We’re fresh off toasts
to the start of a new year - or perhaps instead you toasted “good riddance” to
2016.
Either way it’s
probable that someone, somewhere, recently brought up New Year’s Resolutions.
I have no beef with
resolutions though often they can be too vague (lose weight) or too negative (stop
doing something).
Better I think to
plan for self-improvement in the New Year with specific, positive goals and an
easy to follow map to help you get where you want to go.
So if improving the
quality and engaging nature of your content one break at a time is a goal for
2017, you deserved to be toasted: T.O.A.S.T.ED.
T.O.A.S.T.ED. in
this case is an acronym you can use as a checklist for strengthening your
content while it’s still in the developmental stage. Each letter offers a way
to power up your idea for maximum impact.
Here’s what the
letters stand for:
T=Targeted
O=Original
A=Accessible
S=Shareable
T=Timely
E=Engaging
D=Defining
Let's look at
each.
Targeted
"Camera
angle" is a phrase I first heard from friend and talent coach Tommy
Kramer. It's one of
the most useful and important "checks" you should subject your idea
to. Fixing the camera angle is another way of asking, “What’s the best way to
fame this content?”
Most content has
multiple camera angles and some will make a deeper connection than others. The
angle you choose plays a big part in determining the impact of your material.
Consider as may angles as you can before deciding on the one that is most
aligned with the target and their perceptions of you and the station.
Original
Everyone has access
to the same information as you do. Plus, by the time your next show rolls
around, you may be dealing with something many people already know. But an
original perspective overcomes these potential pitfalls.
Your personal
“take” on a topic makes your content unique and valuable. It also helps clarify
who you are and what you stand for (there’s more on that in Defining).
Accessible
There are lots of
moving parts to accessibility including pre-promotion, recycling, repurposing, social,
and archiving. Planning for full accessibility from the start not only means
maximum reach for your material, but also can foster new ideas for iterating
your original concept.
Shareable
Accessibility is
part of this of course, but before that comes quality. It's either great or it's
spam. Your brand is at stake so be sure you’ve done all you can to fully
exploit your material.
This would be a
great place to invoke the Seven Magic Words (“That’s great – what else can we
do?”).
Timely
Even a great take
can be neutered by tardiness. Delayed delivery of time sensitive content sends
a message that this item wasn't particularly important to you. That's a big problem
if it was important to listeners.
"Continuing
content," such as those long-running concert announcements need special
attention as well. Your best bet here is to refer back to “T” and “O” for ways
to inject freshness into items with long shelf lives.
Engaging
Simply put, how
will you get me to have a stake in this piece of content - at least enough of a
stake to keep my attention and interest? This is also a critical question for
multi-break content.
What is there in
the content and execution that will repeatedly bring me back for more?
What has been
included to encourage virtual or actual listener participation?
Defining
Over time what you
do on your show will help define who you are to listeners. That's exciting when
you're working to make every break count, but it’s a hard dose of reality when
you’re winging it.
If improving your
content is one of your goals for the New Year, try applying the T.O.A.S.T.E.D.
checklist to your work.
Check in during
the year and share how it’s going.
Cheers! And here's
to a great year ahead!
Image:
Copyright: damedeeso /
123RF Stock Photo
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment