How Much Does The Job Pay?
“It shouldn’t be about the money”.
That’s a phrase we heard a lot in the past. Maybe it’s been said to you.
In fact, it was so entrenched in radio’s psyche that we, as presenters, were afraid to ask “How much does the job pay?” in case asking the question was used against us.
As if radio was some sort of vocation and we had some nerve even requesting money for our services!
Here’s a shocker for you: If you pay a person well, they will work harder and better for you. Yes, we need to look after mental well-being and all that goes with it…but, on a purely financial angle: pay badly and you will get the appropriate response.
“What kind of salary are you looking for?” is another beauty. In other words “We will try and hire you for the lowest amount possible”. Presenters know this question and, as a starting point in a working relationship, it’s not a good look. Basically it is saying “We will try and pay you as little as we can”.
Imagine how a person would react to the opposite: “The salary is $___”. No head games. Just professional respect.
If you hire a presenter for peanuts, eventually they will give you the minimum effort. Despite their best intentions.That’s human nature. You have designated their ‘worth’ to the company as marginal so after the initial enthusiasm wears down they will respond accordingly. It happens eventually. The presenter is then fired for under-achieving and a replacement brought in for the same or LESS money (gotta save that cash!) Or perhaps, you can outsource a VT for even less! (Those VT people will work for next to nothing…right??)
Pay your presenters well. Stop trying to short change them. They know when they are being under valued. Invest in your presenters. THEY are your future. They will respond. They are the difference between you and Spotify/YouTube/Sky News!!
No amount of advertsing or spin will cover the cracks. When a listener finally decides to check out your station and hears a presenter going through the motions or lands upon a generic VT…they won’t be encouraged to come back again.
How much is that costing you?
By Nails Mahoney