Congratulations! We are all very excited you are appearing on the show! Strap in and hold on tight because this is an interview you won’t soon forget! Although this article is a bit wordy, it's broken it up into sections for an easy digest. No doubt, you have heard Sarah, Erik or Gary talk about the Webcast, the TRN Show and the WABC Show. Here we will explain each one. 

The webcast
The Travel Show Live webcast is a video webcast (it look similar to a tv show) that is produced and streamed Sundays from 5:00pm to 7:00pm EST. It follows a similar programming format as a standard tv talk show. The show is produced at the WABC studios in New York. While some segments every week are LIVE, we generally tape interviews for two episodes per week (some to air that day and the others to air the following Sunday). If you are appearing on this program,(either via phone or in studio) we ask that you prepare visual support (produced B Roll or still images). The webcast is streamed and then replayed for the next 7 days (until the next episode is produced). The video segments are uploaded to YouTube and also available ON DEMAND on the TSL video player. The average time spent watching our TSL channel online by consumers is 9 minutes.

WABC Radio Show
The WABC Radio show is produced and aired live every Sunday from 2:00pm until 4:00pm EST. It is produced from the WABC studios and follows a traditional talk radio format clock. Interviews segments are between 5 and 10 minutes in duration and can be phoned in by a guest (if they are unavailable to appear in studio). Travel Show Live reaches about a quarter of a million people every week in the core listening areas of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. 

TRN Radio Show
The TRN Show is the syndicated version of Travel Show Live that is distributed across the Talk Radio Network. Most of the interviews for the program are taped on Wednesday's from 12:30 to 2:20pm EST. Guest segments are between 5 and 10 minutes in duration and most guests appear via telephone. The TRN show is broadcast in about 27 markets reached anotehr 30,000 consumers per week.

Pre-Booking Research
To get prepared (or prepare your show pony) here are couple of articles in order of importance.

Article: Erik’s Bio Bullets
Article: Erik’s Mission

Booking Nuts and Bolts
Your primary producer from start to finish is Sarah Hastings. Daniel Sheppard assists, but for the most part, all correspondence will be with Sarah. 

Sarah Hastings- (515) 490-7138 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Materials Needed
In advance of your appearance, your segment or booking producer will request some collateral materials. We are constantly trying to streamline the process, but this system seems to work well so far. Please work with your producer to provide these materials, quickly and efficiently to insure an outstanding segment. All of the items listed below are needed to be in NY no later than one week before the appearance. With the exception of B Roll and perhaps Hi Res photos, we’d like to receive material electronically.

The following information is to be supplied for print purposes...

Guest Name (and pronunciation):
Guest Title:
Organization (as you would like it printed and read):
Guest Bio
Website (this is the site we will use in print and give on the show)
One pager overview (or history) of the destination or company
Primary subject matter to be discussed

Images
If the guest is appearing via the phone, a Hi Res headshot photo is needed. Because this appearane is online, the dimensions of the headshot should be:
JPG or PNG (150 dpi) 300 x 500 pixels 

In addition, we ask each guest (in studio or over the phone) to provide 6 (six) still images ot be used in the interview. All images should be general imagery that can be used anytime in the interview. They need to be JPG or PNG with the dimensions of about 500 x 500 pixels. 

B Roll
We cannot stress how important it is to have good B Roll. It enhances the appearance and gives the viewer a sense of "place" or familiarity when watching the interview. HOWEVER, B Roll should be produced. it needs to be overview types of imagery depicting the destination or product or service. It should be no longer than 4 minutes. The ONLY format we accept is  an .mov file less than200 mbs. This can be sent to us electronically using a free service (http://www.sendspace.com) or a data dvd is fine.  

You may mail or Fed Ex materials to:

WABC Radio
Attention: Erik Hastings
2 Penn Plaza 17^th Floor
New York, NY 10121

Phone: 212-613-3800

What Erik Is Looking For From His Guests
Erik is looking for guests that are passionate about their subject matter. This is a dynamic, fast-paced show and he wants those who can clearly articulate their message in a fun upbeat manner. This show (and this segment) is not a retrospective on the history of the place. Erik is on a mission to get people traveling more often. He wants his guest to understand that and provide lots of consumer triggers (culture, entertainment, family travel, green travel, budget-friendly) etc.

In Studio Guest Appearance
If you are appearing on the show in person, we prefer you arrive in New York no later than Saturday. Your producer will need the names of all people attending the interview by the Wednesday before your appearance. In addition, we will need the contact information of your lodging on Saturday.  We ask that you arrive at the studio no later than 90 minutes prior to your interview time. We have negotiated a special Hotel rate at the Grand Hyatt New York. All lodging arrangements must be made through the General manager’s Office. Here is the contact information, an initial email request is preferred.

Grand Hyatt New York

109 East 42nd Street
New York, NY 10017
(212) 883-1234

http://www.grandnewyork.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp

Matt Adams This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
General Manager
Office: 646-213-6695

His assistants name is Heather.

Studio Location
The show originates from 2 Penn Plaza on 7^th Ave between 31^st Street & 32^nd Streets in midtown Manhattan. Upon arrival, please call your producer from the lobby and we will escort you to the floor.  

If you are driving in, there is a parking garage on 31st Street between 7th and 8th aves. 

Wardrobe
The attire is business casual. Erik wears a jacket and shirt but no tie. 

Call In
If need be, we can accommodate phone guests during certain times of the show. One of the producers will give you an emergency call in number, but for the most part, we will call you three to four minutes before your scheduled interview time. We do not allow cel phones for call ins. Landlines only (unless extreme circumstances prevail).

Public Relations
In an effort to get the biggest number of eyeballs watching your appearance, we ask all guests to take part in a little PR. The following is a list of guidelines to help get the job done. As soon as you have the first (or only) date of your appearance, please issue a press release.

Article: Sample Press Release

Also we recommend, creating a dedicated landing page on your website. We suggest www.yourwebsite.com/travelshowlive. This is where we recommend you put the details of the upcoming interview and encourage your website visitors to watch it live.

The interview will be seen live on our Travel Show Live player. Your organization is free to cut and paste the code and embed it on your page. To see an example, click here.

Copy and paste the following code:

If the code does not work for any reason, you may get the code by clicking on the “Embed” link on any of our players on any one of our sites. We only use one layer for the show.

Note: The video (and audio stream) of Travel Show Live is 100% commercial-free. No video pre-rolls, no overlays, nothing. If we change our policy in the future, we will notify you in advance, however we do not foresee a change in our policy anytime in the future.

In addition to the page, we suggest incorporating our logo on your homepage to promote your upcoming appearance.

We also recommend you include information about your appearance on your social networking. Twitter and Facebook at a minimum.

The interview should be included in your eNewsletter as well as your partner information announcements.

After your appearance we suggest posting the video on your page. This can easily be done because we post all of our videos on you tube and they can easily be embedded. The name of our YouTube channel is HastingsTravel and can be accessed by going to www.youtube.com.hastingstravel

In addition, you may keep our player up as long as you like. And we suggest sending out another press release about the interview.

If you are podcasting your video interview can be distributed as a podcast.