Many air personalities are rude. In the interest of brevity, they rush into content to get off to a quick start. Quick starts are great, but not when it’s at the expense of a warm, personal connection. There’s an art in knowing how to shake hands in the air.

Imagine being at a party. You approach a group of people engaged in conversation and interrupt by launching a story without introducing yourself: “Guys drive me crazy because they never listen. You’re not going to believe what my husband did yesterday….”

Okay. That’s a pretty strong hook. It’s likely to cause a strong response. But here’s the problem: The group was involved in another topic, and their attention was elsewhere. You disturbed their mood by inserting a new story into their circle. They probably think you’re rude. It’s like walking up to the group and punching them in the face. No matter how entertaining the story is, they’re not receptive.

The Introduction

Randy Chase is a great programmer who coaches talent to find a balance with this principle: “Did you shake their hand or punch them in the face?” Of course, radio personalities would never physically assault a listener (or would you?), but many things cause the audience to feel disconnected from personalities. That can be fixed with good manners and a proper introduction..

Transitioning into a discussion with a friendly introduction is much more effective than a cold launh that doesn’t take into account the listener’s experience. The best way to enter a conversation is with a handshake.

But wait. What about the 7-second challenge? Programmers have insisted on getting into your topic in the first few seconds of turning on the microphone for fear of losing the audience.  Earning attention is important, but not at the expense of shaking hands.

Imagine the audience in an active conversation. They may be singing along with a song or interested in a newscast. Or, they could be reviewing their kid’s homework on the way to school. When the microphone turns on, everything changes. You change the listening environment. Instead of worrying about earning audience attention in the first seven seconds, focus on not losing it when you open a break. That’s where the handshake comes in.

How To Shake Hands

Shaking hands is essentially a bridge from one type of content to another. There are many ways to shake hands getting into a talk segment. Here are a few:

Reference The Music. Don’t perform in a vacuum. Connecting to what the audience enjoys makes you more likable.

Thanks For Listening. Being polite and thanking listeners authentically builds a bridge and helps personalities be perceived as friendly and warm.

Relate to the Mood. Reflecting on what’s happening in the listener’s life at this time, in this city, helps. It shows that we are connected with how they feel.

Inject Personality Into the Basics. Many personalities rush through repetitive content like weather and positioning statements. That usually happens early in a talk break and signals it’s time to turn out.

Acknowledge The Audience. Just mentioning a listener’s name in a mini-story makes personalities sound friendly, likable, and less intrusive. And it wins fans. Listener shout-outs can be incredibly valuable.

Conclusion

Being tight, focused, and efficient are great disciplines, but don’t be so focused on being short that human connection is lost. Think about ways to shake hands. Your audience will appreciate you much more than if you punch them in the face.

There are many ways to add personality and friendly comments during a handshake by “ize-ing” your personality. It’s the art of adding value to the handshake by personalizing, energizing, localizing, and supersizing your speech.

Pic by rawpixel for Freepik.com.

Tracy Johnson is a talent coach and programming consultant. He’s the President/CEO of Tracy Johnson Media Group. His book Morning Radio has been described as The Bible of Personality Radio and has been used by personalities worldwide.