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Radio Interviewing: 5 Professional Secrets to Make Your Radio Interview a Classic
Copyright © 2002 - 2010 by Susan Harrow. All rights reserved.
1. Personalize your presentation.
Listen to the host for cues as to how he addresses his
audience. He may tell you about the weather, mention what
has happened in their town, allude to a recent guest or
refer to a past show.
When you link your information to what is personal and
relevant to your audience they will connect with you as one
of them. While this is a more subtle way to relate to your
host and audience, it often makes the difference between
having people feel like you understand them or not.
2. Create vivid word pictures using all the senses.
The Dean of the Graduate School of Journalism, University of
California, Berkeley and Chinese scholar Orville Schell told
this resonant story on the radio. *In 1926 when a protest
against Japan reached the gate of Heavenly Peace the War
Lord then in power fired in the crowd killing 50 people,
wounding 100 and the square was bathed in blood. China's
most famous writer Lu Hsun said a striking line: 'Lies
written in ink will never disguise truth written in blood.*
In less than 25 seconds Schell has given you a picture of a
political climate visually, auditorally and emotionally.
3. Project your image through your voice.
*On the radio one is just a voice, the idea of a human
presence. In life I am such a specific person compared to
that,* says Ira Glass, the host of the award winning
National Public Radio Show, *This American Life.*
You get the weird random comments like I met this woman who
was absolutely convinced that I was a short, bald, heavyset,
Jewish man like with a cigar in his fifties. Which I am not.
Then you think, 'What am I projecting that says bald,
short....' People will often forgive you and your voice if
you tell them stories full of insight, meaning and pleasure.
They'll associate those good feelings with you.
4. Tell stories, stories, stories.
People remember stories. If there is one thing and one thing
only you learn from being on radio it is to tell stories.
5. Let your tone do the telling.
Tone tells how you feel about who you are-whether you are
defensive, comfortable, nervous, or snotty. The other day I
became mesmerized listening to a radio interview with actor
John Cusack. He was all lazy, rumpled bedcovers and long
gazes. There was something in his voice that let me know he
was, as the French say, *Bien dans sa peau* -- comfortable
in his own skin.
What was it? He was both thoughtful and forthcoming. He took
his own time and didn't try to mirror or match his
interviewer's style or pacing in any way. Many presentation
coaches recommend you mirror your interviewer in order to
gain rapport, but to a degree, I disagree. Keep your own
rhythm. You might need to speed it up a tad because of the
fast pace of the medium, but only speed it to your top
speed. Anything more throws you off kilter.
Your audience is looking for a good customer service
attitude when listening to you on the radio. Since tone
reflects your internal response, when you feel yourself
tensing up, one way to deal with defensiveness is to pause,
take a breath, and release on the feeling in that moment --
consciously let it go before you respond.
Learn more about getting good press and self-promotion to
gain publicity for your business, product or cause in *Sell
Yourself Without Selling Your Soul®* (HarperCollins). Go to
http://prsecrets.com for your free excerpts today.
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Susan Harrow, CEO of
http://prsecrets.com, is
a top media coach, marketing strategist and author of
Sell Yourself Without Selling Your Soul® (HarperCollins),
The
Ultimate Guide to Getting Booked on Oprah, and
Get a 6-
Figure Book Advance. Clients include Fortune 500 CEOs, bestselling authors and entrepreneurs who have appeared on
Oprah, 60 Minutes, NPR, and in TIME, USA Today, Parade,
People, O, NY Times, WSJ, and Inc. |
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