Just got a call from a local producer to appear on Chicago Tonight to discuss whether this is Chicago's "Shining Moment." (Obama, Olympics etc.). I am developing new news and commentary magazine for the city (not a traditional startup, I know) at WindyCitizen.com. Never been on TV before. Anyone done this sort of "expert" appearance before? I'm a little nervous and wondering how best to wedge in a pitch for my project.
Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
1–10 of 17 posts
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#2I've never done this either so I'm not a good one to suggest advice.
Why not ask the producer or the interviewer in advance? If I were them, I'd want to know if a guest was going to "wedge in a pitch". Rather than surprise them, get them to help you.
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#3The best reference to the magazine will be when they announce your title and affiliation (and possibly print the title/affiliation at the bottom of the screen), so make sure they know clearly that you're the "Editor of WindyCitizen.com" (or whatever) and that they spell it correctly.
Beyond that, the other chance you might get is when/if they shoot B-roll footage of you working at your computer. Make sure you've got your site loaded on the screen, with the logo clearly visible.
Finally, if there's a good (not-awkward) spot in the interview to mention a story that appeared on WindyCitizen.com, you could say something like, "Actually, we did a story on WindyCitizen.com just recently about that very thing and we found that...."
Remember, the not-awkward part is key. Sometimes you may just end up being a small part of the producer's vision for the story and your own project doesn't ever get mentioned. Don't worry about that too much. If you do a good job anyway and help out the producer, it's likely you'll start getting called back for other interviews (possibly even by other news organizations) and you'll start to build a reputation.
Good luck!
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#4Just remember, you're the expert. They're calling you there for your experience, so you don't have to be anything than yourself and share what you know and your thoughts.
It probably depends on content for a way to wedge in the pitch-- but I wish you lots of luck!
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#5I've never done this either so I'm not a good one to suggest advice. Why not ask the producer or the interviewer in advance? If I were them, I'd want to know if a guest was going to "wedge in a pitch". Rather than surprise them, get them to help you.
I had a 20 minute pre-interview with one of the producers a little while ago. Went well.
Just got my hair cut. The lady at Great Clips wished me well. So I've got that going for me.
And I had my people pull up some fun facts in case I need to reach into the quiver for something good.
Time to get some clothes together. The producer said business casual.... but my wardrobe goes from casual straight to suits....let's see what I can turn up...
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#6I havent been on TV, but i had to speak at audiences a few times and i guess its the same. With some of us its just natural. We just don't care and seem very confident. I don't know how to directly help you except to say that you shouldn't worry about anything and stay as cool as possible and concentrate on what you are doing. I don't know if it helps, but it's the best thing i can think of, there is really no secret in speaking to people, its a skill like any other, and some learn it easy and some learn it hard. So just take your mind off of the worries and concentrate on your job. Maybe in my case is my ability not to care if i make a fool of my self. I know its hard for most people, but not caring what others think to some extend gives people great confidence it the way they act. Its normal, stage fever is a natural break mechanism and overcoming it might be hard. Maybe if you think of your self as a successful person(Im on TV, that means im cool) you will act cool and calm. I don't know, i never thought of it seriously till this moment. Hope i didn't confuse you even more.
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#7I've never done this either so I'm not a good one to suggest advice. Why not ask the producer or the interviewer in advance? If I were them, I'd want to know if a guest was going to "wedge in a pitch". Rather than surprise them, get them to help you.
I had a 20 minute pre-interview with one of the producers a little while ago. Went well. Just got my hair cut. The lady at Great Clips wished me well. So I've got that going for me. And I had my people pull up some fun facts in case I need to reach into the quiver for something good. Time to get some clothes together. The producer said business casual.... but my wardrobe goes from casual straight to suits....let's se…
Suit - Tie - Jacket = business casual. If I were you I'd just show up wearing the suit and lose the jacket and/or tie if they recommend it.
Also, no white shirts or finely-patterned ties, since those can look bad on camera. Come to think of it, take a spare change of clothes just in case.
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#8Earlier quoted context omitted.
I had a 20 minute pre-interview with one of the producers a little while ago. Went well. Just got my hair cut. The lady at Great Clips wished me well. So I've got that going for me. And I had my people pull up some fun facts in case I need to reach into the quiver for something good. Time to get some clothes together. The producer said business casual.... but my wardrobe goes from casual straight to suits....let's se…
Suit - Tie - Jacket = business casual. If I were you I'd just show up wearing the suit and lose the jacket and/or tie if they recommend it. Also, no white shirts or finely-patterned ties, since those can look bad on camera. Come to think of it, take a spare change of clothes just in case.
That's exactly what I'll do. Great plan. They did warn me against white shirts, so I'm on top of that one.
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#9I've never done this either so I'm not a good one to suggest advice. Why not ask the producer or the interviewer in advance? If I were them, I'd want to know if a guest was going to "wedge in a pitch". Rather than surprise them, get them to help you.
I had a 20 minute pre-interview with one of the producers a little while ago. Went well. Just got my hair cut. The lady at Great Clips wished me well. So I've got that going for me. And I had my people pull up some fun facts in case I need to reach into the quiver for something good. Time to get some clothes together. The producer said business casual.... but my wardrobe goes from casual straight to suits....let's se…
Maybe you could buy some clothes...I don't know.
Re: Ask YC: Doing first TV appearance tonight. Advice?
#10Are you an avid watcher of that program? If not, I suggest you take the time to watch the program a day or so before. This way you can prepare yourself for the interview style the show uses, and can see how they sign off on guests(i.e. you don't want to be seen doing something stupid as the camera zooms out).