Your radio imaging should reflect the way your listeners want to see themselves.
That means occasionally foregoing the incredibly witty promo idea that happens to portray your listeners in a condescending or insulting manner.
Continuing with my brief yet relevant radio job descriptions….
The job description for the producer of a radio program that has a host (and is not self-produced):
1. To make every show a hit.
2. To make the star of the show shine.
Yeah, I know #2 grates on you. But there it is.
Do you for even an instant believe this guy?
Do you believe he’s ever visited South Africa?
Or do you believe he’s reading corny, badly written dialogue from a script?
Question: What do these phrases have in common?
- “An adventure unlike any other”
- “For those who live life to the fullest”
Answer: Neither ever has been spoken by a real human being.
“How was your trip to South Africa, Bob?”
“It was an adventure unlike any other!”
“Really? I wonder if I would enjoy visiting South Africa…”
“Well, Steve, you will if you’re the one of those people who live life to the fullest.”
And the highlight was when “we sat together, sharing stories”? Really? His audience must’ve been spellbound.
Thankfully, toward the end of the spot the announcer steps in…to continue the idiocy. She boasts of the “unbelievable packages” available.
Unbelievable? Really? Their travel packages aren’t varied or interesting or exciting or unusual; they’re unbelievable!
“But Dan, it’s just a radio commercial. Lighten up. Everyone knows the voices on radio commercials are just actors.”
If you’re going to have someone portray a human being in a radio advertisement, that someone needs to be able sound enough like a real human being that we can “willingly suspend disbelief” and buy into the story.
But this piece of tripe? It’s not a story. It’s not a character. It’s not a human being.
If you write “announcer copy,” then have an “announcer” deliver it. Don’t have some poor voice guy pretend to be a real person who is sharing his personal experiences.
But hey, I’m sure the college interns responsible for this radio campaign did their best.
Opening line of a commercial I heard on a Los Angeles radio station:
“Behind every cloud, there’s a silver lining.”
Right.
Also, you never should judge a book by what’s between its covers.
