Being the Rodeo Clown is No Joke By John McBride What Exactly is a Rodeo Clown? When you serve in the role of public address announcer, you do more than just say who is playing. You are the information center, the de facto cheerleader, the concierge controller for first time visitors (who else tells them…
The #1 Announcer Tool is NOT the Microphone By Matthew C Wallace Why have a Toolkit My dad kept an overflowing, disorderly Sears Craftsman toolbox of ratchets, screwdrivers, needle-nose pliers and thingamajigs he credulously envisioned he would need one day. As an executive, I’ve carried around a flash drive of accumulated-over-time documents to the tune…
For Love Or Money By Matthew C Wallace Money – The Debate Money is a debate. Money is always a debate. We all want more. We don’t always get more. Money will forever remain a debate. However, money makes for a fun subject to tackle. The goal here is to sculpt a palatable value proposition…
Hot Mic By Matthew C Wallace The mic is ALWAYS hot OMG! You must be kidding, right? Everyone in this business knows this, no? How could this happen? Not paying attention? Lost focus for a tick? Seriously???? The Mic is Always Hot. Period! If you are in the box, at the table, under the tent, on the field, inside the truck,…
The “P” in P.A. is NOT Politics By Matthew C Wallace Polarizing Topics During my college years, the group of friends I ran with always maintained a standing rule of thumb on get togethers… NO DISCUSSING POLITICS OR RELIGION Why? Inevitably disagreement bubbled up, tempers flared and, rather than enjoying our time together, some floundered…
Respell In A Nutshell (Part 2) By Matthew C Wallace KISS In our prior article, Respell In A Nutshell, we dug into the why, the what, the options and so forth of respelling. What we really did not do is get into making it work. In part 2 of our discourse on phonetic transcription, we…
Respell In A Nutshell (Part 1) By Matthew C Wallace Announcers Need Pronunciation Announcers, experienced with Quick Facts or other pronunciation guides, already know how challenging they can be. Take a peek at the sample on the right. You can click on it for a closer view. The pronunciations are not too bad and, likely,…
Inspiration and Opportunity By John McBride Why Announcing? To me, two things stand out as to why I became enamored with being a Public Address Announcer: Inspiration and Opportunity. I believe this is largely true for anyone in any field. Something has to whet your appetite, and then you seek to satisfy that appetite. If…
Unskilled Labor? No Way! By Matthew C Wallace How Hard is Announcing? “Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to…” “Now Batting for Shortstop, Number 9, Jamie Erickson, …Junior, Number 13, Patricia Jones.” “Peters on the carry for 7 Yards. Tackled by Williams. Second down and 3.” “Penalty, Landers of Centerville College, 2 minutes for roughing,…
Punctuate! By John McBride Elevator Pitch Elevator Pitch is a term to describe selling a product or service in 15 seconds or less, as if you are granted an unforeseen opportunity in an elevator and no more than 15 seconds to create interest. Using this concept, I have formed an answer for the question: What…