In my almost 20 years of experience in production, it’s never occurred to me that someone might just give someone else a TV show to run.  Like anything else I can imagine, it’s a job. One that you work up to over time.  Now, you can become an executive producer through any number of paths. Not all of them are production or entertainment related but you do need to work up to it.  If you, like quite a few people I know, have your own idea that you’d like to see on TV, follow these steps: (these are also good for your web content, social media, live presentations, sales meetings, etc.)

1. Know your idea. I mean, really know your idea. Be able to answer questions you’d never dream of. Because once you go looking for sponsors, investors, and distribution outlets, they will ask and you better have the answer. Developing an idea takes time. Many ideas won’t make it through development because they just don’t hold up to all the questions.
   
   An example: for All About Business I knew what the first year of episodes would look like, how to approach the underwriting, what the production and distribution costs would be as well as how to expand the concept. All before I ever made my first phone call.
2. Know your audience. Who will watch this show? I would approach All About Business in a very different way if I intended the audience to be, say, kids. We actually did so in the mid-2000s with a pilot episode of a show called “Career Day.” Similar concept, very different show. Knowing your audience is crucial to understanding how to deliver your idea in a way that connects and resonates with your intended audience. We know with All About Business that the show is successful if businesspeople are watching and contacting one another as a result. And they are. So, you have to not only know who your audience is but also:
3. Know the reaction you want out of your audience. Do you want to educate, entertain, sell them something or leave them wanting more? If you don’t know what reaction you’d like out of your audience, you have no control over guiding them to that reaction. We want people to connect with, learn more about, and do business with the people we feature on All About Business. And so we direct everything we do towards achieving that goal. And it works!
4. Know your distribution platform. Outlets for content are numerous and get more so by the day. Is your idea right for television? Is it better online? As a book, radio show, or a series of live speeches? Or as a blog? Knowing how your idea fits into the distribution platform is crucial to finding, and engaging, your intended audience. If you have a small niche audience, creating a web platform just for them might be the perfect way to go. The All About Business audience is quite broad, so to that end we don’t limit the show to TV broadcast; but also have a presence online, in social media, and on the radio. Find out where your audience is, and be available for them when they want to find you.
5. Know your partners. You can’t do it alone. The production team you choose will have a heavy hand in whether your idea succeeds or not. Getting a show on television is hard, no guarantees there. But with so many web platforms to choose from there is no reason why a good idea directed towards a specific audience and well-produced can’t be successful online. No matter how good your idea is, poor production values will cheapen the look and feel of your show, and will turn your audience off. As YouTube continues to take over the world, studies show time and again that viewers prefer professionally produced content. If you are willing to invest the time and energy it takes to produce a show, invest a little more and produce it with the right people.

If you have an idea for a show and you’d like some more details on how to get started, please post a comment, e-mail me, or call me. Happy viewing!