The Soft Sell: How Soft is Too Soft? You Decide

Recently I was interviewed by Dan Tritle, the Morning Edition host on WCAI in Woods Hole, Mass. The primary goal was to publicize an upcoming booksigning at the Cape Cod Maritime Museum in Hyannis. But mostly we chatted about sailing, and writing, and what I love about both.

It was a fun discussion, and Dan (as promised) did announce the booksigning after airing the interview, even though you won’t hear it on the recording. But after listening to the interview (“live” on the radio and then again just before writing this post), it occurred to me that I hadn’t done a very good job of getting out my intended message.

Interviews aren’t just about talking about ourselves and our passions. They’re about promoting our events and our books. I am completely turned off by pushy salesmen, but I think in this interview I went too soft on the soft sell. I really enjoyed our discussion, which is hardly surprising: we were talking about ME, sailing, and writing. What’s not to love?

But I wasn’t there to enjoy myself, I was there to get a message out. And it was too easy for listeners to forget or ignore why I was on the Cape, why I was on the radio, and why I had written another book—what was the name of it again?

Listen to the interview: Carol-WCAI-062112

I’ve never liked the sound of my own voice, so it’s hard to have much perspective on this. What do you think? Is this soft sell too soft? Leave your thoughts as a comment below.