General Tips - Helping you take the next step in radio

Radio is a very exciting world to work in, but also a very difficult industry to get into, so here are a few general tips to help you try to take the next step forward :

The very first tip to getting into radio is fairly simple but difficult to follow sometimes, NEVER GIVE UP!. Sometimes getting into radio is all about being in the right place at the right time, your letter or email reaching the right person at the precise moment they are looking for something you can offer, and that can only happen if you keep trying. Persistence mixed in with a bit of luck may bring you an opportunity, and that’s when you need the talent to make the most of that opportunity.

Try and do one constructive thing a day to help you make that next step. It could be anything from writing a letter to your local radio station offering help in any capacity, to searching for contacts to write to or just simply re-doing your CV. If you can get into a habit of doing something everyday, then you simply increase the chances of progressing.

Try all radio stations, don’t just try your local radio stations. A foot in the doorway is a foot in the doorway, regardless of where it is. And keep trying the same people on a regular basis. All programme controllers are extremely busy, so keep trying but don’t become a nuisance. If you have sent a letter/email already to a person, and they haven’t replied, wait a couple of months and try again.

Do cold call, don’t just wait for a job advertisement to write to a radio station, do it anyhow. If your work is good enough to catch their eye, they will get in touch. And if you are sending a demo of your work with a letter/email, then ask for feedback. It is always good to get another person’s opinion of your work, especially if they work in radio. If you do get feedback, then you can take on board what they have told you, and in turn send them a new demo that has incorporated what you have been told and again, you can ask them for more feedback. You can then hopefully start to build up some kind of “work relationship”. But don’t be a nuisance. Bide your time.

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