Evaluating Syndicated/VT Talent

[John FL]

For anyone who is on-the-air talent at just one radio station, I would think the local ratings would weigh pretty heavily in performance appraisals and even decisions to renew or not renew contracts. For those who let's say are a part of iHeatMedia's Premium Choice Programming and similar at other companies, do other factors come into play?

I would think there are some markets that no matter who is on the air in a syndicated format, the ratings are not a reflection of the talents' abilities. I wonder if the overall on-air presentation is given considerable weight in making decisions. There's a number of iHeart syndicated formats that I listen to on occasion. There's some who I think complement the format, do a good job etc. There's others who don't. Sometimes I have noticed they are replaced. While this can be someone seeking other opportunities as well, I still wonder if senior management actually listens to the overall "sound" of the jock and makes decisions based on that?

I would think evaluating syndicated and VT talent is not that easy. What criteria is used to measure performance for syndicated talent and does it differ greatly from someone who works in a stand alone station?

 

[Groove1670]

No. The purpose of the talent now is to read city locations and do paid endorsements and promos. I heard talent on a premium station say she was in vacation doing her show in a hotel room. The audio quality was awful.

The presentation in 1981 vs 2021 is different. 1981 was based on loud jocks that entertained in that era. 2021 is conversational and based on endorsements. Two different styles.

When you look at youtube airchecks 25+ years old. They are fun, but so dated.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

No. The purpose of the talent now is to read city locations and do paid endorsements and promos. I heard talent on a premium station say she was in vacation doing her show in a hotel room. The audio quality was awful.

The presentation in 1981 vs 2021 is different. 1981 was based on loud jocks that entertained in that era. 2021 is conversational and based on endorsements. Two different styles.

When you look at youtube airchecks 25+ years old. They are fun, but so dated.

Not all of us who are "Syndicated" have any endorsement or is our performance based on that.. I know I don't do any of that as "syndicated" talent.

I'd say more so, its about drawing no complaints from affiliates/listeners and doing a good job (listeners liking you, interaction/participation, etc). The metric for syndicated vs local talent and whats good/whats not/keep them/dont keep them is a little different

*Syndicated=i use that term loosely because thats not what Local Radio Networks considers us at all.. LRN is a 24/7 format competitor to westwood one providing music, imaging, jocks etc that all get zipped up to the stations local computer and we jocks talk aboiut local stuff for the stations.. and we do it pretty good

 

[John FL]

Appreciate the comments but I figured there would be a number of metric performance objectives that would be different between on-air talent who is local only vs. someone who is on multiple stations in different markets. I can think of one difference and there's no doubt more. The local only jock would probably be measured on community involvement, local promotions etc. A VT/syndicated talent heard in numerous markets wouldn't be expected to participate in anything on a local level.

Performance appraisals were a big deal in my career. In fact we had quarterly reviews. Perhaps senior management participates in that sort of thing. I'm not sure what hoops talent goes through. I would still think a Brand Manager/PD etc. when hearing talent who is VT-ing a shift would be expected to critique delivery etc.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

The local only jock would probably be measured on community involvement, local promotions etc.

Only to the point of showing up for work when they are told to show up. It's not like the boss will give out bonuses for joining the Rotary or volunteering at a senior center.

I would still think a Brand Manager/PD etc. when hearing talent who is VT-ing a shift would be expected to critique delivery etc.

The PD expects the syndicated talent to know what they are doing. That's an important reason you run syndication: it takes a certain amount of load off the PD. They'll let the talent know certain requirements, but there won't be much coaching.

 

[Deleted User]

Someone should have evaluated the talent before they signed on the dotted line.

Can your sales people sell inventory in their daypart?

That is all that counts, the syndicated talent is cheap or available for free via a bartering agreement, and you can make money off them.

Personally I can't stand the ones that tease and say "we'll tell you next hour". I'm not listening for an hour to get a worthless piece of information I could find on Google in 15 seconds if I really wanted it.

And John Tesh ..... WTF... John Tesh followed by Delilah.... radio hell exists in Fort Myers

 

[Groove1670]

Someone should have evaluated the talent before they signed on the dotted line.

Can your sales people sell inventory in their daypart?

That is all that counts, the syndicated talent is cheap or available for free via a bartering agreement, and you can make money off them.

Personally I can't stand the ones that tease and say "we'll tell you next hour". I'm not listening for an hour to get a worthless piece of information I could find on Google in 15 seconds if I really wanted it.

And John Tesh ..... WTF... John Tesh followed by Delilah.... radio hell exists in Fort Myers

 

[Groove1670]

Like it or not. Tesh and Delilah are very popular. Probably you're not in the demo?

 

[John FL]

Based on the comments, my first reaction was it’s a helluva way radio does business. But I think I had to put some things into perspective. One too is that when a VT talent is hired, their resume and accomplishments will show the professionalism that is required.

It’s important to differentiate those stations that rely totally on syndicated and or/VT’d talent vs. the stations that offer a combo of live, local talent with syndicated and or VT’d talent. We see many jocks who host a local show also VT sister stations in other markets. Some are independent contractors who VT various stations only.

iHeart Media’s ‘Premium Choice’ programming can’t have 100 PD’s from across the country giving critiques to the talent to do this, don’t do that etc. It just can’t happen as they don't work for one station. But for the talent who voices on several radio stations only, there’s better opportunity to set expectations, provide information about the market, the P1s, etc.

Volumes have been written about teamwork in the corporate world. Virtually everyone who works for a corporation has gone through teamwork building training and exercises. On the radio, you can just tell that effective teamwork exists. But this is probably in the ears of radio pros and the most extreme radio junkies. For the typical radio listener, I believe relevance is key. But this too is a result of teamwork. It's important to make those who work remotely feel they are part of the team.

I’m surprised VT talent isn’t given more exposure in the stations’ social media page. The live, local jocks can be found posting various things. Social media is a great way to connect with listeners. Virtually all VT jocks have his/her own blog and there are links to it. Purely from a visual standpoint, that VT talent stands out and I don’t believe it’s in a good way.

It doesn’t take much effort to post a meme, inspirational story, a funny etc., directly on a stations’ social media page. But it appears VT talent doesn’t have access to these sites. In my view, it’s another way to give appearances of being a part of the team. Again, it’s a great vehicle to reach out to listeners.

I often wonder if VT jocks are encouraged to check out reliable news sources to find out what is happening in the community. Many years ago, a city I lived in had fires raging all around. Smoke was everywhere. People were sick. It was big news. The midday VT jock from another market never gave any of that a mention but instead talked about enjoying summer weather, the latest concerts etc. Several listeners commented about how weird that was on FB. Not good in the listener impression department.

Credibility, relevance, teamwork. Our work forces are changing and it's not just radio. VTing has come a long way. Those who do it for a living have nailed a lot of it down. Still, there’s always opportunities for improvement.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Based on the comments, my first reaction was it’s a helluva way radio does business. But I think I had to put some things into perspective. One too is that when a VT talent is hired, their resume and accomplishments will show the professionalism that is required.

It’s important to differentiate those stations that rely totally on syndicated and or/VT’d talent vs. the stations that offer a combo of live, local talent with syndicated and or VT’d talent. We see many jocks who host a local show also VT sister stations in other markets. Some are independent contractors who VT various stations only.

iHeart Media’s ‘Premium Choice’ programming can’t have 100 PD’s from across the country giving critiques to the talent to do this, don’t do that etc. It just can’t happen as they don't work for one station. But for the talent who voices on several radio stations only, there’s better opportunity to set expectations, provide information about the market, the P1s, etc.

Volumes have been written about teamwork in the corporate world. Virtually everyone who works for a corporation has gone through teamwork building training and exercises. On the radio, you can just tell that effective teamwork exists. But this is probably in the ears of radio pros and the most extreme radio junkies. For the typical radio listener, I believe relevance is key. But this too is a result of teamwork. It's important to make those who work remotely feel they are part of the team.

I’m surprised VT talent isn’t given more exposure in the stations’ social media page. The live, local jocks can be found posting various things. Social media is a great way to connect with listeners. Virtually all VT jocks have his/her own blog and there are links to it. Purely from a visual standpoint, that VT talent stands out and I don’t believe it’s in a good way.

It doesn’t take much effort to post a meme, inspirational story, a funny etc., directly on a stations’ social media page. But it appears VT talent doesn’t have access to these sites. In my view, it’s another way to give appearances of being a part of the team. Again, it’s a great vehicle to reach out to listeners.

I often wonder if VT jocks are encouraged to check out reliable news sources to find out what is happening in the community. Many years ago, a city I lived in had fires raging all around. Smoke was everywhere. People were sick. It was big news. The midday VT jock from another market never gave any of that a mention but instead talked about enjoying summer weather, the latest concerts etc. Several listeners commented about how weird that was on FB. Not good in the listener impression department.

Credibility, relevance, teamwork. Our work forces are changing and it's not just radio. VTing has come a long way. Those who do it for a living have nailed a lot of it down. Still, there’s always opportunities for improvement.

It's gotten about as good as it can get for VT Talent being local and timely. There's always room for fine tuning.

I'm in Alaska but do afternoons for a station in Wyoming.. thanks to emails, facebook posts, various websites.. i regularly update on air content.. IE: after i voicetracked, something else popped up and needed to be mentioned on air. I've done updates at night/on the weekends when theres been a runaway kid or severe weather

I'm on a bunch of stations overnight that run a classic country format and some give me a bit of freedom and one in particular in Texas lets me, if i find something even more worthy and more local then the copy they give me.. i go with it. one night late, their local basketball team that that cover won regionals and was going to state......and i found out who and where theyd be playing at state.. i knew i needed to check in the pronounciation of Refugio... so i scoured youtube till i heard it clearly pronounced in a video. (This is a station near Lubbock)

The average listener will notice the big glaring stuff.. "its sunny, wonderful weekend" when the weather is shit.. but we radio people... and radio geeks forget to realize and often wont admit, the average person doesnt listen to the radio liek we do and doesnt realize/know the things we do. Few listeners in Lima OH.. Bluefield, WV.. Lubbock, TX.. Shawano, WI have ANY CLUE im not really there.

 

[John FL]

The average listener will notice the big glaring stuff.. "its sunny, wonderful weekend" when the weather is ****.. but we radio people... and radio geeks forget to realize and often wont admit, the average person doesnt listen to the radio liek we do and doesnt realize/know the things we do. Few listeners in Lima OH.. Bluefield, WV.. Lubbock, TX.. Shawano, WI have ANY CLUE im not really there.

Voicetracking has improved greatly. I can't recall exactly when this was, maybe 15+ years ago, but there appeared to be an obsession with the day of the week the program would air. If it was a Sunday, that day would be mentioned over and over etc.

Weather reporting was a big deal too. I knew a PD who wound up in North Carolina. He voicetracked a Saturday morning show. He told me he would often come in early that morning, check the weather and gave temp checks based on what the forecast said it would be. Still risky as weather is unpredictable sometimes. Today, we all have weather and everything else right at our finger tips. Besides, many radio stations have carry a weather report from the local TV station or a news/talk sister station.

I agree with your point that the average listener doesn't know if someone is local, nor do they care. In the 15-20 seconds you've got, it has to come off effortless and be something the listeners will like. I truly believe those who are really good at VTing may make it look easy but I never thought it was. We've seen some literally phone it in going through the emotions. I still believe there are evaluations that go on. There's no point in keeping someone on who isn't good.

I've seen many talent sites where they demonstrate their voice skills. Voiceover actors is big business. When I hear the many voices on TV and radio commercials, I do wonder how many of them do voicetracking on various radio stations too. It's an interesting way to make a living. I would suppose in many cases, they never get to meet "the boss." Working virtually is growing in popularity, even before the Pandemic.

It took me quite a long time to get used to it. For those who voicetrack for a living, many of them may not know of any other way to be on the radio.

 

[SomeRadioGuy]

Voicetracking has improved greatly. I can't recall exactly when this was, maybe 15+ years ago, but there appeared to be an obsession with the day of the week the program would air. If it was a Sunday, that day would be mentioned over and over etc.

Weather reporting was a big deal too. I knew a PD who wound up in North Carolina. He voicetracked a Saturday morning show. He told me he would often come in early that morning, check the weather and gave temp checks based on what the forecast said it would be. Still risky as weather is unpredictable sometimes. Today, we all have weather and everything else right at our finger tips. Besides, many radio stations have carry a weather report from the local TV station or a news/talk sister station.

I agree with your point that the average listener doesn't know if someone is local, nor do they care. In the 15-20 seconds you've got, it has to come off effortless and be something the listeners will like. I truly believe those who are really good at VTing may make it look easy but I never thought it was. We've seen some literally phone it in going through the emotions. I still believe there are evaluations that go on. There's no point in keeping someone on who isn't good.

I've seen many talent sites where they demonstrate their voice skills. Voiceover actors is big business. When I hear the many voices on TV and radio commercials, I do wonder how many of them do voicetracking on various radio stations too. It's an interesting way to make a living. I would suppose in many cases, they never get to meet "the boss." Working virtually is growing in popularity, even before the Pandemic.

It took me quite a long time to get used to it. For those who voicetrack for a living, many of them may not know of any other way to be on the radio.

i have mroe then 15 or 20 seconds.. one station its.. use whatever time you need... dont go 2 minutes as a rule, but if you NEED to, do it. My breaks are generally 45-60 seconds... and i get no complaints from my various stations.

I'm heard overnight on stations form Cottage Grove, OR to Lubbock Texas, Dodge City, KS to Shawano WI.. Fort Wayne & Terre Haute, In to Grundy, VA and Bluefield, WV to Sylva, NC

I'm also doing afternoons in Laramie, WY and I'm live every weekday in rural interior alaska. I am perfectly capable of and enjoy being live, but i take the career opportunities given to me. I've been heard nationwide for over 4 years, something i never thought id be blessed with the opportunity to do.... and it has improved me as a jock and made my resume better.