In
this Issue: |
| What's New...........in
Rick Gordon's VO World? 2005 is going to be something else! |
| VO Marketing.............Free
Practice Scripts Mike Weiner |
| Pricing a Project???.........Debbie
Jackson Tucci wins $50. Very interesting responses. |
| Bob Ace sends a "thank
you" ............one of our newest members is a winner!!! |
| The Future for VOs looks
great!.........Article from BackStageWest.com |
| Computer Protection..........a
few added suggestions from Mike Leaman |
| Employment Opportunity......are
you an experienced transcriber working with audio to text? |
| Web site
Tips...............from Glen McGinnis |
| |
Another
new VO site and business.........
Although the web site is still in its construction phase I am absolutely
passionate about this new business opportunity to utilize VO talents
in new and different ways that hopefully will be a win-win for all
involved. I see this new approach as ripe for the U.S. and Canada
and I would appreciate your professional input. Visit Talking.ca
and send me your thoughts if you will?
Remember the web site is still under construction....it has not
been promoted....you are the first to view.
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| Free
Practice Scripts?
The only way to know if an ad is written for the ear is to read
it out loud, so make sure you read it OUT LOUD before you tear it
out of a magazine. In most cases, if you are looking at a full-page
ad, try reading only the copy that appears in the body paragraphs,
rather than starting with the headline. That's a good test for finding
a story-telling caliber ad.
Again, ask yourself if this is something you would be hired to read,
in other words, is this the copy that is right for your voiceprint?
Do you have an upper register voice, but the copy calls for a voice
that is really deep? What is your own performance range, and what
kinds of copy seem to fit or lend itself to your own style? We will
examine these issues later in the book.
Try to pick a piece of copy with some substance. Look for a good
beginning, middle and end. It’s very difficult to sink your
performance into selling lettuce for a $1.99 at the local grocery
store, so try to look for ads spoken in one voice—not a dialogue
spot. Those are something to work with as you gain experience in
the art.
In your initial search for copy to put into a demo reel, look for
different advertising media. Find a piece of copy from a national
magazine, or tape an ad off the television or radio and transcribe
it. (Carry a micro-cassette recorder in your car and as you’re
driving around listening to the radio record any commercials that
are played that fit your voiceprint.)
Mike Weiner (AKA
Naked Voice) works from his home studio in the suburbs of Washington
DC. Excerpts are from his book, IS THERE MONEY IN YOUR MOUTH?
Available at www.xlibris.com/weiner
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Pricing.........huh?
A quandary for many?
"I
need a VO for a video which is about 5-10 minutes in length.....how
much?"
Thank you all for your submissions. The varied responses are copied
verbatim in a WORD doc and are available
here. (This may take a few seconds to load)
Congratulations to Debbie Jackson Tucci the $50. winner in
our random draw.
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Bob
Ace says......
Rick,
Thought I should drop you a note and let you know that as of yesterday,
(Dec2/04) I have become one of three "Super-Saturday-Sale"
spokesmen for Meijer Department stores. The store is a giant in
the Midwest (Chicago, St. Louis etc.). It is a high profile, good
paying gig. Exactly what I was looking for when I decided to join
CV.com. With the help of your service, and your personal guidance
and support, I have gone from being a local nobody 75 miles from
Chicago, to being a "coast-to-coast" talent. From Fresno
to Trenton, CV.com has no doubt played a major role in a "beyond
my wildest dreams" kind of experience.....all in about 60 days!
Sincerely,
Bob Ace
CV Platinum Member
(Bob's only web site presence is his CV site......personal web site
under construction)
Thanks muchly Bob, very much appreciated. (listen to Bob
at the top of CV's Testimonial
page.)
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BackStageWest.com..............
The Brave New World of E-Showbiz
Cutting-Edge Technologies Create a Host of New Opportunities
By Mark Dundas Wood
Here are a few excerpts from this encouraging article....."Perhaps
the biggest opportunities currently open to performers in new
media are in the area of voice and voice-over. And in some respects,
today's e-media voice gigs bear a close resemblance to traditional
voice work."
"One thing has definitely changed: The availability of the
technology makes it much easier these days for voice talent who
live far from major metropolitan centers to have viable careers.
Says New Jersey-based Harrison: "There are more and more
voice-over artists creating their own home studios, where they
create a demo and either send it out on CD or post it on their
web site or email it to a prospective producer or studio."
Read the entire article here.
Hats off and thanks to Dave Reynolds from Montreal
for passing along the news.
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Your
input
Are there topics or interests that you would like to see us cover?
E-mail
us here. We'd love to hear from you.
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Computer
Maintenance?
What we use…………..
There are many useful tools and programs available
all over the Internet which are great in helping us non-geeks
keep our computers working well and virus free. Here are a few
suggestions for free programs that work quite
well as long as they are kept up to date and run at scheduled
times. These are simple maintenance tools that anyone can use
and understand.
For virus protection download AVG from Grisoft.com
Works great!
For hackers and crackers using your computer to host a variety
of bad stuff download Adaware.
My buddy Mike Leaman adds:
In addition to AdAware you need to add Spyware Blaster (http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/)
and Spybot Search and Destroy (http://www.spybot.info/en/index.html)
to your spy ware detection and elimination tools.
Both are freebies (well they do ask for donations) and compliment
each other in keeping dreaded spy ware off your machine.
Michael W Leaman CET, CNA
If you have any suggestions for similar replacement or additional
programs please let us know and we'll spread the word. click
here.
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Transcribers
wanted............
We require an experienced transcriber looking for part time work.
The position involves transcribing .rm (Real) audio files into text
in a WORD document. I am looking for some backup people for work
in this area as we are increasing our transcription business. This
will only be "on occasion" and usually the audio files
are from 30-90 minutes. Turnaround is normally 2-3 days to next
day "rush" delivery. The client is in high tech so a good
understanding of many of the acronyms involved would be beneficial.
Please state your experience and rates. You will have to sign a
Confidential Non-disclosure agreement. E-mail Rick
Gordon......Thanks
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Web
site Tips
Web
sites with HTML, PHP and ASP Many people have
asked me what the difference is between HTML, PHP and ASP, and why
should I use one over the other?
HTML or Hypertext Markup Language is the computer language that
is used to create web pages. PHP and ASP are server-side scripting
languages. PHP and ASP code mixes with HTML to create interactive
web pages. Examples of such interactivity would including rotating
banner adds, collection of online payments or interacting with a
database. The general rule is to use PHP or ASP if you need the
web page to do something and HTML for static pages.
The next logical question is why do we need both PHP and ASP? The
simple answer is you do not. ASP was designed by Microsoft and runs
on web servers that use Microsoft Windows. PHP runs on Windows and
Linux. If you require interactive web pages you should choose the
option that is best supported by your ISP and that you are most
familiar with.
More information on PHP can be found at http://www.php.net
More information on ASP can be found at http://www.w3schools.com/asp/default.asp
Tips provided by Crystal Bay Media
www.crystalbaymedia.com
Email Glen: Glen McInnis
Mention this newsletter and you will receive a 10% discount on
any of CB’s services:
• Web site design and maintenance
• Custom web applications
• E-learning
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