How To Shake Hands On The Air

When you think about it, many air personalities are rude. Some radio stations are, too.

We put some much time and effort into brevity. We rush into content to get off to a quick start. And when we reach a high point, we suddenly bail on the break. Those are important principles. But not if it comes at the expense of being warm, friendly human beings. There's an art in knowing how to shake hands on the air. And saying goodbye.

It's simply good manners. You'd never allow children to walk up to a friend and immediately punch them. Or interrupt a group of people in a conversation by loudly and rudely butting in.

But radio stations do it all the time.

What It Means To Shake Hands On The Air

Imagine you're a party. You walk up to a group of people engaged in conversation and interrupt by launching a story by saying:

"Guys drive me crazy; because they never listen."

Okay. That's a pretty strong hook. But it's out of context and makes no sense to those who were having a different conversation.

Then you proceed to tell a personal story without stopping to gauge their reaction. You just want to make sure you develop the topic and move on.

But what has happened? You've disturbed their mood by inserting your personality into their inner circle. They're overwhelmed. It's like walking up to the group and punching them in the face.

You didn't shake hands to enter the conversation. Now, you're thinking about the seven-second challenge. That's the fact that we have a very short period of time to gain attention or it will be lost.

It's true that it's important to get attention immediately or risk losing it. But we're sacrificing human connection by rushing into content.

When launching a break, imagine the audience in an active conversation. They may be singing along with a song or interested in the newscast that was on just before. Or, they could be going over their kid's homework on the way to school.

When you turn on the microphone, you're inserting personality into their world, just as if coming upon a group of people at a party.

PPM Is Making Us Rude

Radio's overall reaction to the ratings system is part of the problem. The popular PPM programming philosophy is to remove everything that doesn't have to be there. We make it efficient, but it's no longer human.

We're PPMing personality to death. Blurting out content isn't being tight or focused. Being tight is about not wasting time or boring the listener. It's not about getting it on and gone as fast as possible. Those short spurts of interruptive talk is rude.

Ending The Story and Walking Away

The other end of the break is also a problem. Talent is so focused on taking the first exit, they often miss great moments. And they leave the audience wondering why they stopped talking and walked away. You still need to shake hands on the air when you say goodbye at the end of the break. It's polite.

I hear so many breaks that end on a high point, but leave the story unfinished. That's fine if the content is crafted into a story arc and is being teased to the next break. But it's not about getting out on the first exit. It's getting out on the best exit.

It's like telling a story, making them laugh, then turning and leaving the room.

Programmer Matt Cleveland at Bell Media's cluster in Fredricton, New Brunswick says,

"Getting out on the first high point is the new talk up the intro of the song and nail the post. It doesn't matter. It is celebrated only by the jock on the air. It's like Seinfeld's George Costanza walking out after delivering a good line."

Get out at the right time, and use it to build momentum. Make that group of people beg you to stay and tell more stories. If the audience is engaged, take advantage of that peak to build forward momentum on the show.

High Point/Brand It/Tease Forward

Here's an effective technique to apply. Hit the high point, brand the show/station and then tease more content coming up.

This technique sounds great on the air and is polite to listeners. It's a natural way to end the story and excuse yourself from the conversation. And, it allows a personality to promote an upcoming segment at the right moment.

Conclusion

Being tight, focused and efficient are great disciplines for personalities. But don't be so focused on short that you lose personal connection. Think about ways you can shake hands on the air.

As an air talent, try avoid punching listeners in the face and walking away without saying goodbye.