To greet or not to greet
Oh those awkward opening moments… During live or recorded media interviews, should the interviewer welcome a guest and if so, what’s a good way to do it? What should the guest say in response, if anything? What if there are multiple guests? I recently saw an awkward TV moment where the three guests got into a lengthy and somewhat comical exchange of hellos with the host and even started greeting one another. And what if one of the guests doesn’t get to say hello and the others do… Where is Miss Media Manners when you need her?
About the only rule of thumb I’ve been able to cobble together over the years is one for interviewees: don’t speak unless spoken to. In other words, unless the host greets you, I think it sounds odd to say anything along the lines of “Glad to be here” or “thanks for inviting me”, etc.
Apart from that I would say to all parties involved: if you’re going to do any kind of greetings, keep ‘em natural and keep ‘em short.
Posted: January 24th, 2007 under Tips for Interviewees, Tips for Interviewers.