In
this Issue: |
| VO Marketing.............voice
actor, salesperson or both? Mike Weiner |
| Pricing a Project???.........Give
us your input and maybe win $50. |
| New networking tool............within
6 people you can contact anyone on earth.....true? |
| Voice Coaching.........Article
by Dean Trianos |
| Computer Protection..........staying
alive and healthy |
| We hate to be mean but?.........does
Chew drive a Ford? |
| Website
Tips...............from Glen McGinnis |
| |
| VO
Acting/Selling?
If you have a problem or issue with the idea of being a salesperson,
you will have a problem being an actor, because if good acting isn't
a selling job, I don't know what is!
Commercial advertising is one primary area of work for those of
us who free-lance as voice-over actors, so, for the purposes of
guiding you through this book and helping you try to get a handle
on your vocal style, or ‘voice print we will focus on this
end of the business. We'll talk about narrative forms of copy and
the sources, markets and opportunities for them later on.
Ask yourself when choosing ad copy for your ultimate objective,
which is to include in your demo reel: Is this something I would
perform? Does it fit my voice? Is it gender-specific? In other words,
if it is an obvious male voice "read", ladies, please
don’t choose it, and vice versa. Is it something (a product
or service) that would lend itself to be broadcast? Is the message
concise? Does the copy tell you a story from beginning to end? Is
it a mixed message? Can you quickly understand what the point of
the copy is?
Print advertising from national magazines is a good source for ad
copy, but only if it’s written to tell a story of some kind.
It is also hard to read if there are several thoughts going on within
a short period of time. You can't rewind the commercial on the radio
or television to try to figure out what was being said, so the message
needs to be clear from the start. Find scripts from ads that have
some imagery to them—that tell a story—that are meant
to be spoken. (Some of the best written ads are national ads for
liquor, full of imagery.... but they couldn't be broadcast ads because
there is a quasi-voluntary ban, at the time of this writing, anyway,
so to put them in the demo tape would be a mistake).
Credit to Marice Tobias of
Tobias Communications, my coach based in Los Angeles, for introducing
me to the term “voice print”. You have a voice that
has unique characteristics and qualities that are your own persona
as well as the sonic tones you emanate.
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
top |
| |
Pricing.........huh?
A quandary for many?
"I
need a VO for a video which is about 5-10 minutes in length.....how
much?"
How many times have we heard that one? This opens up a plethora
of situations and applications but let's just cover the basics
here...........and try to find the right answer based on length
alone.
How do you price these projects?
By the page........if so what is a page?
By the word?........if so does quantity count?
By the minute?....Union guage?
We re asking for your input and will publish results next month.
How do you answer this question? Please click click
here and we'll make a random draw of contributors.
CV will make a random drawing of contributors and kick in $50.
to your PayPal account.
top
|
| |
Networking
by the thousands......
"Within
6 people you are connected to everyone on this planet", do you
believe that? CV was recently invited to join a new global Networking
group that is very professional and very promising. Membership in
LinkedIn.com is
by invitation only and now it is "free" while it is in its
Beta stage. Check out the program and if you would like an invite
just send me an email and I will forward you an invitation. Click
here to email Rick Gordon
top |
| |
Coaching..............
Dean Trianos shares his opinion.
Voice coaching for continuous improvement?
Numerous athletes and singers have attributed much of their success
over the years to positive experiences from coaching that helped
bring out the best in them. The same certainly holds true for
voice talents as well. A voice coach can help a novice voice talent
hone their craft just as much as one can assist an established
voice talent refine their proven repertoire. Apart from the ongoing
learning benefit, a voice coach also helps the voice talent stay
sharp…especially when 90% of the time is spend looking for
v/o work with 10% of the remaining time actually doing v/o work.
It is not uncommon for many award winning national voice talents
to actually have more than one voice coach at a time as well.
Reasons for this can range from varying backgrounds and coaching
specialties. If you are looking to obtain a voice coach, you check
out this link at http://voiceacting.com/links/coaches/
Referrals are also a good step in the right direction.
top
|
| |
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.
Top |
| |
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.
If you have any suggestions for similar replacement or additional
programs please let us know and we'll spread the word. click
here.
Top
|
|
|
Chew............got
a Ford?
This is just way too obvious to be ignored. Lately Ford has launched
a major National TV campaign promoting their cars and trucks. I'm
sure it is playing in your market. It starts with the opening VO
"Thinking...........always thinking".
Have you heard it? It ends with "because we wan chew
to drive a Ford"
If this is a sample of professional marketing to potential customers
to spend on their new wheels I think I'll throw away my microphone.
I wonder if the same producer wants to hear, Sunday, Monday, Chewsday?
Suppose that's chrew?
Top |
| |
| Website
Tips Search for your
website
Many people ask me how they can add search capabilities to their
site. There are a number of options, but the simplest (and free)
way to add a site search is Google's Free Site Search. To learn
how to add a Google search bar to your site visit http://www.google.ca/searchcode.html
Collect customer feedback
Another common question is "How do I collect information, such
as profile information or customer feedback, using my website?".
The easiest way to do this is with a Form Processor. A form processor
collects the information entered into a web page, and then emails
that information to you. Two of the better ones are http://www.noviceform.com/
and http://www.scripts24.com/freeware/24mail.php
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:
• Website design and maintenance
• Custom web applications
• E-learning
Top
|
The
CV Newsletter is distributed monthly to: Subscribers, CV Members,
Producers, Clients and Manufacturers in the Voice-Over Industry.
To unsubscribe click here.
We recognize the importance of your electronic privacy, thus our
privacy policy ensures that your name, address, telephone number,
email address and other personal details that CommercialVoices.com
may have will not be shared with any other third party for any reason.
Thank you. |
