Marketing in the Voice Over Business

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• Ryan Bissell, Employee of the Month

  Voices.com is thrilled to announce one of our most recent employees of the month (March 2012), Ryan Bissell! Join me in congratulating Ryan and learn more about his role at Voices.com in today's VOX Daily.... Voices.com is thrilled to announce one of our most recent employees of the month (March 2012), Ryan Bissell! Join me in congratulating Ryan and learn more about his role at Voices.com in today's VOX Daily. Meet Ryan Bissell Ryan Bissell joined the Voices.com team within the last year. He comes from an entrepreneurial household and his drive to bring in new business is contagious! Ryan works exceptionally hard to book projects for our voice talent members and enjoys working with clients to see their vision come to fruition. Good On You, Ryan! Many of Ryan's Voices.com teammates contributed specific things during the nomination process that let us know why they felt he was deserving of the nod. I've shared some of what was said below: ๏ Ryan has quickly stepped into the role of Sales representative at Voices.com. He is now leading the team in Audio Production sales and works very hard to ensure that he is meeting and exceeding his clients expectations every step of the way. On top of hitting his stride, Ryan is also a team player and gets along with everyone. ๏ Ryan has secured more business in Audio Production each week for the last 4 weeks. He's on a roll! ๏ Ryan is a great team member and continues to excel at in role with Audio Production! He would be an ideal candidate for Employee of the Month. ๏ Ryan is definitely the clear cut choice for employee of the month in my opinion. He put through a record breaking amount of managed projects last month, with the swag of Al Pacino in Glen Garry Ross and the confidence of that young kid in Boiler Room. What more can I say? Congratulations! ๏ Ryan is friendly and always has a smile on his face. Although we don't work together very often, I have found him to be courteous and helpful which adds a great dynamic to our team. ๏ Ryan's understanding of what goes into a great job posting has no doubt been key to his success working with clients hiring talent on the site. This area of the business has prospered greatly since Ryan and his team started working directly with clients on their postings. Congratulations, Ryan! We're excited to see where you are going in the company and look forward to celebrating more successes with you helping businesses, both near and far, find their voice. With warm regards, Stephanie Ciccarelli Co-founder of Voices.com

• Write Your Review Of The Voices.com iPhone App

  Voices.com recently launched the new iPhone App and we would like to hear your reviews. Today we are going to share the steps to download the new Voices.com iPhone app and how to best craft a review in the AppStore. Have you ever reviewed an app before? Are you using Voices.com's new iPhone app and want to share your thoughts? We'd love to receive your review! Find out how to get a hold of the app and also learn about what goes into a great review in the Apple App Store. How to Write an iPhone App Review from Your iPhone ๏ On your iOS device tap on the App Store icon to load the App Store, otherwise if you're on a computer open iTunes. ๏ Navigate to the detail screen for the app. ๏ Scroll down the page to the Customer Reviews section and tap "Write a Review." ๏ You may have to enter your iTunes store password. ๏ Tap on the stars at the top of the Write a Review screen to rate the app. ๏ In the Title field, type a title for your review. ๏ In the Review field, type your review. ๏ Tap the Send button in the upper-right hand corner of the screen on your iOS device, or click on the Submit button on your computer. After you submit your review, Apple reviews your submission. As long as it doesn't violate the (unpublished) rules of conduct for app reviews, it will appear in a day or two in the App Store, in the Reviews section for the particular app. Tips on How to Best Craft a Review on iTunes ๏ Introduce the app - name, function, and features. ๏ Talk about what you like best about the app. ๏ Tell readers why they should download the app. ๏ Describe features that would make the app more useful to you. ๏ Write a few sentences about yourself and the work you do. Will You Write A Review? Would you be willing to write a review for the Voices.com iPhone App after you download it? Let us know if you have! To download the app click the following link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/voices.com/id493554377?ls=1&mt=8 For more information on the Voices.com iPhone App visit, http://www.voices.com/iphone Best wishes, Stephanie, Ashley and the Voices.com Team

• 7 Tips for Producing Great Audio Recordings on the iPhone

  Whether you're recording auditions on the go or recording from your comfort of your home, here are seven quick tips to ensure you are producing great audio recordings from your iPhone using the Voices.com iPhone App Have you ever recorded on your iPhone before? With the new Voices.com app, talent are maximizing their ability to audition while out of the studio, and even while on a break at jury duty! Find out how you can get the most out of the audio produced on your iPhone in today's VOX Daily. Producing Great Audio On Your iPhone Whether you're recording auditions on the go or recording from your comfort of your home, we've compiled seven quick tips to ensure you are producing great audio recordings from your iPhone using the Voices.com iPhone App. 7 Tips For Recording From Your iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad ๏ Get a glass of water. Stay hydrated during your recording session. ๏ Consider doing some vocal warm ups. Some voice talent even start with some tongue twisters and other vocal exercises such as humming, opening and closing your mouth to stretch the muscles. ๏ Rehearse the script. That's right. Read through the script several times to get comfortable with all the words you're going to say. And, don't just read in your head, read the script aloud at a normal speaking voice. ๏ Do a quick test before recording a longer script. Speak into the microphone and ensure that the recording level doesn't go into the red. Doing so may cause the recording to sound distorted. ๏ After you've recorded a test, listen back to see if you hear any distortion or other background noises. Listen with headphones plugged into your device as you'll be able to hear more clearly exactly what you just recorded. ๏ Keep a consistent distance from the microphone throughout the recording. Moving throughout the recording will cause portions of the recording to sound close and other portions distant. ๏ Record in a quiet location such as a bedroom or closet. Generally speaking, the more soundproof the better and you can achieve this by hanging blankets on your walls or if you have large pieces of foam those work well too. Recording On The Go A while back, we published an article about the weirdest places talent record auditions from. Dave Pettitt sent us this great audio clip sharing some weird and wonderful places he's recorded from out of the studio. Dave sent this to us before the app was released and paints the picture of what it could be like to audition from your smart phone. Take a listen! Download Dave Pettitt's Recording On The Go Clip» For your convenience, I've included a link to an article that discusses 5 compatible USB microphones for recording on mobile devices. You might be curious about a Voices.com app for Android. Rest assured, there will be one coming out for Android users within the year. In the meantime, if you haven't yet downloaded Voices.com's free app for Apple's mobile devices, click on the following link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/voices.com/id493554377?ls=1&mt=8 For more information on the Voices.com iPhone App visit, http://www.voices.com/iphone Do You Have Any Other Tips You Would Like To Share? If you've been using the app to record, what have you been doing to make your recordings the best they can possibly be? Let us know! Best wishes, Ashley iStockphoto.com©Mutlu Kurtbas

• The Voice Is The Mirror Of The Mind

  Can good acting camouflage how you really feel about a script or your depth of knowledge? In a time where very few people are fooled by advertising and marketing, many voice talent who don't agree with the content of a... Can good acting camouflage how you really feel about a script or your depth of knowledge? In a time where very few people are fooled by advertising and marketing, many voice talent who don't agree with the content of a script or understand its meaning think they can still convince an audience to believe otherwise. Curious to learn more? Hear from one of Chicago's top producers in today's VOX Daily. ‎Food For Thought I happened to watch a video featuring a voice talent who recently got to live their dream job for a day. In the video, something quite significant was said that I wanted to share with you to consider. This quote comes from Dave Leffel who is a Sound Designer, Mixer, and Casting Director at BAM Studios in Chicago. "The voice is the mirror of the mind. If you're nervous, it's going to show. If you don't like what you're saying, it's going to show. If you're not necessarily understanding the script, it's going to show. It's all going to come through in your voice." - Dave Leffel What Do You Think? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts! Best wishes, Stephanie iStockphoto.com©Stefano Lunardi

• How To Use Your Time Wisely Between Voice-over Gigs

  What do you do when the auditions stop rolling in and you're waiting for the next gig? Voice-over artist, Herb Merriweather, suggests that there are a number of things you can do to productively pass the time, and perhaps, even... What do you do when the auditions stop rolling in and you're waiting for the next gig? Voice-over artist, Herb Merriweather, suggests that there are a number of things you can do to productively pass the time, and perhaps, even have a little fun while you're at it. Find out more in today's VOX Daily. Between The Lines By Herb Merriweather Voice acting is a transient business. Very few of us get to work at a stable, 20-year relationship with a network or as a corporate brand and since most of voice over work is short term, we sometimes find ourselves 'between' jobs or projects. If you're at all like me there is a constant search for employment that is ongoing and you've cast a global net! But the fact is sometimes there is downtime--some needed, some unwanted. So, what do we do while waiting for results from auditions and for projects to start? STAY BUSY! Mostly, stay connected to the industry. How?? Here are some suggestions (you KNEW they were coming) of things to do when you're NOT rockin' the mic, collected under 3 main headings: STOP, LOOK and LISTEN. STOP Stop worrying about that audition. In fact, stop worrying--period! It just doesn't help (and you could be missing another opportunity). Stay focused on your immediate goals, and proceed with confidence. LOOK Look at what others are doing! Blogs and articles abound with enough information to help you navigate through the rough stuff. Voice over professionals like Terry Daniel, Anne Ganguzza, Julie Williams and Nancy Wolfson (to name just a few) offer lesson after lesson on business management, customer relations, how to honestly assess your talent, technical issues, etc. You almost need help to get confused! LISTEN ...and not to yourself (Geez--you do enough of that already)! Listen closely to the work of others. As a matter of fact, sit there and take notes on what you hear. Describe and analyze what you're listening to so you can learn how to turn a phrase or make a noise. Don't be intimidated or threatened by what you hear; instead, learn from those artists who are working and posting their efforts; write down what's cool about what you heard and work that knowledge to your own advantage. More Ideas Several other suggestions that didn't quite fit into the 'stop, look and listen' heading but could possibly work just as well to make your 'downtime' not quite so 'down': 1. Dress in the uniform of your favorite sports team and sing "We Are The Champions" at 2:30am. 2. Wear thick, white socks over your shoes and slide down the halls of the nearest high school. 3. My personal fave--'Theater Of The Absurd'! A 3 Stooges, Our Gang, Laurel and Hardy, W.C. Fields movie marathon. Run 'em until you just can't laugh any more. All of these things (well--some of 'em, anyway) should help you get through your 'between' time--which will get shorter and shorter and shorter! God Bless--Happy Voicing! Herb Merriweather iStockphoto.com©oonal