When it comes to interviews for your show or even calls that you take on a daily basis, never be afraid to cut them down. A caller is more valuable to your listeners the less they have to say… I know that sounds weird right? Let me break it down for you though, you’ll find it makes sense.
See your average talkbreak across the workday should come in at around 30-40 seconds. By the time you have set up the break with maintenance, launched into the thought of the break with the caller, it doesn’t leave much time for the hook. Whatever your caller does say is valuable in that moment though. What listeners do appreciate is the different voices filtered throughout your show. The moment there’s a new voice in the mix their attention is higher. It’s a point of difference in thier listening experience and creates a lean in moment.
Let’s look at a breakfast show. Your average length of a talkbreak should be around the 3 and a half minute mark (Especially if you’re a new team). We’ve all heard those calls on the radio where the caller gets on and tells a story that’s goes for about a minute and a half and they keep going round the same roundabout, the announcer does thier best but struggles to wind them up. When you’re pre-recorded it allows you time to cut the fat out of those calls that doesn’t need to be there.
While we’re on the subject of things ending up on the cutting room floor, so many times I’ve heard announcers throw to themselves in a break and I cringe every time. Why? Because lazy presenters think that will do when it comes to delivering their content. It’s the number one rule in radio or Podcasting Never throw from your voice to your voice It sounds weird and it’s just plain lazy.
I was listening to a pretty well renowned podcast the other day (who’s name I’m going to leave out of this article) and the host threw to herself to start an interview with a guest. I couldn’t believe it.
“Hi and welcome to my podcast I’m excited to bring you a guest today who has released several books and has even acted in the odd Hollywood movie Joanne bloggs joins me… Then you hear an odd pause and the host pick up again… “This week on the podcast it’s Joanne Bloggs, hello Joanne…”
Not only has the host thrown to herself, she’s actually redone her intro again. Instead of just setting up her intro and throwing to her guest’s first words. LAZY!
Editing is one of the best tools you can have when it comes to audio production. Take the time to learn it and become good at it as it will serve you well on those Radio/Podcast projects.
