One of the things that really helped me personally when starting out announcing, was going to listen to as many announcers as possible.  Whether it was listening to the P. A. announcer in the background on ESPN, HTS (now Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic), or going to a game, you could learn something from just about every announcer.

There were some good things I learned, and some bad things.  My style is a mixture of Marv Brooks (Washington Capitals), Rex Barney (Baltimore Orioles) and Tripp Morgan (Prince William Yankees/Cannons).  However there are little things that I use in my repertoire that came from other announcers, however some of those little things came from announcers who have many bad habits.  That means you can find good from the bad.

When you go to another facility, listen to the announcer and what he or she is saying.  Then go through some of the questions below:

• Is the announcer saying too much?  Can he/she be more concise?  Is this similar to what I do?
• Is the announcer going too fast?  Is the announcer going too slow?  Is there a consistency?  Do I like the announcer’s pace and is it close to my own?
• Does the announcer sound bored?  Does the announcer sound happy to be there?  Do I sound like the happy announcer, or bored announcer?
• Does the announcer have any irregularities in their speech and why do they use them?
• Does the announcer over emphasize certain sounds?  Should I do the same?
• Does the announcer have lazy mouth and pronounce “d’s” instead of “t’s”?  Do I have lazy mouth?
• Does the announcer scream?  Does the announcer elevate his/her voice?  Do I scream or elevate?
• What is the announcer saying?  Is it wordy?  Is it concise?
• Is the announcer telling me what I need to know?  Is the announcer telling me more than I need to know?
• Are there any bad habits the announcer is exhibiting, and do I exhibit those same bad habits?
• If I was put into the announcer’s seat right now, how would I announce?  Like the current announcer?  Or my way?
• Is the announcer consistent in what they are saying, how they are saying it?
• Is there something in the announcer’s style that can work for me?
• Is there something in the announcer’s style that I should try and see if it could work for me?
• Where is the announcer?  Can I sneak a peak into what the announcer is doing?

Keeping these questions in mind can really help you when you’re developing your own style.  And that’s the most important thing, is to develop your own style.  You’re never too old to learn, even after 20-plus years, we’re still hearing little things that we might be able to add.