A Great Tip From Dave Ryan

Randy Lane • April 20, 2011

No creative advice in this blog.  No amazing “must-do” bit.  In fact it’s about something that really won’t help your show tomorrow at all.  Here it is:

We morning show people have to leave a great tip.

What?  Okay, hear me out.  If you take your family out to Red Lobster, you’re gonna walk in there with your unmistakably rich and sexy voice and the face that’s been all over billboards and your website and you’re going to get recognized. 


Not just by the other customers, but by the server.  Or the hostess.  Or the manager.

And what do they do?  They rush back to the kitchen and say, “Oh my god!  Big Time Deejay is at table 7!  He ordered the Seaside Shrimp Trio and a Coors Light!”

Yes this really does happen.  You don’t always realize it, because for some reason, most servers don’t come right out and gush, “I just LOVE your show!  ‘Smack it and Win’ is my favorite!”

So when you leave, the question will come, “How much did they tip?”  If the answer is, “He left me a five-dollar bill on a $120 tab,” that ain’t good and everyone in the place will instantly know what a cheapskate you are.  An average tip is always fine, I suppose.

But to really get them talking about what a wonderful person you are, leave a big-ass tip.  Why not?  A little positive PR can’t hurt!  You can bet they’ll tell their friends for the next two weeks about how awesome and generous you are.

Yeah, I know it sucks that we morning people can’t just act like everyone else in public, but this is what we signed up for, right?  It could be worse.  You could work on a show so obscure that no one’s heard of you.

No, you didn’t expect a blog about tipping.  Just a little something to keep in mind next time you and your obnoxious buddies are out at TGI Fridays.  Next time I promise I’ll get to that amazing “must-do” bit.  Hint:  You’ll need your PD’s address and a can of gas.

-Dave Ryan

Click here to learn more about Dave.

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