Dan Janal | Publicity and PR Leads Blog

Saturday’s NY Times reported that Wendy’s has been cleared of any wrongdoing in an apparent hoax involving a woman who claims she found a finger in her chili. The article pointed out this woman has a long history of making claims against businesses.

The story was buried on Page 8. The original story — and subsequent pictures — were front page news on many newspapers and TV stations.

As a result, Wendy’s has lost millions.

So where’s the fairness? Shouldn’t the discovery of the hoax be played up as prominently as the original charge, which was clearly false?

This isn’t the first time a newspaper has placed a correction or and update to a sensational story inside the paper when the original cause was printed on the front page. Many people who were accused of crimes on the front page were cleared of the charges on page 2 or worse.

This blog won’t change anyone’s editorial policy, I’m sure, but it is time that the media acknowledge a long-standing problem. Why are they turning a blind eye to a problem that affects their credibility, which is their most important asset?

While sitting in the audience at Renee Grant-Williams’ Master Class for Singers in Nashville, I learned a valuable tip about connecting with the audience.

The format was simple: 30 singers would go on stage, one after the other and sing a song. Many brought their families to root them on from the audience.

But two odd things happened.

1. As people were introduced, no one applauded!
2. As people sang, some people talked to their friends in the audience.

I found both incidents to be extremely rude. I found myself immediately disliking the people who were talking –and it affected my view of their performances. “She can sing,” I thought of the person who talked non-stop to her boy friend in the row behind me, “but I just don’t like her.”

Beyond that, I realized two important chipping points for speakers.

1. Support your fellow speakers! Applaud them. Cheer them on.

2. Don’t disrepect speakers by talking during their presentations. You just might just tick off the meeting planner or the person who has the authority to buy more services from you!

With 30 pretty good singers, but only a few spots open for stardom, judges and audiences can afford to be very picky.

Today’s chipping point: Even if you have talent, you can annoy people and they don’t want to do business with you again — no matter how good you are!

One of the first conferences I attended in my quest to learn from the rest of the world was a one-day conference for singers offered by Renee Grant-Williams, of www.myvoicecoach.com who has trained hundreds of country singers including the Dixie Chicks.

I figured that if she can teach them a thing or two, I might learn something as well.

Other posts in my blog contain Renee’s insightful ideas.

But I also learned from the performers, who were mostly older teens and younger 20’s, almost all women singer wannabees.

After the instructional portion of the conference ended, the singers could perform one song for talent scouts who gave them feedback via paper, privately. So the format was pretty simple. The singer is introduced, goes on stage, sings the song and sits down. No Randy, Paula and Simon to offer comments live. They got their feedback in the mail.

Sitting in the audience, I picked up a number of tips after seeing about 30 people strut their stuff.

1. Most of the people walked up on stage, stared at the audience and waited for their song to start.

I realized this was a big problem. There was no connection between the audience and the performer. They looked like deer staring at headlights. No, maybe that’s wrong. They weren’t scared. They just didn’t look like they cared about me and whether I liked them or the song. They were just up there to perform. I think I’ve seen more connection with the cashier at McDonalds.

The six people who really wowed the audience approached the stage differently. They owned the stage. They spoke to the audience immediately. You can tell they wanted to have a good time and for you to have a good time.

When the good ones performed, they used the whole stage. The average ones stood in one spot and barely moved their arms. The good ones had an extra feeling of energy.

The Idol judges are always saying they are looking for someone with “It.” After seeing 30 performers who could all sing pretty well, the six who stood out clearly had “It.”

As speakers or presenters, it is imperative to develop that “It” factor that creates bonds with the audience immediately.

See the next post on “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Stage.”

Today’s chipping point: What are you doing to connect with your audiences?