Unfiltered Thoughts

2022.01.21 – S2021 – 0386 - Slow-Speed Speed Traps
·        By itself, reading slowly does not make you sound more authoritative or serious. You still have to understand the content, have intentional intonation, proper pronunciation, a sense of context and so on.·        And neither does a slow read, by itself, make a script easier for a listener to understand. Telling a tale like a tortoise may actually make it more difficult to absorb – the listener becoming so frustrated with your relaxed reading rate they’re disengaged with the content. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.20 – S2020 – 0385 - Slowing Down To Highlight Importance Saying a single word or phrase slower, slightly elongating its pronunciation, highlights it within a sentence and so can be used as part of your arsenal to highlight its importance.  These variable speeds contrast with the text around it, and therefore take on additional significance. ·        “The cost is over one-billion pounds…”·        “The death toll stands at fifty-thousand people”·        “The statue is over 100-metres high”. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.19 – S2019 – 0384 -The Message Given By ‘Slowing Your Talking’·        Slower speed may add tension, or suspense before a surprise, (and you can use the pause – which we discuss later - as a ‘drumroll’ before a punchline, or a release)·        A slower speed is often required for a video voiceover, to give the viewer time to absorb any images or graphics on screen·        Complex, sadder or formal content may benefit from a slower, calmer pace ·        Slowing your pace will add accuracy and clarity – there’s less chance of a mumble or a stumble…·        … it will allow better ‘belly breathing’ and cause more voice resonance (we covered all this in some depth previously) and may make you sound older and more authoritative.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.18 – S2018 – 0383 - The Message Given By ‘Slowing Your Talking’·        Slower speakers can be seen as ‘slow-witted’, overly-thoughtful and lacking in confidence…·        Or as so super-confident they can go at their own speed, despite what others may think, they may be thoughtful and considering every nuanced word in what they say. Again the context and content of your message will help you decide which image you want to project.·        Or be perceived as tired - as though the speaker is bored with the topic and disinterested. And in the same way as excitement in the speaker could evoke excitement in the listener, the same goes for boredom… and a listener may switch off. After all don’t you read a bedtime story to a toddler in a slow, quiet voice…?·        Slow reads signify seriousness - perhaps gravitas, perhaps in presenting a shocking piece of breaking news that listeners may not quite believe or have trouble taking in. “Princess Diana has been seriously injured in a car crash in Paris…” ·        Slower readings are often used for quality brands. It suggests reassurance, stability, confidence and luxury – perhaps for banks, jewellery, desirable cars and the like. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.17 – S2017 – 0382 - EXTREMES OF SPEED - The Slower Read
EXTREMES OF SPEED - The Slower Read
“Slow down, you move too fast, You got to make the morning last”The 59th Street Bridge Song (“Feelin’ Groovy”), Simon & Garfunkel 1966
If you want to communicate an important point well, naturally, you may need to fight the urge for urgency. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.16 – S2016 – 0381 - The Speed of T&Cs
These ‘disclaimer statements’ are often heard at the end of an ad … so, after the enticing offer comes the ‘boring bit’ and information on the limitations.
Let’s be honest, the client doesn’t want to highlight this detail and certainly doesn’t want to spend vital airtime having it read at the same speed as the main deal.
But in 2008 the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority ruled[1], perhaps not unreasonably, that disclaimers on radio adverts must be read out slowly enough for people to understand them.
It’s after a Vodafone advert, promoting a mobile phone package that included "unlimited" phone calls, ended with the following qualification:
"Subject to status, availability and connection to 18-month contract. Unlimited calls to landlines or Vodafone Mobiles only. Fair-use policy, terms and 60-minute call cap applies."
A listener said they didn’t understand what was said. Vodafone said that it was usual to summarise qualifications to claims or offers in radio adverts in this way and the qualifications were read out by an actress in her natural voice and were neither speeded up in post-production nor spoken any more quickly than those in similar adverts that needed to convey a number of points (such as those relating to financial services products). They also said, again not unreasonably, that the CAP (Broadcast) Radio Advertising Standards Code (Code) made no specific mention of the speed at which qualifications should be spoken. But the ASA disagreed, saying that as they were delivered too quickly, the important terms and conditions were not clearly audible and the advert could mislead listeners, contrary to rule 3 of their Code.
Then in 2017, another communications company, Plusnet, had its radio ads banned[2] for saying terms and conditions too quickly. One ended with this 25-word disclaimer, crammed into five seconds[3]:
"Prices may change. 18 month contract. New customers in low-cost areas only. Traffic prioritisation applies. See plus.net/traffic. Terms apply."
Another concluded:
"Standard UK minutes and texts. Prices may change. Rolling monthly contract. Offer ends 14th of March. Terms apply. See Plus.net/mobile."
[1] https://uk.practicallaw.thomsonreuters.com/1-383 946?transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default) [2] https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/plusnet-radio-ads-banned-saying-terms-conditions-quickly/1435011 [3] Hear that advert here: https://soundcloud.com/simon-gwynn-737111524/plusnet-radio-ad?utm_source=clipboard&utm_campaign=wtshare&utm_medium=widget&utm_content=https%253A%252F%252Fsoundcloud.com%252Fsimon-gwynn-737111524%252Fplusnet-radio-ad Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.15 – S2015 – 0380 - Fast Talking Speed Traps 2·        A fast read can lead to reduction in intonation, leading to a machine-gun fire style as you rush to squeeze more script into fewer seconds·        If you are reading quickly, you have less time for your eyes to ‘read ahead’; and your brain to process what’s coming up … which could lead to more tongue-tied talking·        Saying a word or phrase faster tells your listener that it is ‘insignificant information’ (remember we covered this in the chapter on intonation) and is included for ‘background’ or context. You’re communicating the message that what you are saying is unimpressive, uninteresting. Is that really the impression you want to give them? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.14 – S2014 – 0379 - Fast Talking Speed Traps
Some people speak fast naturally and can still be understandable and engaging. But:·        If you read a script too fast, then for the listener it might be like watching the landscape from an express-train window: they get a general idea, but not a full understanding. To use another analogy: they will be gobbling down your nuggets rather than digesting them·        If you talk too fast, there’s a chance people will miss things, the detail about a product, service, idea or news story. What you say becomes a ‘wall of words’·        You may have less precise articulation and intonation, with words running into one another, and a greater chance of verbal slips and trips (indeed if you stumble too often, it may be a warning to slow down!) TV presenters usually have an easier time as viewers can subconsciously lip-read, watch facial expressions or even put on the subtitles. There is no such help for your listeners to radio or podcasts, so you need to help them as much as you can. This means speaking clearly and being careful technically. If you are able to deliver word-rich content rapidly whilst still losing enviably-little on clarity, you may find yourself a good niche Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.13 – S2013 – 0378 - The Message Given By Talking Fast The Message Given By Talking Fast·        Fast talkers are often seen as confident and clever. It’s almost as though they have so much great content to share that they can’t wait to get it all out….·        Or they can be perceived as nervous and excitable, unable to control themselves, “letting their tongue run away with them”. So, think of the image you are giving when you rattle off like a cattle-market auctioneer: verbal dexterity or internal insincerity? And if you give the impression that you are nervous, then won’t the audience perhaps pick up on that and feel nervous themselves? ·        Faster talking might suggest action, excitement, urgency, energy and pace in the script or character and that mood can be conveyed to the listenerPhrases and sentences read qu ickly may suggest that they are ‘throwaway’ or contain unimportant information. That may be what you want the listener to feel (“it’s boring background blah-blah, I’ve said it before, but I have to include it”), in which case great. But it’s incongruous to quickfire, complex content. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2022.01.12 – S2012 – 0377 - Being Chased By The Music ·        You are being ‘chased by the music’ Many presenters like to talk with music running underneath them. Such a track is called a ‘bed’. It makes them feel safe and less exposed as they can pause for a moment and know that there’s no silence or ‘dead air’. But music beds can encourage someone to talk too fast as presenters confuse pace for ‘momentum’ or ‘excitement’.
Although your delivery should mirror the bed (a lugubrious read over a dance track would sound as disconnected as a motor-mouth over a mindfulness melody), don’t let the music force you into speeding up so much that you garble. That is, don’t let it ‘chase you’.
Increasing the pace you talk, won’t necessarily increase the momentum or excitement of what you are talking about: doing something that’s not interesting faster, does not make it more interesting One more thing, if the final commercial will have music with it, always ask to hear it, so you can match your speech rate and rhythm with that of the music – so when the producer lays you down on the bed (so to speak), it ‘fits’ snuggly. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.