02 Apr The 8-Second Rule
Listen to your talents execute a talk set and time when they start talking. How long does it take before they express interesting content? If it’s over 8 seconds, you’re losing listeners.
Depending on their daypart and format, talents typically have two to four breaks an hour. How personalities execute their talk segments can enhance or hurt their ratings. Each talk segment is “show content,” and it should start quickly and remain fulfilling and fascinating throughout.
PPM data indicates that you have eight seconds to engage the audience at the start of the segment. After that, if you succeed, the audience will give you more time. If not, people switch away. So, your mission is to always start with fascinating content or deliver an effective tease to hook the audience quickly as you take the mic. And that hook must be very sharp!
The eight-second attention span is no different in a diary world, but PPM makes it easier to measure. Radio talents enhance diary recall by starting each segment with music, followed by the station name, dial position, positioning phrase, back-sell of the title and artist, a time check, and their name. Unfortunately, that takes eight seconds (or more). Instead of ending a song with these formatics, talents should immediately deliver the content hook, followed by a tease for the next segment and then the station business.
Nielsen radio respondents will stick around to hear a talk segment if it is set up quickly and correctly. The best setups are clean and precise, with no wasted words, and they have a compelling hook that grabs attention in 8 seconds or less. No one will leave if this hook is enticing.
This opening is best achieved with a dramatic statement but can also be compelling through audio, a listener’s voice, or by posing a question. If you succeed, you live for another segment! Lund Media refers to this momentum-driving action as “tease and please.” Here are examples of the Question Tease:
“A country star is honored as a Rock and Roll legend. I won’t pardon the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, would you?”
“When Tom Brady retired from football, some said he was the second-greatest quarterback of all time. I’ll tell you who’s the first and why in a moment.”
The 8-second rule also applies to News-Talk, Sports-Talk, and All News. While some national talk show hosts don’t live by this rule, your local talk hosts can and should apply this science. Coming out of the commercial break, play a quick, produced “go back” liner that states the station’s name and slogan and introduces the talk talent by name – all in five seconds. Now, the personality can be compelling with the station business out of the way!
Provide an enticing eight-second hook of the upcoming topic. In spoken word formats, all programming is talk, so the programming “begins” after the produced liner. The talent may also use a compelling piece of audio to begin a segment, like Brian Flores’ comment, “NFL owners are like plantation owners.”
When ending a segment, promote the next topic, guest, or twist before the commercial break. This tease contributes to longer listening. It extends TSL and sets another listening appointment for the next topic. When promoting an event over ten minutes away, specify the exact time with a Timestamp. Listening spans are always short.
Going to the NAB?
John Lund will speak at NAB Las Vegas on Sunday, April 6. Don’t miss his presentation on “Talent Development & Managing Talent Across Platforms.” To schedule a meeting with John at the NAB, please email [email protected].