HANDBOOK

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SMUC RADIO

WELCOME TO THE TEAM.

THIS IS YOUR DJING MANUAL.

CONTENTS4 WHAT SKILLS DO I NEED AS A RADIO DJ? LISTENING SKILLS6 PRESENTING7 PERSONALITY PLANNING8 PROMOTION99 STYLE10 PRACTISE PROACTIVENESS

11 KEEPING LISTENERS12 WHY PEOPLE TURN OFF13 RADIO ETIQUETTE KEEPING THE ILLUSION

1414 RULES AND GUIDELINES STATION BRANDING PRODUCTION RULES15 STATION RULES

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WHAT SKILLS DO I NEEDAS A RADIO DJ?

While talking constitutes a huge part of a DJ’s job, no DJ would ever have been able to progress without listening to others. Before you start hosting your own show, make sure you’re listening to a lot of radio! It doesn’t matterwhat it is that you’re listening to – there’s something to be learned from all different styles of show, so make sure you’re hearing a good variety.

Radio 1 is probably the most famous and successful radio station in the UK. Listen out in particular for its production values, as these are probably the best in the country. It provides its presenters and staff with more creative freedom than some of the other leading channels, which has its advantages and disadvantages. 1Xtra displays similar characteristics to Radio 1, but with a more ‘urban’ style and audience in mind.

Radio 4 is one of the most successful news and talk-based stations in the Radio 4 is one of the most successful news and talk-based stations in the country. It appeals to a much older audience, and thus displays completely different production values to stations like Radio 1 or 1Xtra.

LISTENING SKILLS

THE COUNTRY’S LEADING STATIONS

7 of the UK’s leading stations are owned by the Global Group. These are:

• Capital FM • XFM • Heart • Choice • LBC • Gold

• Classic FM

While these stations differ in their content, you will notice similarities between them. They are often referred to as more ‘commercial’ radio stations. This is mostly because of their style – their DJs are quite a lot more restricted than at the BBC, for example.

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DAB/INTERNET RADIO Alongside these top radio stations (of these, we are most similar to Radio 1 in our style) it’s well worth getting an internet or DAB radio to check out what else is going on in radio! The more you listen to, the more you’ll learn – inuence can come from almost anywhere, and listening to stations totally different to ours can give you tons of new ideas. There are a huge amount of smaller stations on there like ours, so try and be critical as you’re listening – can you hear anything on these smaller stations that you think could be improved on?

This year at SMUC Radio, we’re going to be pairing every DJ up with another show. Having an extra pair of ears in the studio will help all of our shows to be the best that they can be, and it will allow our extra pair of ears to develop their editorial skills. When you’re not part of a show, it’s much easier to listen to it critically and pick out what would make it better. Sometimes you might hear comments that you might not like hearing from listening to your show – try not to take these personally. It’s in everybody’s interest to make all show – try not to take these personally. It’s in everybody’s interest to make all of our programming the best it can be, and we all need support and advice!

YOUR OWN SHOWWhen you’ve nished your show, listen back to it a few days later with our on demand feature. While not everyone enjoys listening to their own voice initially, it’s something you’ll need to learn to do if you plan on working in radio – so get used to it! Listen out for what went well and what you think you could improve on, and make a note of it for next time. Don’t be too harsh on yourself, though!

OTHER STUDENTS' SHOWS

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Scott Mills ofRadio 1 fame

PRESENTINGPresenting a show is the core skill needed at any radio station. Most people will interact with the station via the presenter, and they will ultimately set a station’s image.

LINKSA link (the chat between the songs that isn’t a feature) is the bread and butter of presenting. Each link you ever do needs to have structure. Whether it’s ten seconds or two minutes long, you still need to know exactly what message you’re putting across. You need to know what to say at the beginning, middle and end of your link – and you need to know all of this before you start it.

Always remember, simplicity is key here! Don’t overload the audience with Always remember, simplicity is key here! Don’t overload the audience with information and put your most important information at the beginning andthe end of links - this is what your audience will remember the most.

It’s also important that you try and show personality in whatever you’re saying – especially if it’s the station’s name or your own! If you can make the most boring radio link sound interesting, then you’re doing it right. This doesn’t mean to say that you should change your voice or personality, though: you just need to bring it to the fore and ensure that it comes though: you just need to bring it to the fore and ensure that it comes across to your listeners.

Saying our station name in every link is really important. Although you might feel as if you’re constantly saying it, the average listener might have only been listening since the last song was played. A simple rule to always remember here is to never assume that the listener has been listening for more than one song.

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Again, your vocabulary should be your own, and not that of another DJ! Don’t say anything that you wouldn’t say off the air, and avoid radio clichés.avoid radio clichés.

You need to know yourself inside out to portray yourself well to your listeners. With this in mind, you need to work out what parts of your personality you will be portraying to your audience. While it might seem odd, it can really help to draw up a list of what your character is going to be – even though it’s still you!

Having said this, it’s OK for you to exaggerate your personality for the radio. Many presenters use this technique, acting louder and more condent on Many presenters use this technique, acting louder and more condent on the radio than they are in everyday life.

PLANNINGWhile a lot of the most successful radio shows on stations like Radio 1 and Talksport seem to be random and spontaneous in their nature, this is practically never the case. These shows are, in fact, very well planned! The beauty in programmes such as these is that they stick to a structure and plan – and it’s actually this plan that allows the presenters to seem like they’re ‘just having a laugh’ while they’re on air.

It is true that presenters like Chris Moyles and Scott Mills on Radio 1 (two It is true that presenters like Chris Moyles and Scott Mills on Radio 1 (two prime examples of this style of show) don’t always stick to their structures. However, they do adhere to them 90% of the time – and means that their shows have enough identity and cohesion to accommodate the spontaneous and funny moments that have become their trademarks. If you plan your show, there’s no obligation to stick to it – if you do have a loose plan, though, you’ll be sure to have more fun and get more listeners! listeners!

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PROMOTIONWe know what you’re doing at SMUC Radio, and that you’re doing a great job – but the chances are that the average student on campus won’t know this. Promotion is more important than ever in radio, but technology is also making it all easier than ever! What’s important to remember here is that your enthusiasm will shine through no matter what medium you’re using, so before you begin promoting, make sure you care about your show. This enthusiasm will rub off onto others very quickly. It’s also show. This enthusiasm will rub off onto others very quickly. It’s also important to think about who your audience is before you start promoting. Who are they, and how can you get their attention?

Here are a few ways to promote yourself:

• Facebook/Twitter – Social networking makes promotion to students very easy. Why not set up a facebook page and a twitter account for your show? Photos are a brilliant way of promoting yourself – you could work these into competitions if you wanted to, which would then force people to likeinto competitions if you wanted to, which would then force people to likeyou or follow you to get involved!

• Video – we have a great camera that we can lm you on, and are always keen to use it. Video is becoming increasingly important in radio, so make sure you’re using this to your advantage.

• Word of mouth – simply talking to people about your show will often get you more listeners! Leading a rich social life at university will denitely help your prospects in radio, an industry in which networking is very help your prospects in radio, an industry in which networking is very important.

Before you publish anything promotional online, make sure you speak to the station manager about it. They’ll be able to give you official graphics to use and help get you more followers and likes. Your group is still representing the station, remember – with this in mind, make sure that you aren’t swearing in promos and doing anything that would be considered unacceptable on air. The fact that any form of promotion is considered unacceptable on air. The fact that any form of promotion is representing the station also means that the station manager does have a right to edit it and change things. If they request admin rights to anything, you will need to give them these!

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STYLEThere are many different ways to present a radio show. Different production styles will send out different messages to your audience and are therefore an important part of your show’s identity! The differing use of production techniques is what separates a Capital FM drive-time show with a Sunday evening Radio 4 show, for example.

There are a lot of choices that you can make as a DJ with regards to style. Some of these choices will be made by the station that you’re working Some of these choices will be made by the station that you’re working for - at SMUC Radio our identity is very important, as we are still in our formative years as a radio station to some extent. Because of this, our idents and jingles are very important to us, and must be played every 3 songs. We also require you to use the beds that we have provided at all times when we’re not playing music. If you were working for a station such as Radio 4, however, these beds and jingles wouldn’t be required as often.as often.

While some aspects will be dictated for you, there are still a lot of other choices that you need to make as a DJ. These are just a few examples, but there are many more choices:

• Talking over music – if you listen to a few different stations, you’ll realise that there are many different approaches to introducing music. Some will choose to talk over it right up until the lyrics start, while others will allow more time for the intro. This is entirely your choice. Fast-paced will allow more time for the intro. This is entirely your choice. Fast-paced shows will often talk over the start and the end of tracks, whereas more mellow ones might choose to not talk while music is playing.

• Interaction between DJs – how do you want to interact with the other DJs on your show? Do you want there to be a lead presenter, or would you prefer the show to be more conversational and loose? This is something that is well worth discussing before you go on air. While sounding natural is important, sometimes just going into the studio and chatting as usual is important, sometimes just going into the studio and chatting as usual isn’t always the right technique.

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• Interaction with listeners – how do you want to interact with your listeners? Do you want to talk to them directly, or refer to their texts and emails? Will you have recurring callers and ‘friends of the show’ or use a completely random selection? Listen to Iain Lee’s radio shows (google ‘Pocket Radio Show Live’ to hear the show that he broadcasted from SMUC Radio) to hear how he interacts with his listeners – he does it in a very unique way. Compare this with most Radio 1 shows – can you notice a unique way. Compare this with most Radio 1 shows – can you notice a difference?

PRACTISE MAKES PERFECTIf you can take all of this advice this into account, you’ll know what it takesto be a DJ. All of these skills are useless, however, if you don’t practisethem. This is the most important of all of the skills mentioned! It takes a lotof time to make excellent radio, even if you have all of the skills that we’ve mentioned here already. Don’t get disheartened if you’re not makingincredible radio straight away, though. The most important thing is to keepimproving, whether you’re doing that quickly or slowly!improving, whether you’re doing that quickly or slowly!

BE PROACTIVEMake sure you’re practising often and taking the opportunities that come your way. If you have an opportunity to interview, present or produce in any context then take it – we have plenty of equipment which you can make use of. Whatever you’re doing at SMUC Radio, though, make sure that you enjoy it – radio is supposed to be fun!

If you demonstrate these skills, you should be able to build up an audience for your show. But how do you keep your listeners once they’re there?

Iain Lee - an excellent call-in show presenter

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g Once people are listening to your show, make sure you give them a reason to stay tuned in. People like to feel included when they listen to a show. They also need an incentive to listen – if you don’t give them one, why shouldn’t they go and do something else?

• Involving your listeners – features and phone-ins are some of the best ways to do this. People won’t always get in touch. Think about why this could to do this. People won’t always get in touch. Think about why this could be – is your feature interesting enough to your audience? If your listening gures are low, then it can be tough to get people to phone in. It’s OK to make up messages if you aren’t quite getting the response you were expecting – Scott Mills has admitted to doing this before! However, you must never make up competition winners.

• Trailing your show – once you’ve lled your show up with good features, make sure you let people know what’s coming up. You don’t need to be too make sure you let people know what’s coming up. You don’t need to be too precise with when the features are coming as long as you’re not lying to the listeners – if you say that something’s ‘coming up soon’ then make sure you get to it within about 15 minutes. Avoid saying ‘in 5 minutes’ or ‘in 10 minutes’ as your listeners will feel more irritated if you then play a feature later than this.

• Don’t talk for too long – radio is a passive medium. This means people will usually stop paying attention to your shows after you talk for certain usually stop paying attention to your shows after you talk for certain amount of time – this can be as short as 30 seconds! Keep what you’re saying clear and concise, and save the banter for your features. Even these should still be short though. The ideal amount of time for a link should be about 30 seconds to a minute, while a feature should last for about 2 minutes.

KEEPINGLISTENERS

WHY PEOPLETURN OFF

We want to sound professional at all times on SMUC Radio – for this reason, there are a few things we need you to refrain from doing on air! Although people usually stop listening or reasons beyond your control (ie leaving the room, prior arrangements etc.), what you do on the radio will determine how long people listen for. These guidelines are for your own good, as avoiding these things will increase your listenership over time…time…

• In jokes/talking about or solely to or about your friends – this one tops the list! You want to include all of your listeners – if you only talk about or to your friends on air, then these are the only people who will end up listening to it. Think carefully about whether what you’re discussing is going to be entertaining to everyone – something that you would discuss with your friends at the pub is not always going to make good radio. radio. Libellous comments and discussion of students not associated with SMUC Radio will not be tolerated - see the rules on page 16.

• Discussing listening gures – with Livestream, you can see how many listeners are tuning into your show. This is great in many ways, but don’t mention to your audience. If your gures are low, then try promoting yourself more, and come up with more ideas for your show – they will come! Talking about it will not help anything – although if you have an exceptionally high audience count (for student radio this would probably exceptionally high audience count (for student radio this would probably be higher than 80 or 90) then it’s OK to mention it very occasionally.

• Discussing broken equipment – the listener doesn’t need to know if there are problems in our studio, and they won’t really care about them anyway!

• Talking about mistakes – everyone makes mistakes, and if you don’t talk about it on the radio then the chances are that the audience hasn’t even noticed. If you do talk about mistakes then you’re making yourself and the noticed. If you do talk about mistakes then you’re making yourself and the station look bad, so just move on from it! (The exception to this rule is swearing – if you do swear on air accidentally, then immediately apologise to your listeners. OFCOM would always rather that you apologise!

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RADIO ETIQUETTE Imagine you are talking to just one listener. Radio is a personal medium and listeners should feel that you’re talking directly to them. Don’t refer to your listeners as a group or a collective.

Another key rule to remember with your audience is to never assume that the listener has been listening for more than one song. After any song has nished at any point in your show, you need to assume that they want tonished at any point in your show, you need to assume that they want toknow three things:

1. What show am I listening to?

2. What station is this?

3. Why should I keep listening?

You need to answer these questions after almost every song that is played to ensure that you keep your listeners!

KEEPING THE ILLUSIONRadio can make people forget what they’re doing, where they are and even that they’re listening to the radio! Don’t ruin this illusion by talking about things that they can’t see or don’t know. With this in mind…

• Don’t discuss technical problems – if you have any, simply make a joke about it and carry on. Discussing then makes the station sound unprofessional, which is exactly what we don’t want! Don’t discuss technical processes either. For example, never say ‘I’m just cueing up technical processes either. For example, never say ‘I’m just cueing up the next track now’. This will break the illusion and remind them thatyou’re broadcasting from a tiny room. If you’re about to say something like this, stop and ask yourself: ‘does the listener need to hear this?’

• Dead air – 5 seconds of dead air will seem like an eternity! 10 seconds will cause people to retune or switch off. Make sure you never broadcast this!

STATION BRANDINGPeople listen to radio when they want to – most people don’t tune in for specic shows. Because of this, your show isn’t stand-alone, it’s part of the larger sound of SMUC Radio. The station must have a consistent sound so that every time they turn on they get the same station sound which they will come to identify with us. This means that you must:

• Use only the station’s branding, and use it regularly (ie jingles, idents etc)

•• Trail the station – this means that you need to plug upcoming events, and other shows that you know are coming up.

• Thank the previous presenters at the start of your show. Bringing them in for the last link of your show also provides great continuity and can spice up your show, so why not do this?

• Use beds at all times while speaking on air. Try listening to a station like Radio 1 – you will very rarely hear silence in the background. Beds help to give us a far more professional sound!give us a far more professional sound!

PRODUCTION RULES1. Your show must have a news segment in it every hour.

2. If there is not music playing then there should be a bed playing underneath any discussion. The only exception to this rule is if you have a listener calling in. 3. Music must take up at least half of your show.

4. There will be no ‘dead air’ at any point – the listener should always be able to hear something.

5. Do not discuss the technical aspects of radio on air – don’t break the illusion of radio for your listeners!

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RULESg Whenever you’re on air, you are representing SMUC Radio. That means that whatever happens in your time slot is your responsibility, and no one else’s! While we’re keen for our shows to be exciting, forward-thinking and ground-breaking, SMUC Radio has a strict code of conduct that must be observed at all times. Breaks of these rules will be noted and there will be consequences: the severity of these consequences will be decided by the Station Manager.

These rules apply to you and any guests you have on air – you are responsible for whoever is on your show and whatever happens in it, so make sure everyone involved understands these rules!

Here are our rules:

1.1. Any case of libel, no matter how minor, will be taken very seriously. You are not permitted to discuss students who are not involved with SMUC Radioon air. Not only is this potentially illegal and potentially upsetting, it is of no interest to your listeners.

2. There is to be absolutely no swearing on air at any time, in any circumstance and on any show.

3. There will be no references made to drinking, smoking or drug takingtaking on air.

4. Offensive humour has no place on SMUC Radio. Be very careful with sarcasm on air - be warned that your audience won’t necessarily know when you’re being sarcastic, so make it very obvious if you are!

5. Politics, religion and race to be treated with extreme caution, and there will be no serious debate about these on air without prior consent from the station manager. In any case, manager. In any case, ensure that the audience know that any opinions voiced are yours, and not those of SMUC Radio.

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