Catching Flies With Honey

In an age when etiquette and courtesy is dwindling while rudeness and arrogance is raging, it’s now even more important to show respect for others, even when they may not.  Doing so makes you stand out these days (which is sad – have we become that desensitized to rudeness and bad behavior?).  This week’s media interview tips include ways to show proper etiquette and make yourself stand out to radio program directors and others.  These tips are ones often applied by job seekers when going through job interviews and can also help you, the artist, in media interviews and in meetings with potential labels.

• Take the time to do a little research on the radio station or the organization where you will be interviewed.  Get to know the names of the people working there before even stepping foot in the door.

• Be courteous to receptionists.  This is especially true if you are meeting with a label that is considering signing you.  The executives may ask the receptionist whom they trust the most what his or her impression was of you.  If it’s not a good one, that can hurt your chances. 

• Never act arrogant or entitled, no matter what level of celebrity you reach.  In other words, you NEVER want to act “too big for your britches.”  I know a radio program director at a small station who refused to EVER play a particular artist (whom shall remain nameless) after he snubbed their station for a bigger station. 

• Be on time!  Not being on time sends the message that you think your time is more important than the other person’s time.

• NEVER take a call or read/send a text on your cell phone in the middle of an interview or a meeting.  Doing so indicates that you either don’t care about the opportunity at hand or that what the other person in the room is saying is of little importance to you.  Don’t keep looking at your cell phone either to check for messages.

• Don’t be a clock watcher as if you can’t wait until it’s time to get out of there.  (Again, don’t keep checking your cell phone…it may make the other person think you are checking the time).

• Always send a thank you note for the opportunity to come in for the interview.  You should send one to each and every person that was in your interview/meeting.  Always get the correct spelling of their names before writing the thank you notes.

Hopefully the above will help you not only to stand out and secure further interviews and opportunities, but will also help you to stay humble and earn the same respect you are nice enough to show others!  For more tips on media interviews and label meetings, check out the expanded edition of my book Advance Your Image, now available in paperback.  The paperback edition includes an appendix that provides guidelines for media interviews and guidelines for meetings with labels and music publishers.