Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice

2022.05.15 – 0500 – The Anchor/Reporter Rapport Structure You are a reporter and so you need to be able to succinctly communicate the distinct points that ‘make the story the story’, boiling down the issue or the scene to what’s important. If you get stuck in the weeds of detail, you could end up the creek without a paddle. What is the main story here? What are the elements that took us from where...

2022.05.14 – 0499 – Off-The-Page and Off-The-Cuff Conversational The best two-ways are a balance between what’s off-the-page and what’s off-the-cuff. ‘Structured improvisation’ if you like, working with the script but not word for word. Choreographed. Reading every question and answer just as it was composed at a desk makes the flow, go … and unless you and the host are great actors, may sound sti...

2022.05.13 – 0498 – TV Two-ways   VOICE BOX TV Two-ways A two-way is when a studio presenter on radio or t,v interviews a reporter colleague (usually one who is on location, but maybe in the studio) about a story. The reporter: ·        Is not working to a script ·        Has to sound fluent and confident · &...

2022.05.12 – 0497 – The Lead In – Working Example SCRIPT: “I’m fed up. Another Christmas lunch on the way battling with my worn-out kitchen. Stuck drawers, crammed cupboards and simply not enough surfaces. I’m heading to Kittyhawk Kitchens. They have an in -house design and fitting team, to advise and help every step of the way to your new dream kitchen. From their house to yours, Kittyhawk Kitche...

2022.05.11 – 0496 – React To Act One way to do this is a ‘lead in’ (sometimes called ‘the moment before’ technique): think first (or maybe say aloud) part of the conversation that’d take you into that first line. What was said or what happened to cause your character to make this comment? So your scripted sentence is a natural reaction. Having a ‘lead in line’, that you either record and then edit...

2022.05.10 – 0495 – 17 - Lead in Lines   17 - Lead in Lines By creating the atmosphere of a conversation, it’s easier to pretend you’re in one. Most commercial copy sets up a problem, and then provides a product, brand or service as a potential solution. For example, “ Want to get your laundry whiter than white? ” After that you will presume that the answer will be “ Yes I do, but how? ” Acti...

2022.05.09 – 0494 – 16 - Rhythm Nation   16 - Rhythm Nation A formal script will sound ‘script perfect’. Each phrase and sentence will come with the regularity of waves on a shore, every one much like the previous one. Think perhaps of a documentary style of presentation or an announcer. It sounds like a script has been written, read, rehearsed and recorded.   But that’s not how we speak...

2022.05.08 – 0493 – Sounding Like An Expert Be conscious of how you sound when you explain something to a friend and try and capture that feeling, mood, zone and so on to sound conversational on air. Here’s an example [1] Read the following aloud as if you are reading it to someone: “The future behaviour of America as the current lone superpower is terribly important to China not only because Amer...

2022.05.07 – 0492 – 15 - Pausing   15 - Pausing Put pauses in different places - as you ‘search’ for the right word or phrase (just don’t make it too often). These may be silent, or vocalised (“ errr ”). I have heard (but been unable to verify) that Ira Glass the producer/presenter of the podcast “ This American Life ”, does not use commas or full stops/periods in his scripts … he uses ellips...

2022.05.06 – 0491 – 14 - Gestures   14 - Gestures Big gestures and facial expressions can be ‘over the top’ in a conversational presentation. Reign them back to sound more real and believable.   But still keep doing some kind of gestures. ‘Talking with your hands’ will help you talk with your voice. Sitting on them will make you sound stilted. Don’t be afraid to smile or laugh where appr...

2022.05.05 – 0490 – 13 - Conversational Intonation   13 - Conversational Intonation Flattening out your intonation (but keeping it in the correct place) will, usually make your sound more conversational and move away from the ‘announcery sound’, or as though you’re on stage or to a room full of people. Look back at the section when I brought you the barbecue story and how you change your into...

2022.05.04 – 0489 – 12 - Volume and projection 12 - Volume and projection A conversational read is low key, subtle, friendly, authentic and so the voice you need is one of sharing not shouting. You need to engage not enrage. It’s a ‘closer’ voice, one you use when someone is near you and when you are giving calm and reassuring help or advice. Not the voice you use from the other side of a crowded...

2022.05.03 – 0488 – The ‘Word Merge’ As we saw much earlier, stringing words together can be good because talking too precisely leads to a clunky script.   Another issue is, and again we touched on this before, the ‘glottal stop’ – where the last letter of one word is the same as the next word starts with: ·         You never forget your first time ·&nb...

2022.05.02 – 0487 – 11 - Contractions and Elisions 11 - Contractions and Elisions Ensure you have natural conversational contractions in your delivery: “ they’ll ”, “ couldn’t ” and (if appropriate for your programme or podcast) “ coz ”, “ wanna ”. (Obviously check with a director for ‘signed off’ scripts that you can make these kinds of changes.) We saw earlier how elision makes a read sound more...

2022.05.01 – 0486 – A ‘Stream Of Consciousness’ Ad-libbing is a way to inject some personality into a read, to humanise it. You’re not supposed to be just releasing the words, you are meant to be like the listener, so (if allowed) make the script your own, different and interesting. In the ‘stream of consciousness’ that makes a script sound conversational, maybe: ·     &nb...

2022.04.30 – 0485 – 10 - Ad-libs 10 - Ad-libs Ad-lib around, swapping out words as you come across them It’s acting, isn’t it? And OK, it’s a bit odd to script sentences and then ignore the structure. And so too is creating a logical argument and then creating the impression that it’s ad-libbed! When I write a script, I’m certainly doing so with an ear for it to be read aloud. But sometimes on air...

2022.04.29 – 0484 – Articulation In Conversationality  YOUR ARTICULATION Of course, people have to understand what it is you are saying, and as we saw before, the level of articulation has to be appropriate for the message and the audience, but if you worry too much about them sounding right , then you may sound artificial rather than conversational. Robotic rather than warm.   And that...

2022.04.28 – 0483 – Eliminate Banality and Formality Obviously, the kind of words you use will differ depending on your audience – another reason why you should have your target demographic front of mind. If someone feels left out of the conversation, confused by the formal phrases or technical terms, they’ll feel left out and will turn off. Using unnecessary jargon doesn’t make you sound smart, i...

2022.04.27 – 0482 – 9 - The Form Of The Words     THE SCRIPT Spoken language doesn’t need grammar to give a meaning to the sequence of words. The grammar of the written word evolved to replace the intonation of the spoken voice, and that’s what causes problems when we try and read a sentence and make it sound natural. Spoken language doesn’t have sentences: we speak in a collection of ph...

2022.04.26 – 0481 – Conversation Questions To summarise, ask yourself ·        Who is this information important to? ·        How can you talk to them 121? ·        What are you telling them? ·        Why should they listen to you? · &...

2022.04.25 – 0480 – Focus On The Message More Than Your Voice You may find it useful to go further and question: ·        What exactly is this product or service I’m advertising / recommending? What does it do and how? What are the benefits? How is it different from similar products or services on the market? What are the details not actually in the script s...

2022.04.24 – 0479 – Pitching Your Presentation   Changing the words, the style, the pace and so on helps the message become more effective. Having a picture in your mind of the ‘target listener’ and their needs (a worried first-time dad, a time-poor businesswoman, a holiday-hungry teenager…), will help you pitch your presentation in a way that they will care more about the message. That ‘voca...

2022.04.23 – 0478 – The Emotion Duplication You need to be able to identify the different parts of the script that instil those emotions in you, so you are better able to replicate them in your voice and so connect with potential buyers: ·        How will this new gadget improve someone’s life? ·        What is the emo...

2022.04.22 – 0477 - 8 – Know What The Desired Response Is Of That Audience   8 – Know What The Desired Response Is Of That Audience [1] So, you have the message and the person it’s being delivered to, but you also need to know the intention of what you are saying. Is the point of the message to inform them, drive them to action, amuse them, get them to sign up or buy, to change their habits,...

2022.04.21 – 0476 - 7 – Imagine Where That Audience Is Listening / What They Are Doing   7 – Imagine Where That Audience Is Listening / What They Are Doing So now you know the kind of person the story or the script is aimed at, and why they should be interested. In a moment we’ll consider the desired response of that audience, but first let’s spend a short time thinking of where that audience...