, that it can suffer a degree of “verbal diarrhea” in its presentation and still gain a high level of retention with the listener.
ByrnesMedia often conducts Talent Seminars where we unlock the secrets of finding and using such content and provide announcers with ways to present it that is both effective and entertaining. Please feel free to contact our office and book your own seminar (905) 332-1331.
Allow me to be brief… now if I could only do that with my writing. |