eQB’s resident production and voiceover expert Rich Van Slyke is back with a new Programming To Win column. This time around, Van Slyke offers PDs ten tips on getting the most bang for your buck out of working with the person behind your station’s voice.
Rich Van Slyke
By Rich Van Slyke
It’s the voice heard most often on your radio station. Your signature sound. The voice heard all day and all night by your listeners. And this voice has to sound good. And it has to be easy to listen to over and over. It communicates your identity and your brand. Because the sound of your imaging is so important, you want to make the most of the service your voice talent provides. A great read is better than a mediocre read. Because it gets people’s attention. Allowing you to make a good impression. Lots of good impressions amount to solid branding. Which leads to higher ratings. And your voice guy’s or voice gal’s efforts are a big piece of the pie. But making the most of his or her talents shouldn’t be difficult, it should be easy. There are many things you can do to maximize performance.
So your station voice is very good and you want their best effort. What’s the secret? Having been on both sides of the mic, I can tell you, the secret is there is no secret. It’s purely a matter of cooperation and respect. Avoid frustration. Treat the guy like he’s important. That doesn’t mean schmoozing. Actions speak much louder. Here’s the way.
1. Schedule a short phone call and explain your station and your market. When you voice talent hears how you say the name of your station, everything becomes much easier to understand. Explain the history of your station, and what the station means to people in the market. You will get a much better read, because we understand the emotion behind the message. And if possible, be on the phone as your voice guy cuts the copy.
2. Type scripts in lower case. Because ALL CAPITALS MEANS SHOUTING!! Use capitals only to PUNCH a word. When you want to stress a word, use italics. If it’s something that must be remembered, underline it.
3. Ask your station voice to record everything, all the takes, even practicing. When he gets it, you’ve got it.
4. Make the updates clear. Print them right on the copy, with a comma after the day. Like this: “Saturday December 8th, (this Saturday, Tomorrow, Today) join Rock 107 at….” That way, he can read the sentence and the updates separately. Makes it much easier to edit.
5. Ask for funny and creative liners from other stations. Your voice person has many funny liners and ideas that he’s recently cut for other stations. And he’d love to give them to you if you ask. It feels great to give extra effort.
6. Explain the meaning of local phrases. The first takes are usually the best and if you understand that “Charles Street” is where the hookers all live, you nail the line.
7. Get your station voice the finished product. When you send a voice guy great production with his voice on it, I guarantee he’ll want to bring more to the table.
8. Encourage out takes. Let the listeners in on the process. It’s fun to look behind the curtain. And it’s memorable to hear your voice guy’s personality and attitude.
9. Now, a word on direction. You can use different descriptive words to trigger the read you want. Read this very quietly, but with a threatening tone. Or you can direct him to a certain style. Read this like Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry. But the absolute best way to get the inflection you want is to read it yourself, and let your voice guy mirror you.
10. Ask for the extras. Is your voice talent a singer? A musician? Does he do characters? Celebrity voices? Ask for a little extra fun and your will be surprised at what you get!
So many people will hear a song on the radio, love it, then remember the wrong station. Branding is everything. And your brand is communicated through your imaging at least 6 times an hour. What if I said my name in your ear six times an hour while you were driving? That’s what your listeners are hearing. So, if it doesn’t take any extra time to get the most out of your station voice, why not do it? Also, know who is working for you and where your station rates on his priority chart. Are you his biggest client? His smallest? Or comfortably in the middle. You should love the sound. You are the PD, you listen to the station all the time. What’s important is pleasing YOUR ears, and that’s purely subjective. In the words of Eddie Van Halen, “If it sounds good….it IS good.”
One more tip, if you receive your voice files via email, create a backup email account with Gmail. It’s free and it always works. If your company email is not working, you can get files from your Gmail account. Simple and easy.
Remember, most of the best music on the radio features the sound of the human voice.
It’s our best tool for communicating and the power to influence is limitless. Rock on!
Rich Van Slyke does VO for KUFX San Francisco, WBIG Washington, WIOD Miami, WWSK Long Island, KSEG Sacramento. KXTG Portland, KCFX Kansas City, WRIT Milwaukee, KBRU Oklahoma City, WAFX Norfolk, WGRD Grand Rapids, KKFM Colorado Springs, KDFO Bakersfield, KARS Albuquerque, WZEW Mobile, KTHK Idaho Falls, WKQZ Saginaw, KIGL Fayetteville, KBOB Quad Cities, WKZQ Myrtle Beach, WTMM Albany, KZOZ San Luis Obispo, KTUX Shreveport, WIXO Peoria, WRMR Wilmington, KKPL Fort Collins, XFM Nairobi, The Minnesota Timberwolves Radio Network, and more. www.richvanslyke.com 770.962.4788 richvs@bellsouth.net
