WJET’s New Weather Promo Let’s Viewers Do the Talking

By Paul Greeley
817-578-6324, Paul@NewsBlues.com

I’m a fan of real people in testimonial promos for local TV news.

We rarely see or hear from the end user of our product, so it’s a way to stand out in the market.

Too often, local TV news or weather promos consist of carefully scripted announcer copy telling viewers how terrific our product is.

So hearing real people say in their own words why they watch your local TV news is different, credible and memorable.

Sometimes, what they say could not be scripted by the best creative services producer. And if they could, it would not be as believable as when a real person says it.

Shooting man-on-the-street testimonials can be tricky. I try to keep production to a minimum so as not to overwhelm people. Just me and the cameraperson who might be some distance from the subject.

Sometimes, I tell them that while the camera person is adjusting his camera, we can just talk.

Of course, this is a way to make them feel relaxed while we’re recording the whole time.

I make sure I maintain eye contact with the person I’m talking to and listen very closely to what they’re saying, like we’re just having a real conversation.

Having the person look at you off camera also signals the viewer that this is a real person, not some actor looking into the camera.

Sometimes, something they say can lead to another question that provides more detail or insight.

If there is a crowd, I try to take the person off to the side for some privacy and better audio.

Make sure you get a good cross-section of people, young and old, man and women, etc.

If possible, I will try to have someone follow up behind me to get the person to sign the talent release forms.

In editing, I always font the person’s name and hometown.

Here’s the “producers cut” of a weather promo from WJET, Nexstar’s ABC affiliate in Erie, Pa.

Bender Labrozzi is the creative services director at WJET.

“Our station and our on air talent have really built a solid relationship with our community and we have been hosting different weather events and with meeting so many of our viewers and hearing the kind things they say I wanted to use some of their actual responses in a promo and for people who never appear on camera I thought they did pretty well,” Labrozzi says.