These are the top posts of 2010 for freelancers…and that’s what we are, right? Take the time, read these tips!
See this Amp at http://bit.ly/emQqet
2010 Top 12 (Plus) Freelance Folder Posts, and #7 is worth the price of admission
January 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment
September is a BIG Month
August 31, 2010 By 1 Comment
September holds special promise for Voice Actors everywhere…an opportunity to bring better understanding to our business…a chance to extend your brand with a timely message, and the possibility of growing your business through a unique marketing tool.
I’d love to tell you about it now, but timing is everything. Please check back here Wednesday morning to hear the details.
CourVO
She Dunn Good
August 24, 2010 By 2 Comments
Maxine Dunn is a voiceover constant. Work in the business long enough, you’ll hear of, or run into Maxine.
While her natural dialect is British, Maxine excels at North American-speak, on-camera work, and live as a spokesperson.
With all that, should I be surprised that she’s turned out a cracker-jack primer for VoiceOver Marketing?
Click HERE to read her concise, meaty, and helpful guide to strategizing a better VO marketing plan.
Nice work, Maxine!
CourVO
Showcase Your Audio Files on LinkedIn
July 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment
The more I use it, the more I like LinkedIn.
Aside from hearing the company is now rated in value at $2-Billion (they’re doing something right), the managers continue to make savvy improvements in the interface and presentation that benefit the user…and many of these elements are available, still, for the free membership.
Here’s the latest: “… allowing you to host an unlimited number of multimedia projects that include still images, video reels, text, and/or audio samples….”
Basically, they’re offering an application resulting from a partnership with the Behance Network, allowing you to create a Professional Creative Portfolio Display including (as you saw in the quote from their site above), AUDIO SAMPLES.
You can read all about this new feature on the LinkedIn Blog HERE.
‘Guess I’ve got a little work ahead of me today.
CourVO
Addict-o-Matic
July 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Where do I find this stuff?
Use only if it helps your VO business! — don’t be like me: an itinerant homeless web-surfer shuffling from one engaging site to another.
Addict-o-matic, like Google’s iGoogle, let’s you create your own buzz page using existing sites. There’s a social media version of this that I’ve blogged about before: Flavors.me.
But seriously, folks…here’s a really good tip to a great site.
Visit DuctTapeMarketing often. The originator of this site — John Jantsch — posts the best tips for all kinds of marketing tools and tips, and he cross-references stuff unbelievably well.
Particularly, you’ll want to read one of his latest blogs: THE ABUSIVE MATH OF COLD-CALLING. 1-3% success rate (cold calling) vs. ~40% success rate if you have a referral (warm calling).
CourVO
ISDN Listing
April 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Studio master, and voice-talent pro Michael Minetree is seeing a flurry of activity on his new website: VOICES WITH ISDN.
The site is self-interactive. In other words, when you register as a user, you can begin to add yourself to the listings with a pic, brief bio, links, etc.
Michael is a genius at setting-up this kind of stuff, and for the price (free!), it certainly can’t hurt to add your info to the list of luminaries already joining.
There’s also a place to tout your Source-Connect capabilities along with your ISDN codecs and contact numbers.
Thanks Michael!
CourVO
PostOp on a Teleseminar
November 15, 2009 By Leave a Comment
When do you become an “expert”?
That word makes me uncomfortable.
That’s why, when I started my teleseminar Saturday morning (Leveraging Social Media for Your VoiceOver Business) on behalf of the VoiceOverDirectory, I began by saying I’m a fan of Social Media, I enjoy Social Networking, I’m familiar and comfortable with New Media…I’m drawn to its potential…but “expert”? Nah!
Social Media is too new, and so ever-changing for anyone to be able truly be an “expert”…at least by my definition, which I’m conveniently not stating here.
My talk was more about trends, indicators…mapping out a few directives that seem to be working FOR NOW…and why voice actors really shouldn’t ignore the opportunities afforded by New Media for furthering their brand, their personality…the relationships that may lead to enriching their personal lives, and advancing their business.
Amazingly, I talked almost non-stop about that for almost a half-hour, and still felt there was much left unsaid.
I’m a geek at heart, which means I’m a genetically hard-wired metal detector, perking up when a wayward fragment of social media metal shows up on my radar. But I know (that’s right, keep telling yourself, Dave) that Social Media is only one of the tools in my job-searching toolbox. It just happens to be the one that captures my fancy (hey!…I found a gold doubloon!).
Maybe I’m on to something. Maybe not. Maybe it’ll bring me more VO jobs…or not. Or maybe — just maybe — all this flailing around may lead me into an unexpected career vector that has little to do with voice-acting. All I know is along the way I’m learning a ton, and meeting some of the savviest people on the planet.
Below is about a 2:30 excerpt of my teleseminar. I recorded the whole thing on a trusty Logitech webcam…and the audio you hear is from the onboard Logitech mic (not the greatest). On this segment I blatantly break a number of my own rules, stated so smugly on my new website: OnCamTips.com. But, there may be some value in watching this anyway: a segment on the rationale for voice actors to consider authoring a blog of their own.
I have no idea how many listened in, but quite a few responded afterward to say they’d like the resource material I promised to make available if they’d just send their e-mail address to me. I think they were just being polite…;-}
BTW, write me at [email protected], and I’ll put you on the mailing list for that resource material, too.
My thanks to Mark Davidson and Austin Alexander of VoiceOverDirectory for asking me to speak, and arranging this teleseminar so professionally.
Also my gratitude to a couple of voice-actors who are social media VO giants in my eyes: Trish Basanyi (@Trishsvoice) and Terry Daniel (@TDaniel39).
CourVO
Google Is Your Resume
September 18, 2009 By 8 Comments
.
‘Heard that one before?
Think about it.
We Google EVERYTHING indiscriminately, and come on…admit it…you’ve Googled yourself just to see what turns up. In fact you should — regularly.
Why? Because your brand, your reputation, your integrity, and your image on the internet could be the most telling statement about your life from this point on.
Remember the old saying: “The only words you can take back are the ones never spoken?” Well, the internet is that way now with images, words, impressions, videos, and references to you.
My wife and I have tried to impress on our kids that every single image and video they post on FaceBook is gone to the ages, the moment they upload it. And yes, even “unfriended” people can manage to see your profiile with the right hack.
Why do you think employers feel they’ve found such a bonanza with the online social networking sites? They don’t need your resume — you know…that document you’ve carefully crafted to make you look good from HS graduation ”to present”. If they want to know what you are REALLY like, they Google you.
Hence, Google is your resume. Guard it. Protect it. Guide it. Heck, you can even manipulate it to your advantage. Uh-huh, it works both ways.
Thursday morning, I spent an hour with a group of UNLV college students in a class called: “Introduction to Interactive Media Design”. The professor had invited me to speak to these mostly Junior and Senior Journalism students about real-world application of social networking sites. How does a working journalist apply New Media to traditional media? Do they mix? Can they work together? Should they?
Here’s a short clip.
I enjoyed being there for an hour, ’cause many of the same concepts I shared with the UNLV students, I’ll be expected to articulate to my co-workers in the KLAS-TV newsroom next week. My boss has tapped me to help my news colleagues understand how all these social networking sites can have ANY possible relevance to news gathering. I think it does, but I digress to my night job.
Voice Acting as a business is largely conducted online. Hence, the “GOOGLE IS YOUR RESUME” concept applies. Your website, your profile on pay-to-play sites, your participation in forums, LinkedIn, YouTube, shared e-mails, Voice-Over Universe. All that contributes to your online, hence your real-world personna, because until they visit your home town, that’s all people have to go by.
So…again: Guard it. Protect it. Guide it. Heck, you can even manipulate it to your advantage. Uh-huh, it works both ways, and I’ll get into THAT in my next blog.
CourVO
Voice Island
July 29, 2009 By 2 Comments
‘Would love to know if anyone’s used this service, and whether it’s brought success in any way.
It purports to get your name and your work in front of all TV and Radio Stations (and more) on a regular basis. The one testimonial on the site said it got him a $98,000 job. That’d be sweet.
Check it out HERE.
CourVO
Doing Social Networking Right (i.e. according to Seth Godin)
July 6, 2009 By Leave a Comment
‘LOVE Seth Godin‘s blog, his books, his perspective, and especially the way he turns most conventional marketing theory on its ear.
See the following video (only 1:18 of your time) to see what Seth thinks of social networking’s value to marketing.
CourVO
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