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Can This Marriage Be Saved?. Producers and Promoters. Time Is On Our Side. The Promoter:.
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Can This Marriage Be Saved? Producers and Promoters
The Promoter: Why are we always the last to find out? We can’t let the public know about a program if we find out the week before it airs. We need to know about a program being produced well before it’s done. This gives us plenty of time to work on a plan and give you a time line. Hey, we didn’t just pick deadlines out of the air, you know. We’re trying to meet them too - for printers, journalists, media outlets, listings services. Calm down! We don’t necessarily need finished written products (press releases, descriptions) by deadline. We can write them. We just need some information from you. We’re here to help, not be a pain in the . . . . .
The Producer: Promo? I thought YOU were doing the promo! Hey, can’t you see I’m doing a show here? I’m an artist!!! Yes, I can use your help. If I don’t get this show done you can tap dance “Tea For Two” in front of the camera for sixty minutes! You know, I can do an hour-long program, but I may be pretty clueless about producing a :30 promo. It’s not just a show. It’s MY show! I’d like outdoor, signs on busses, newspaper ads, radio spots, cable TV, a dedicated web site, and would you mind wearing a sandwich sign promoting “Needlepoint: The Barry Bonds Story” whenever you’re out shopping?
The Promoter: Titles are one of the first things a viewer sees before making a decision what to watch. Would you watch “Kinkaid’s Auto Repair Service Presents Men in Tights on Stage Performing Something Very Pretty But a Bit Boring” It doesn’t matter how creative your title is. A listings grid only has so much room. Make your first few words count. They should give a viewer an idea of what the show is about. Here’s your choice now: “Kinkaid’s Auto Service”. Huh??? Stick to one title! When you change it the night the program is airing, you make viewers think we aired the wrong show!
The Producer: I should have been an internist, because I love working with colons: “Killing Us Softly With His Song: Another Barry Manilow Pledge Special”… “No Hair, Kids, No Drawers, : The Britney Spears Story, An American Masters Special”… But the title’s gotta say who’s involved, what they’re doing, and where it’s taking place. And, oh yeah, it should be apparent that it’s a television program. And it should reflect the local aspect of this show… Okay, I will admit that occasionally the producer isn’t the best one to come up with a title. It’s kinda like poetry, isn’t it? We should have talked about this earlier. It’s gotta be captioned in an hour and a half!
The Promoter: Come on! Nobody reads Penthouse for the stories! They want pictures! I just watched your documentary and you have an original photo of Geronimo in there! Why didn’t you give it to me too? No time like the present! When you’re on a shoot, you’ve got a great opportunity, take a few photos. Or, heck, let me come along and I’ll take them! Screen grabs don’t always cut it! Ask our graphics person!
The Producer: Uhh… How about a screen grab? I have to admit, when I’m on a video shoot, getting a photo is the last thing on my mind. Thanks for sending the picture with the press kit. Is that a shot from my program, or did you just, like, grab it off someone’s desk? And if so, do they work here, or was it a business that has no relation to us or the program? The photo looks great. Let me help with the caption.
The Promoter: Our air is one of the best vehicles we have to promote. We are capturing the eyes of people who watch and appreciate what we do. And we have them right now! Yeah, yeah, you love the fact that this battle is important because it’s the first time uniforms were sewn with spun thread instead of horse hairs, but don’t you think the majority want to watch because it was the battle that ended a 40-year war? There are standard lengths that we need. Please leave about 5 seconds at the end so we can tag the promo. We need the clean promos so we can use them again. Hey, I wasn’t hired as a producer! I don’t know nothing about that edit suite!
Is anyone watching promos these days? All the other networks put the shows back-to-back. The Producer: I’ll produce the promo…but can you run it often, and where it makes sense? Do you have enough influence with traffic to make that happen? Hey, I’m pretty busy. Can I just give you a :25 excerpt of the show that you can tag? Gotta go, off to lunch, ta-ta-for-now. Thanks for offering to do the promo. How about if I give you a one-sentence description of the program and identify two or three really short sound bites you can use? Or can you use a first draft of a script?
The Promoter: People love watching Tom Cruise jump on Oprah’s couch! Setting up interviews on local TV shows and radio stations is a great way to promote the show! Don’t start crying! It doesn’t have to be you. The host or one of the subjects works great too! But don’t pick the person who knows the least about the show and talks with a lisp! I know you have footage. What is making up that documentary? That TV show loves getting footage. Less work for them!
Well, sure, I can do a TV interview. My face should be pretty much healed up from the surgical peel by then, and my whistling nose, caused by my acute sinusitis, hardly ever drowns out my voice anymore.. The Producer: “It all started at a 100-watt radio station…” “Yes, and this program reminds me of a completely unrelated and tedious story…”
The Promoter: Enough already! Stop the last minute changes- we know it’s a work in progress and you’re an artist and all, but viewers tend to be upset when a program isn’t how it was described. Having to send out changes after the original information was sent out is like trying to stop a bullet once it’s been fired. This is especially true with titles. And get everyone on the same page. I just sent out the press release saying “90-minute documentary on how ice cream is made.” But the underwriter thinks he’s sponsoring a 30-minute show on the why chocolate is superior to vanilla. Send everyone to the Web? Have you seen our ratings for Lawrence Welk lately?
The Producer: I’m sorry, but there will probably be some changes right until the last minute. The technology allows it, and I’m going to take advantage of it. I know the release and the promo are done, but can we refer people to the Web site for changing information? I’m sorry if it complicates promotion, but the program’s the thing. If my late minute changes make a better program, I’m going to do them.
The Promoter: Give us a seat at the Production Meetings. Let us be there at the conception. Give us a production/shooting schedule. Incorporate the promotion plan into the show’s production schedule. Let us do the work! Give us a script or let us see a rough-cut a couple of months in advance. Give us a list of contacts and their addresses so we can do targeted promotion. Ideally, a show would be completed and evaluated before being scheduled.
The Producer: We know you promote lots of shows. But this one is special to us! Please be proactive. Come to me with questions about the production. I tend to get tunnel vision when I’m working on a production. Yes, ideally, a show would be completed and evaluated before being scheduled. But how often does that REALLY happen? All those ideas in the previous slide are great. If I’m excluding you, let me know and I’ll do better!
