Category Archives: Radio coaching tip

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #521: Go in a Straight Line

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What separates a “shaggy dog” story from one that entices a person to listen is whether or not it goes in a straight line.

Too many “side references” stall the story out and put it in neutral as far as the plot goes. In real life conversations, people may listen. But on the air, a minute is a long time. (Want to argue the point? Hold your breath for one minute, starting right…now.)

There’s also the danger of sounding like you’re interrupting your own thought. This is a weird habit, because at that point you’re just trying to sort out in your own mind how to tell the story. I don’t have time to listen to that.

You need to be prepared and make the story march at a decent pace, but also be mindful of when a pause is needed. We do want to sound as natural as possible, but we owe the listener being expedient, too.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #519: Bits That Should Be Buried Forever

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It’s incredible to me that we still hear ‘bits’ on the air that were stale 25 years ago. Here are some examples of the type of stuff I’m talking about:

This Day in History.
No one cares. Especially the younger demographic. Millenials don’t remember past last Thursday.

“Stupid Criminal” Stories.
Again, why does this matter? How is it top of mind? (And we all have the internet, you know.)

Trivia games.
Dead, dead, dead. I can ask Siri and get the answer in three seconds. It’s not 1980 anymore.

The “uhm” Game.
I always thought this one was stupid – because it makes the contestant sound stupid. Why would you want to do that? My wife tells me that most women hate being made a fool of.

Obviously, there are quite a few others that I didn’t mention, but the message is the same: think of something new, something fun, something yours. But most importantly in terms of performance, do something that makes the listener feel like you’re actually looking to connect with him/her, instead of just filling time. Bad bits use listeners as props. Good content is always about relevance and connection.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #516: The Same Note

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It’s only natural that I get a lot of inquiries about how to break into the Voice Acting world. Several years ago, after a seminar, a guy asked if I would listen to some of his work. He was a very good talent, but listening to his demo, I noticed something. I told him, “If I were playing the notes on a keyboard that you hit with your voice, you always seem to end sentences on the exact same note, and it almost always goes down in pitch.”

He was surprised by this, and said he had never noticed that before.

Going down in pitch repeatedly can make you sound predictable, or even bored. You should (of course) VARY your deliveries. And I also believe that thinking about it in a musical context can add a dimension.

Tip: I always picture the person – the ONE person – that I’m talking to. That seems to ‘shape’ the delivery, and helps avoid the “same note” thing.

It’s called Voice ACTING for a reason.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #514: One Egg or an Omelet

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Each break you do is an “egg”. But ALL the breaks during an hour (or your show as a whole) are an omelet.

The point is, this break should stand as a break, but it should also be part of some sense of what today is like. A mood, if nothing else.

If you’re just doing isolated breaks, there’s no “story” that day. To be great, your show should be an ongoing saga of your experiences with things that are also part of the listener’s life. Who wouldn’t rather have an omelet than just one tired little egg?

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #513: The “Home Run or Nothing” Mentality

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If you concentrate so much on the “big” things, but you don’t get really good at the little things, it’s not gonna work as well.

You need to be well-rounded. It’s nice if you have “big” moments, but don’t have any “empty” moments. Be right here, right now, even just doing the weather or promoting something.

It’s like baseball – it’s great to hit home runs, but strikeouts kill. They’re wasted times at bat. No fielders have to move; no runners advance. You might as well have just gone up to the plate without a bat.

The “little things” MATTER.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #512: The Server and the Performer

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Imagine going to a fancy restaurant where the server is just perfect. He’s taking your order, but he’s also helping you with a little opinion, making sure you get the dressing you like on your salad…whatever.

And then all of a sudden, the floor show comes on, and he goes down and he’s the performer! He makes you laugh and do stuff, and he’s interesting. It’s the same guy.

That’s your job.
(In a team show, it’s easy. One’s the server; the other’s the performer. And those roles can switch.)

That’s what you are. Whether as a solo or part of a team, we need to serve the needs of the listener AND entertain him/her.

It’s really boring to hear shows where only one of those roles is present.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #509: The Dreaded Monotone

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Recently, I listened to a morning show host do the News. I’m not a big fan of this, but in this case it’s necessary; a budget issue.

The stories were okay, but because News is so “left brain” informational, it came out in almost a dead monotone. Here’s what I said in our next session:

I know things get busy, and it’s easy to get focused on story count, pronunciations, and time. But you should avoid letting anything keep you from sounding as conversational as possible. If you sound interested in what you’re saying, chances are the listener will be, too.

Obviously, it’s not just reading a News story that can freeze you up. Commercial copy, badly written “liners” (eww) or “announcements” that are written in “print language” instead of how we would actually say it to another human, can easily lead to sounding robotic. That’s not likely to connect with the listener.

I say this all the time: Just TALK to me like you would to your best friend over lunch.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #506: Which Camera Angle to Choose

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I’ve been talking about “camera angles” for decades, born out of an acting and performing background, and a brilliant teacher I had in college while taking film classes.

The premise is that any story can be told from a variety of camera angles, and standing in another person’s shoes ALWAYS provides a different way to tell that story.

Recently, in a session with a brilliant talent named Tracy Leek, a good example of this came up as she talked about her 15-year-old daughter’s dread of getting her driver’s license. Here’s what I wrote in her session recap:

Her starting to drive offers multiple angles, too:

Parental worry: put as much bulk and metal around her as you can, because a teenager will have an accident.

Peer pressure: other kids in the car can and will distract her.

Other drivers: they don’t know she’s a beginner, and road rage is a constant worry.

Which will you choose? The one that expresses your emotions the best.

Tracy is a top-level talent, and this has become a main building block for her over our years of working together. If you’re not paying attention to this, you’re missing opportunities to connect with the listener.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #505: Show Prep Starts at Home

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By far, the thing I get asked about the most in coaching sessions is Show Prep.

First of all, if you use a “prep sheet” service, throw it away. Generic subject matter, getting generic (if any) response is fool’s gold. And unfortunately, it’s rampant. People sitting at the computer trying to choose a subject and somehow “make it matter” is lame and boring.

Here’s what I advise: Show Prep starts at home. Begin with what’s right around you, in your living room, that you share with the Listener. Then spread out from there.

It’s almost comically simple, yet I see people straining for suitable Content every day. Stop “reaching” for things. If you talk about something that I, as a listener, actually CARE about, you’ll do fine. If it’s generic, YOU’RE generic.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #503: Your Greatest Hits

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After one of my recent tips came out, my associate and friend John Frost sent me an email saying: “When I was at KHTR in St. Louis, I hit a little slump in my on-air performance. My Program Director suggested that I create a “best of” tape and listen to it every day on my way to work. That way, I would have an objective reference point to what I did well, and it would help build my confidence since I was listening to my own work.” The thought was “Yes, I can do this because I’ve done it.”

Great suggestion for anyone, especially if you get little or no coaching.

I would add one other thought: Every 3 or 4 months, just put away a random aircheck of yourself. Then once a year, pluck one out and compare it to your work today.

Invariably, you’ll hear something that you’ve improved on. Doing this regularly will sort of “chart” your progress. It may also surprise you, in that just the WAY you do things has matured. Not just what you do, but how you do it.

And the thought process from that exercise could very well be “Yes, I can still get better – because I’ve done that, too.”

If you’re not moving forward, you’re standing still.

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Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2023 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.