In
this Issue: |
| VO Marketing.............Google
ranking for your web site |
| Webmaster Wilco's Tips.........increase
traffic to your web site. |
| Dean Trianos writes.........The
World Wide Web Voiceover Evolution: Global Opportunities or Diluted
Product? |
| Fun from Glenn
Howard..........A list of "all-truisms"
that most - if not ALL voice-over performers have come across at some
point in their career. Click
here. |
| A visitor asks..........I
am in the market for an audio editing program and am at a loss. As
far as I know there are a number of good quality software programs
out there but most are over kill for my purposes. I have been advised
that 4 tracks would be sufficient for me right now. |
| Why join CV?.........some
of the benefits are not so obvious. |
| Live Chat
now being tested.........drop by and say Hi |
| |
| VO
Marketing
Getting a high ranking on major search engines is an on-going chore
that many of us do not have the experience to effectively handle.
A few problematic areas are "changing algorithms" and
of late the departure of Yahoo from the Google team. I expect there
will be an aggressive battle between these two giants and undoubtedly
the procedure will become more understandable to us quasi-webmasters
and possibly even a task we might attempt on our own.
In the meantime there are a number of companies out there pitching
their talents and promising you a #1 position on Google as long
as you pay the piper. Prices are ranging from $99 to as high as
$4,700. as one guru pitched CV. I can't quite see where they can
promise everyone they will be in the #1 position as long as they
fork over the investment but then again I've given up on the chicken
and egg thing. One scenario that I am aware of is that you can easily
be #1 with certain obscure key words. I mean you could use "voiceovermaster"
and be found in the top position but how many people do you think
would use that word in a search? Type in "Commercial Voices"
and see who is on the first page, that one should work nicely.
Some search engines are even charging to submit while others are
ganging up trying to out fox the big guys. Some search engines search
other search engines. Obviously the "search" business
is getting more complicated and possibly "tuning in" to
preferred listings. Who knows where this will end if it ever does?
Adwords are the only answer at this point but they can drain your
bank account in a very short time span if you are not careful. Then
there is the survey that says only 15% of Google visitors will not
click on the AdBox thereby making the whole exercise contribute
greatly to the search engines bank account and none to your hit
count. I think for the time being the jury is out on this one for
CV to try and guess the solution although your thoughts and opinions
would be much appreciated. Feel free to throw in your thoughts/comments
here.
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Wilco's
Tips
Wilco Cramer, is webmaster for Commercial
Voices.com and VoicesInternational.com. You are invited to contact
Wilco for any of your web site needs. Discount available for CV
members.
Looking to increase traffic to you web site?
One way to become more popular and pleasing to the search engine
spiders is being linked to similar sites. Due to it's nature CV
has many links to your demos, your email address and your personal
web site. Search engine spiders like recriprocal links so if possible
I would suggest that you insert a link to CV somewhere on your pages.
For your convenience I am attaching our logo here
or you can simply use a text link such as "Commercial
Voices.com VO Talent".
Wilco is Webmaster for CommercialVoices.com
Wilco@WilcoCramer.com
WilcoCramer.com
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The
World Wide Web Voiceover Evolution: Global Opportunities or Diluted
Product?
The Internet has revolutionized the voice-over industry forever.
Today, remote recordings of voiceovers can be virtually done from
anywhere. Even with a moderate budget invested in a computer,
sound card, microphone, preamp, audio software and Internet connection….almost
anyone can set up a shop as a “so called” voice talent.
It seemed like only yesterday when the business evolved from
analog phone patch to satellite link and eventually to ISDN access.
The latest technology available today is the .mp3 file (in CD
quality) which is often small enough to deliver even through e-mail.
Some argue this revolution has in some ways eliminated the prototypical
“middle man” which should ultimately lead to higher
margins per spot. Others, however, disagree since the increase
in competition due to the Internet results in lower fees talent
can charge for their services…which in turn offset any “middle
man” savings.
In the end, was the Internet a good or a bad thing for the VO
industry? Well, that’s still debatable. It’s great
from the standpoint that talent can affordably promote themselves
beyond their region for additional opportunities unlike ever before.
For every contender, however, there is always a pretender…which
means that prospective clients now more than ever need to be very
careful with the online talent they choose to do business with.
There are indeed several ways to mitigate against such risk…such
asking for their client references, rate card, detailed studio
specs along with a free audition.
Dean Trianos is a regular contributor to the CV
Newsletter.
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| Questions
from one of our subscribers
I am in the market for an audio editing program and am at a
loss..........................
Reply
If all you are doing is recording dry voice tracks, you most likely
don't need anything more than 4 tracks. There are several good programs
for basic recording and editing, most of which you are already aware
of. A few of them are: Adobe Audition (formerly Cool Edit Pro)www.adobe.com,
Sound Forge (now part of Sony Pictures) http://mediasoftware.sonypictures.com/
Cakewalk www.cakewalk.com,
and Gold Wave www.goldwave.com).
You can test drive many of these programs with a free, limited-use
download, which I highly recommend. If you do an Internet search
for "audio recording software" you may even uncover one
or two "shareware" audio programs. However, keep in mind
that you will get what you pay for, and there may be some limitations
or file compatibility issues with free software found on-line.
If you need to do any sort of production, you'll
want to look into some of the higher end programs mentioned above
that will allow you to handle multiple tracks, music editing, etc.
One of the most popular is Digidesign's Protools (www.digidesign.com)
. Protools is a fairly complex editing system with a bit of a learning
curve and comes in several configurations and price ranges, including
their basic M-Box for around $500.00 including the interface and
software.
However, my personal favorite is Sony Media's Vegas
Video (http://mediasoftware.sonypictures.com/)
(formerly made by Sonic Foundry and now currently at version 4).
Although this is primarily video editing software, the audio section
is basically an enhanced Sound Forge, and I've found that it does
more than what I need for production of complex radio commercials
and other audio projects. I rarely use the video editing functions,
but they are available should I need them.
As with anything else, it's a good idea to do some
homework before making your purchase. If available, download the
demo version and put it through the paces. Also compare prices on
the Internet by visiting www.cnet.com. You may also be able to find
a good price on E-bay, but just make sure you are bidding on the
product you really want.
Stay in Character!
James R. Alburger
Penny Abshire
THE COMMERCIAL CLINIC
e-mail: jralburger@voiceacting.com
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Your
input
Your questions, concerns and comments are very important to us at
CV. Whether you are a client wishing you were a Producer or a Producer
looking for VO talent, contact us at your convenience and we will
point you in the right direction. Many of our VO talents wear Producer
hats, script writing hats and marketing hats, so questions in just
about any category are welcome. Send us an e-mail and watch for
the reply in our next Newsletter. Your query will be answered by
one of our top VO talents. E-mail
us here.
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Why Join
CV?
Well I think Dean contributed to part of
the answer in his article above. "For
every contender, however, there is always a pretender…which
means that prospective clients now more than ever need to be very
careful with the online talent they choose to do business with."
Why do many, many Fortune 500 companies use a professional VO
when they could just use a "nice sounding" employee
or as Dean mentions "a pretender"? There is no substitute
for a quality professional and CV is loaded with them.
CV is operated collaboratively by a VO talent and many mentors
and peers who advise and guide. Our Producers+ feature service
is unequalled in the industry saving much time and noise for Producers
and tuned in Clients as well.
If "getting hit" with new prospective clients and "getting
heard" are two of your goals for your personal website then
becoming a member of Commercial Voices.com is definitely a step
in the right direction.
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Live
Chat
We are doing a trial run of a Live Chat program. Queries can be addressed
immediately to a CV visitor as long as there is someone available
to respond of course. During the testing phase we have installed it
on our Producers+ page and on our "Join Here" page. Feel
free to drop by and say hello.
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