Now voice-overs.

See below the exact verbatim I found in my e-mail box today:

————————————————————-
您好：

Hi There,

我们是博凯佳音配音工作室，我们可以提供优质的中英文配音服务，

This is BoKai Voice Over Studio, we can provide good quality chinese and foreign laguage voice products for you!

详情可以登录网站www.peiyin666.cn

Please check our website www.peiyin666.cn/english.

欢迎致电：+86 28 66686660 +86 13880740931

you can call us at  +86 28 66686660 +86 13880740931

顺祝商祺

Best Regards

中启文化 博凯佳音

Bokai Voice Over

————————————————————-

Bokai Voice Over!

Should we fear this new import?

At this point… probably not.  I tried checking out the website: www.peiyin666.cn/english and immediately got a virus warning from my AVG internet security software.

I do know that there’s practically nothing clever Chinese entrepreneurs can’t copy in mass quantity.

This is the vanguard…it won’t likely go away.

CourVO

…and by that I mean I’ve worked hard, found a certain measure of success in my family life and my professional career.  I have lots of friends, and food in the fridge.  At 56, I find self-assurance comes easily, ‘cause I feel I’ve earned it.

So when I wrote the blog about Synthetic Voices recently,I really wasn’t trying to sound the death knell of Voice Acting…nor was I terribly troubled by its implications.

JUST OVER THE NEXT HILL…

But that, along with other things happening in the world right now could almost begin to convince me that there may be cause for concern – long term – for opportunities in voiceover.

Here’s why:  yesterday, 4 more good people lost their jobs in our newsroom.  TV news, and TV stations in general are REALLY hurting.  Our General Manager likes to quote how many millions of advertising dollars are just “gone from the market”…and the number is in the tens of millions.  Car dealers (the core of TV advertising support) are folding.  Revenues at TV stations everywhere are down anywhere from 20% to 60% (conservative).

Have you listened to radio lately?  Formulaic.  Impersonal.  Repetitive.  Shrill.  They’re hurting too…but they’ve had years to adjust to life-after-TV.

TV is just getting accustomed to the juggernaut incursion of the internet. (more like whacked in the head!)

So…have you listened to radio lately?  I haven’t.  Millions of commuters are listening to their iPods or talking on their iPhones instead of the drivel that passes for entertainment on (most) Radio stations.

CAN’T IGNORE “THE CRUX” OF THE MATTER

So, my point is:  Radio and TV.  Hurting.  Ad dollars going away….and just where do you think the lion’s share of a voice-actor’s best jobs are?  Yep.  Radio and TV. 

At least that’s the paradigm to which we still pay homage. 

Folks…that paradigm is changing.

“Not to worry”, you say, “my bread ‘n’ butter VO niche is in medical narrations, audiobooks, and websites.”

God bless ya…I’m not talking to you.

YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE

I’m talking to the entire COMPLEX of agents, unions, casting directors, advertising & PR firms, buyers, media-as-we-know it.  It’s all changing right under our noses!  Sure…slowly…. no doubt about it, and in fits and starts, but if you’re into the world of social media at all, you clearly see the pell-mell change of stream-of-conscious thinking, sharing, and marketing that is New Media.

“Wait a minute, Dave,” you say…”This recession thing will be over soon enough, and we’ll all be back to profitability.” 

AAaaaactually, no.  It’ll never be the same again (my humble opinoin)

 Because of the immediacy, the interaction, the I-want-what-I-want-when-I-want-it nature of  social media and the internet, TV viewers are switching allegiances.  Heck, the internet is where I’m getting MY news these days.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE

Here’s the silver lining, and then I’ll shuddup.

Good content, quality writing, excellence of endeavour, and solid presentation will never go out of style…no matter the medium. 

Your golden tones are still needed…but…well….you may just…maybe wanna start not depending on the promise of Radio and TV as much.  Again, I could be totally wrong, but I don’t think so.

CourVO

THIS article does an amazing job of pointing out the sobering financial caveats you need to hear before being “on your own”.

CourVO

See NY Times write-up HERE.

See VO-BB forum thread HERE.

Visit the official site HERE. (you can also volunteer to read)

One of the voice-talents, Chriss Mezzolesta gets interviewed on TV for the story HERE.

CourVO

The mental roadblocks (can be procrastination) we subconsciously and oftentimes innocently create can become true hindrances for freelance self-starters.  Sometimes it takes a friend or colleague to help you see through it, and once in a while, in a moment of brilliant clarity, you can see it yourself.

If not, you may benefit from a little formula I’ve devised.

Access + Process = Success

Let me break it down for you:

ACCESS:
The audio files we produce rely on a fairly complicated software/hardware interface associated with a deadline-oriented process.  If even the slightest glitch or hitch interferes with you walking into your studio, turning on your audio chain, and beginning the recording; you have slowed your ACCESS, and over time, the glitch grows into a ginormous mental block, preventing, instead of facilitating your next audition.

You need easy access to your VO tools.

Example:  My pre-amp came with no on/off switch.  I had to reach around behind my monitor, find the plug, feel for the receptacle, and insert the plug.  It was a hassle.  Over time, I began to resent that, then used it as an excuse to just NOT do what I really needed to do.  Once I realized that stupid little ritual was my major mental roadblock to conducting hassle-free auditions, I went to Home Depot, bought an in-line switch, and solved the problem.  Click/Click…on/off.  No hassle.

Maybe for you it’s something that interferes with quickly printing out scripts or an extra troublesome step or two that gets in the way of you launching your recording software. Eliminate the roadblock.  The devil’s in the details.

See an audition you need to get out?  Within one minute of your computer coming on, you should be able to start recording.  Wouldn’t that be nice?

It is.
(granted: you may not have the tube warm-up to optimize your pre-amp performance in that time -  see process below).

But ACCESS would be nothing without PROCESS.

PROCESS:

Synonym: a procedure; to handle or manage

In other words, once the access is there, you have to have a PLAN to use it.

THIS is particularly tough for us right-brain, set-our-own-schedule, creative talent-types.  Sure you need to be an ACTOR to do your work, but the business side of your operation must be practical, and that means having a plan…a schedule…a calendar…a PROCESS.

I’m a night-owl.  When I get home after midnight, I like crawling into my comfortable studio and record away — especially on the more moribund E-learning and technical narration jobs.  That’s part of my process…my plan to tackle work.

But I’m finding a good many bursts of audition requests (from whatever source) tend to come during typical business hours.  Since I’m hindered by my TV job’s hours from just reacting as I want to those requests, I’ve put into my process, about two hours of every morning — when my voice is a little rested — to plow through auditions, especially those that require a bit more creativity and acting.

Here’s the thing about process —–> devise the plan, then stick to it like a postage stamp, cause this is something you can’t mail in!  That takes discipline and will power…not something I can explain, but something you have to find on your own.

More about removing mental roadblocks:

http://www.fluentself.com/blog/newsletter/dissolve-that-mental-roadblock/
http://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/2006/11/29/now-or-never/
http://bit.ly/GTouT

‘Hope this helps in some small way!

CourVO

Read below to see her cautionary words on this topic.

CourVO

Increasingly, I’ve been told that producers sometimes put a notice out on the "pay to play" vo sites on the internet because that is the way the get, for no money, a bunch of voice talents reading their copy. Then, they play some of the auditions for a client to illustrate how good their ideas for a campaign or a narration script are. In other words, the copy writer doesn’t talk well.

This is a great way to get great vo talents (he weeds out the not so great auditions) to read his copy and assembles it to play in a big committee meeting at some big corporation where they are meeting to hear his ideas about whatever the project is at that time.

Another way producers use our auditions online is to assemble a professional sounding demo of "some of their work." Over time, a producer or writer could gather quite a few professional reads of copy he’s written and pass it off as "real work for big jobs."

So we are doing free auditions that get used but the "job" never happens. Maybe there never was a "job." That happens too. The audition is just to "pitch a potential client" on letting some advertising agency or producer do the firm’s next campaign. The campaign isn’t even a real "job" yet, only an "idea" that may or may not happen. All of the online audition companies have these, unknowingly or otherwise. We’re working free too much.

I’m looking at the number of online auditions that just float off into cyberspace and I never hear anything more about my work. Something should be done to improve this situation. The major online audition sites need to take a hard look at how they handle business and try to change it. If an audition is sent out to hundreds of their subscribers, have they checked it out to see if it is a real job or just an unpaid audition or idea? Who gets the job? Can it be proven the job happened? What are the stats on a person who puts out an audition online for us to spend time on?

And another thought: NEVER EVER read all of the copy in an online audition. Change some words or don’t read important stuff like phone numbers. And NEVER EVER read the firm name. Change it! Say "at XYZ, we strive to…" Do something so the custom audition cannot be used without your permission. In the "old days" we were paid to do a "spec job" … one that might or might not happen…and we still should be.

Food for thought..
Bettye Zoller Seitz/VOICEOVERS!
Voice Speech Improvement-Voiceover Coach,
Voiceovers and Recording Studio

So the question really becomes an observation:  “Dave, you seem to be working at all hours.  You must not need much sleep.”

I guess I don’t.  I’ve always had a joy of life, and since VO is my passion, I find I never run out of energy for its demands.

Here are some of the highlights of my day, Thursday, August 6, 2009:

1) 8am –  CT scan, ‘cause recent kidneystones have my urologist doing follow-ups
2) 9:30am - an hour of checking e-mail, Twitter, and online forums
3)10:30 am – some important phone calls
4) 11am – back to bed for 1.5 hours
5) 12:30 – shower, shave, dress
6) 1pm – hour-long conference call with members of the SaVoa Advisory Board
7) 2:30 – arrive at TV station – begin YouTube update, write/proofread scripts, scan more
email, websites, Tweetdeck, and FaceBook, write e-mail, make phone calls
8] 4pm – begin anchoring 3 half-hour newscasts (4, 5, & 6) with half-hour breaks in-between)
9) 7pm – drive home for dinner with friends, cut and send two auditions
10) 9pm – drive back to TV station.  More editing, web-browsing, proofreading scripts, twittering
11) 11pm – anchor last half-hour newscast of the day
12) 12:30am (Fri) – arrive home to begin more VO work
13)  1am – spend an hour on Skype, recording and finishing segments for a new demo
14)  2am – new demo in hand, I package it with other demos, a bio pic, and some forms to
send to a new casting service I’m involved with.
15) 3am – sit down to write a fresh Blog!

What to write about?  In this case, a search of Google Alerts with the keyword “voiceover” leads me to a Bill Pryce Blog, which in turn refers me to a Dan O’Day.com site that further directs me to a Pat Fraley offer of:  a “Quick & Slick VoiceOver Tricks” download.

I’m familiar with this program of Fraley’s and highly recommend it…Pat’s the best!

This is where the bouncing ball comes in.  Normally, you’d just get the Pat Fraley referral, but because it’s 3:44am as I am as I’m writing this, and I’m a bit addle pated, you got the day-dissection along with it!

‘Goin’ to bed now…

CourVO

Maybe it was on vacation, business, or other…we’ve all had to prepare for the possibility of a persistent and/or valued client that just can’t wait for an audio file till we get home.  It can be a very good thing, actually, but everyone’s got a different “hack” for achieving quality sound outside the comfortable confines of your private studio.

‘Can’t wait to see all the entries!

CourVO

It lead to my posting a question on the VO-BB, which I'm going to re-purpose below…followed by the responses from two guys who've forgotten more about this business than I'll ever know: Frank Frederick and Philip Banks.  My thanks to them, and VO-BB Mistress DB Cooper for the freedom to use this material.

Maybe the back 'n' forth of the posed question 'n' answer will help you with a focus for your VO/VA business.

BTW, David Goldberg's Edge Studio is booming, expanding, and busy. Sure, David and his staff are doing a lot of the right things, and they're GOOD…but it's also some indication that there's plenty of VO work for the right people with the right demo, attitude, work ethic, and ability to deliver.

DAVE:
Pinging various voiceover sages in the business lately has left me with an even-steven quandary you might be able to help with.

POSITION A: JACK-OF-ALL-TRADES

Appealing to as many clients as possible means more potential
jobs, but also leaves the voice talent with a scatter-gun approach to a
demo or demos. None of which distinguish the talent from other to any
great degree. Some voice seeker looking for a "the best" may see a lack
of focus and move on. Others may be impressed at the range of ability
and jump all over it.

POSITION B: NICHE

Discerning your strength, and targeting that talent almost
exclusively in all you promote, market, and demo. This limits your
broader job appeal, but allows the talent to claim a specialty, show
excellence in one field beyond the rest of the VO rabble, and hone
skills in delivering a product to one niche (you could claim yourself
an expert?). This might save money on a marketing budget (or not).

And….not that you'd have to totally go one way or the other…
just MOSTLY leaning one way so that you have a clear message to
prospects.

MITIGATING FACTORS:

-Do agents embrace one scheme over the other?

-Is today's changing market forcing the VO's hand on this issue? Which way?

-Are there significant money-saving considerations one way or the other?

-What technology or business-process decisions might come to bear on either choice?

Jus' wondrin'

FRANK:
Using the "shotgun" approach is not my idea of marketing.

Defining niches' or "target markets" and then pinpointing each segment of the overall industry with laser guided promotional and public relations materials is much more effective in terms of expenditures.

The concept is simple:

Define your "target" market(s),

Begin with only ONE niche' market at a time (you may add others later, but start with just one segment).

Determine the needs within the market and how you may address them,

Determine who and how to reach the people who hire VO Artists,

Determine your potential income for this calling,

Define your budget for each niche' market (each arena will require different approaches),

Create marketing materials for each specific slot,

Use your materials/propaganda in each market segment wisely.

If you find, one niche' market is not preforming as well as others over a period of time, Do More Research
to find out why you are not reaching the "movers and shakers" or if
there is some other causality which is preventing you from reaching
your stated goal within the market segment.

Then determine if a particular market segment is providing the
income expected based on previous research; and finally, if you should
increase your efforts in this market segment or double marketing
concerns within another arena.

With the "laser-approach" you are still a jack-of-all-trades to yourself, but you are known in each market segment as an expert.

Disclaimer:
This is my opinion and should be considered as such. Any similarities
between this opinion and those of any other person, living, fictional,
or dead shall be considered happenstance and cannot be considered legal
or binding on anyone else.

I believe most (good) agents use the shogun approach for their clients;
until such time as the determine a niche which is making them money for
their employer – uh, talent.

PHILIP:
Able to do everything – Unlikely

Willing to anything – You only think you are

Desperate – That'll be it!

Let's try a little exercise. If YOU (reader) promote yourself as a
movie trailer voice, name the movie trailer or trailers you have
voiced.

Were you a brain surgeon you would be able to show a professional qualification and introduce me to patients.

"Hello, I'm Philip and I'm an Airline Pilot"

"Really! For which airline?"

"Well. I'm working with Captain Maurice Tobeus at the moment but when I've finished ……"

Get the point?

In the tortured world of the Voice Overist who or what we say we are, as the song goes "…..ain't necessarily so".

Willingness, ability and experience are 3 different things with 3
completely different meanings and we confuse them not due to ignorance
but as a result of choice.

How should you market yourself? Honestly. It's the toughest way yet ultimately the most rewarding.

Am I just nuts, or do you have this problem too?

You know — doing more, and seemingly achieving less?

Stephen R. Covey could come and sit on my shoulder and be my conscience, and I swear it wouldn't be any better.

.

.

I'm either:
a) Terrible at scheduling
b) Twittering too much
c)  Disenfranchised by the power of e-mail
d)  Unable to say "no"
e) Too giving/caring
f)  Focus-impaired
g)  Way too comfortable being busy

Honestly, I think that last one is it.  If I stop being busy…what would happen? 

What am I afraid of? 

See, if I'm busy, then I can't be committing the penultimate American sin: wasting time.  Even the APPEARANCE of being busy implies accomplishment and achievement.

Hermithood is starting to sound real good…or would I go stark-raving mad?  No, I think I might actually be able to see more clearly.

Here's the thing, too:  we're all a little scared that this is certainly NOT the time to slack-off.  I mean, we're in hot water here in the richest country in the world…better work even HARDER to make sure you don't go under.

What ARE we afraid of?

Ah…so that's it:  CHANGE…. yeah…change!

Well, nothing's gonna really change until dissatisfaction with status-quo overcomes the fear of change.

I'm off to my daughter's College Showcase Soccer tournament in Temecula, CA for the next 3 days.  I'll tote my laptop, and my portable recording set-up, and God-knows-what-else in the SUV.  I'll panic at the thought of only checking my e-mail maybe just twice/day during the that time.  (Horrors!) 

If I'm smart, I'll drop the crap behind long enough to see things a little more clearly, and if I'm lucky, maybe I'll get the chance to enjoy a fine cigar and good conversation with some of the other soccer dads.

Thanks in advance for listening to my rants and ruminations.

CourVO

(my 600th post)