Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice

2022.04.20 – 0475 – The Geller Principle   Radio presentation trainer Valerie Geller [1] says “ there are no boring stories, only boring storytellers ” and she’s right: it’s how you tell the story the images you create and the words you use… but also your voice. She says “ be interested and you will be interesting”, in other words if you know what you are talking about, believe in and care ab...

2022.04.19 – 0474 – The Information Equation Information + Presentation = Communication   Successful communication is largely a matter of presentation, and that depends on how it’s written and how it’s read.   A good presenter will remember that they are not reeling off information or reading from a script, but telling someone a story. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more info...

2022.04.18 – 0473 - The Listener's B-S Detector   If you do not care, don’t know the audience, or do not understand the content - and let it show - the listener is very likely not to bother either. Their natural B-S detector will be triggered at a hundred paces.   If you sound as though you are ‘reading aloud’, you’re doing it wrong. If you sound like you are talking to someone about som...

2022.04.17 – 0472 -  6 – Understand The Story Or The Message   6 – Understand The Story Or The Message Once you know who you are talking to you need to understand the message that you are giving them. Putting them together is part of a ___ step process to engaging naturally with your voice (the tone, words, rhythm, pace, pauses etc etc).   What do I mean by ‘understanding’? You have...

2022.04.16 – 0471 -  5 – Know Who *You* Are   5 – Know Who You Are You need to know your role in this script-reading, what perspective you are speaking from, what gives you the ‘right’ to pass on this information or advice: ·        Voice Of God – a disembodied, unnamed voice that makes announcements and pronouncements without any emotion. · &...

2022.04.15 – 0470 – NPR Advice   “So many of us listen to audio stories through earbuds. It becomes really intimate. One person standing really close and telling a story right to someone's ear. And this is the other key thing to remember about effective audio storytelling. This is really a one-to-one medium. It isn't about you orating to a big audience. You're not performing for a crowd when...

 2022.04.14 – 0469 - Keep yourself single     Keep yourself single It will be easier to talk conversationally, as though to one person, if your script reflects that hypothesis.   Radio people often talk in terms of ‘the listener’ rather than ‘the listeners’ , because we speak to them on an individual basis. So it’s never ‘all our listeners’ , it’s ‘ you’; it’s never ‘all of you...

2022.04.13 – 0468 – Intimate Audio   To sound credibly intimate, and less like ‘an announcer’, you need to convince yourself that you are talking to one single person. That way each listener will fantasise that that person is them. Direct your comments to this person, and in doing so you’ll become more ‘real’; communicating on a one-to-one basis with someone that you know and with whom you fe...

2022.04.12 – 0467 – Talk To Teddy When I’m podcasting I… talk and feel like I am having a conversation with somebody, as do other people. When I started off I actually got my old teddy bear out and I sat him in front of my computer and I talked to him. It gave me a focus for my conversation, I was explaining to him. And I did find to start off with that helped me, particularly for solo episodes to...

2022.04.11 – 0466 – Where Are They Listening   The next step is, in your mind’s eye, place ‘your listener’ in an appropriate location to hear your message. It’s what we do naturally when we call someone on the phone, whether it’s a colleague or a call-centre, mum or a mate: we ‘see’ them and where they are in our mind’s eye. ·        The room in which t...

2022.04.10 – 0465 – Your Audience Reminder   That person should be: ·        A specific person ·        A real person – so not a character in a film ·        Someone to whom you have some connection – so not a celebrity ·        Not so...

2022.04.09 – 0464 – 4 – Talk To Them One To One   4 – Talk To Them One To One Part of feeling comfortable is also being able to continually monitor the audience, their face, body language and voice for signs of agreement or understanding, or other emotions such as disgust, anger, humour or enthusiasm.   But that’s difficult when we are in an environment such as a studio, or with a microp...

2022.04.08 – 0463 – 3 - Know Who Your Audience Is     3 - Know Who Your Audience Is Whether it’s a news bulletin for a radio station, a YouTube video or a voice over, you need to know who you are talking to. We have already seen how we change our voice, tone, language, speed … everything! – when we speak to different people in our everyday life. So we need to do it with a script as well....

2022.04.07 – 0462 - 2 - Be Comfortable   2 - Be Comfortable You will sound more natural, conversational and as though talking to a friend, if you are feeling confident and comfortable, warm and relaxed. It’s easy to work your way up to the state of a ‘fairground barker’ [1] announcer, but less easy to pull back, step back and sit back, relaxing into a conversational tone. (We have more on how...

2022.04.06 – 0461 – 1 - Study Natural Conversations In The Wild 1 - Study Natural Conversations In The Wild To sound conversational, you need to give the impression that you are talking without a script. If the audience has the perception that you are reading pre-written, edited, and rehearsed words then that sheet of paper or computer screen has come between you and the message. You need to give...

2022.04.05 – 0460 – The Keys To Conversationality THE KEYS TO CONVERSATIONALITY or ‘Tips To Make It Sound Like You’re Making It Up’ or ‘ABCDE: A Better Conversational Delivery for Engagement’.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.04.04 – 0459 – Does A Conversational Read Lessen Your Authority?   VOICE BOX The best reads are a combination of intonation, volume, speed, pause, pitch – all slightly dialled up or down depending on the story, the sentence, the word, the situation, the audience…   But does being conversational lessen one’s authority? For example, in news reading.   Presenting ‘the facts’ you a...

2022.04.03 – 0458 – BBC Presentation Advice   ‘Be yourself. Keep your style natural, conversational, lively and engaging. Try to help the listener feel they’re part of the discussion. Address the listener in the first person — this is more intimate and encourages a sense of belonging. Use the present tense wherever possible — it gives a sense of immediacy. Five Live vocabulary should be acces...

2022.04.02 – 0457 – Don’t Be A Micro-Phoney   Radio presenters talk to millions of listeners, one at a time and yet the best ones still sound natural. But some new (and young) presenters hide behind an artificial ‘radio persona’ of what they think a presenter ‘should’ sound like. They sound ‘micro- phoney ’.   In the following pages/podcasts, learn how to read aloud and sound as though y...

2022.04.01 – 0456 – The ‘Level 1’ Read   Level 1 Style : A very loose style, more ‘street speak’ perhaps. The style may be almost ‘throwaway’. Further contractions in the script, and the ‘slurring’ of words (not in a drunk style, but meaning looser articulation). The pace may be quite fast, or changeable, the projection might be more, the voice having a variety of tone and life, possibly with...

2022.03.31 – 0455 – The ‘Level 2’ Read   Level 2 - Conversational Style : More ‘articulate’ than 1 (below), but not too much more. It’s still a conversational ‘speak’, casual but more ‘chilled’ than ‘street’. Even though you need to sound like you’re having a conversation, you still have to read the actual scripted words, and that’s quite a feat. You may, if the director allows, be allowed to...

2022.03.30 – 0454 – The ‘Level 3’ Read   Level 3 Style : The style relaxes further, with a bit more character in the voice. In some situations, this may mean less projection, less pace, with a touch of ‘sell’ and a few conversational and casual contractions in the text. Becoming more authentic, relatable and believable.   Brand : Conversational e-learning and commercials for businesses i...

2022.03.29 – 0453 – The ‘Level 4’ Read   Level 4 Style : Serious, focused and formal; less ‘heavy’ and ‘polished’ than Level 5, and certainly warmer, but still reasonable slow, dry and articulate. At this Level and Level 3 below, your presentation style is to give trusted information to a broad market,   Brand: Perhaps for a corporate HR statement on a serious protocol such as health and...

2022.03.28 – 0452 – The ‘Level 5’ Read   Level 5 Style : Clear and paced diction, shorter sentences (or even ‘statements’), and quite directive. There’s a still a heightened performance, it’s energised, direct, animated and salesy. Slick and polished.   Brand : Less common nowadays for many companies, products and services but still used for presentations where luxury or class is being s...

2022.03.27 – 0451 – “Can You Dial It Down A Bit?”   And in doing so, if a director says “ Hmm, you may wanna dial that down a bit ”, you’ll be more aware of what it is that you need to dial down on , to give them the read that they need.   VOICE BOX (The list is subjective and not definitive.)   Level 6 – Announcer [1] reads Style: Loud and fast, this presenter almost shouts at the...