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‘Coupla Noteworthy Deadlines

May 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment

My my how time flies!

A minute ago VOICE2012 was more than half-a-year off, and now it’s about a month-and-a-half away…how does that happen?

Executive producers of the VO conference James Alburger and Penny Abshire have sent out about a million notices about today’s deadline.  The BEST pricing for the conference ends today.

Need some encouragement that your dollars are well-spent for this conference?   I’ve talked about that in a previous blog(5  VOICE2012 Myths Dispelled)…and all of it is still true.  :)

Visit this page to take care of the VOICE2012 registration today.

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About a month ago, I published a blog that got more than 5,000 hits.  It was an interview with a friend who made a long list of suggestions for tapping into CraigsList as a job resource. (Cracking Craigslist).

That friend — John Breese — is selling off his Craigslist site, and the rights to his course.  Until May 4th, his course (typically $37), is now on sale for less than half that price.  I promised him I would pass along this information to all of you who found his tips so helpful.  I have not reviewed this course, but I believe in the value that John places in the products he releases.

Click HERE to read more about the offer, and at a price that costs less than 4 gallons of gas.

CourVO

 

 

Filed Under: Referral, VOICE 2012 Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

12 Trends: MUST READ!

January 5, 2012 By 2 Comments

Every year, David Ciccarelli — the technical genius behind VOICES.com — delivers a wealth of VO research in an easily digestible report.

His latest survey on the “state of the union” for voice-acting is out, and it’s called 12 Trends for 2012.

If you’re a VOICES.com subscriber, you may have already received your email link to this study.

Puh-leeze take the time to read this.  It may be THE MOST important data you will review this year.  The conclusions Ciccarelli reaches are nothing short of seminal and brilliant.  Yes, it is somewhat of a commercial for Voices.com, but there’s plenty of meat (or soy, if you’re a vegetarian) here for anyone to chew on beyond the Voices.com references.

Here’s the link again:  12 Trends for 2012.

Click.

Read.

CourVO

Filed Under: Business-end-of-things, Referral, Surveys Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Friday Foursome

September 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Four items I just feel compelled to mention, here, at the end of the week (and I hope it’s been a good one for you!)

First:

The winners of the VOAToday week-2 question are chosen, and they are Arlene Cook and Connie Awtrey.  See the awesome prizes they win, and read a snippet from their answer to the question: WHAT IS YOUR MOST EFFECTIVE STRATEGY FOR SECURING NEW CLIENTS?.  We had almost 50 answers to the week-2 question.

There is still plenty of time to participate for week-3 and be eligible for some nifty winnings.  The question is: BRIEFLY, WHAT OVERRIDING CONCEPT RULES THE SETTING OF YOUR RATES?

Thanks to all of you who have participated…please read the answers already posted…lots of collective wisdom.

 

Two:

My SaVoa buddy, and voice-over talent par excellence — Andy Bowyer — has written a great blog based on his recent experience narrating an audiobook for ACX.  People, this is a worthy read, well worth the time.  Andy is a good writer, and has some valuable insights on this long-format labor-of-love.  “THE BRILLIANCE IS IN THE SIMPLICITY”.

THREE:

David Rosenthal, the Internet Voice Coach founder, and veteran voice and on-camera actor, is offering a series of workshops and classes on voice-acting through Studio NPG and the New Performance Group.  This is mostly a Bay-area based course, but there may well be a way to participate by distance, or acquire a DVD later?  David?  Here’s the link to find out all the info.

FOUR:

A warning.  I’ve been getting a series of emails that I think are a total scam.  Here’s the one I got Thursday:
Hello,
I’ve added you to my auufkb group at Yahoo! Groups, a free, 
easy-to-use service. Yahoo! Groups makes it easy to send and receive
group messages, coordinate events, share photos and files, and more.

Description of the group:
————————————————————————
nya178k20k2j 

Complete your Yahoo! Groups account:
———————————————————————-
Your email address has been added to the email list of a Yahoo! Group.
To gain access to all of your group’s web features (previous messages,
photos, files, calendar, etc.) and easier control of your message
delivery options, we highly recommend that you complete your account
by connecting your email address to a Yahoo account. It is easy and free.
Please visit:
http://groups.yahoo.com/convacct?email=courvo%40courvo.com&list=auufkb

Important information about the auufkb group
————————————————————————
* To send a message to the members of this group, send an email to:
  auufkb@yahoogroups.com 

* To leave the group, you can unsubscribe by replying to this message,
  or by sending an email to:
  auufkb-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com 

Regards,

Moderator, auufkb 

Report abuse:
————————————————————————
Because Yahoo! Groups values your privacy, it is a violation of our 
service rules for moderators to add subscribers to a group against
their wishes. If you feel this has happened, please notify us:
http://help.yahoo.com/l/us/yahoo/groups/original/members/forms/abuse.html 

You may also change your email preferences to prevent group owners from
adding you to their groups. To do so, please go here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/s?tag=83Vd-zOemoaHFaWeCtqmpVVi1rWfUNSjwIv8Bgser9CdKsI7ZXx41_QyP8g36zri1RuUvo8xvm8Ytmg

Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
Apparently you can be added to a Yahoo Group, and not even have the choice!  Luckily, the above message is generated by Yahoo in response to someone adding you to a group.

Notice the name of the group is gibberish, and there is no stated purpose of the group.  I’m not sure what the advantage is here, but I don’t like this intrusion, and don’t want any part of it.

Here’s what you should do with this:

1)  Don’t just let it languish…you are now part of a group that you know nothing about.
2)  Follow the directions to unsubscribe.
3)  Report the group to Yahoo.

That’s it!

Have a great weekend!

CourVO

Filed Under: Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

The “Other” Souers

September 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Ask any parent, and they’ll tell you they secretly harbor a hope that one of their children might follow in their own footsteps.

Imagine the pride that friend and fellow Voice-Actor Bob Souer must feel, then, with two of his offspring choosing work in the area of voice-overs!

We don’t want to overstate the connection.  Both Karen and Eric Souer have earned a reputation in the business through their own hard work.  But if you were going to seek a mentor, an internship, or an apprentice-ship in voiceovers, what better laboratory to learn the ropes, than the studios of Bob Souer?!

While there’s a little over-lapping in their services, both Eric and Karen have their own areas of expertise.  So much so, that even Bob can’t keep ‘em totally busy any more, and that’s why you should know that Eric and Karen could be a useful resource for your own VO business.

Bob says: “They are independent in terms of their own businesses and even the specific things they do.”

What exactly DO they do?  I decided to go to the source.  Below, you’ll see specific answers to pointed questions about their work from Eric and Karen themselves.

I love seeing enterprising young people like this doing well as protegés, yes…but also as independent business-people in their own right!

Thanks Karen and Eric…best of luck!

CourVO

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Need a Critique?…for Free?

August 19, 2011 By 10 Comments

Here’s the magic of shopping around your demo or audition:

Play it to ten different people, and you’ll get 10 different opinions.

But somewhere in that mix, something will ring true, and confirm a sneaking suspicion in your own mind that he/she is right.  Or maybe there’s enough in all 10 opinions that you’ll want to start over….or realize that you’re ready to send it — just like it is.

That’s the wonder of letting ears besides yours hear your work.  They find things to which your ears are deaf.  Those extra ears — and the opinions attached to them — also help you see things you didn’t think of before.

Great, Dave…but my friends are getting REAL tired of me bothering them every time I have a new recording I want them to hear!  Where can I go to get fresh, free, educated and seasoned opinoins about my stuff?

Edge Studio’s FeedBack Forum

The folks at Edge have been refining this portion of their service for a few months, now, and it’s impressive.

Submit your demo, audition, practice recordings, or even paid jobs with a copy of the script.  The file uploads and resides on the Edge site according to any number of categories, or searchable parameters.  The script is visible.  Then, anyone can stop by, play the file, listen, and comment on what they hear.

The cool thing here, is that quite a few people are stopping by, and giving great feedback.

All the comments are threaded, and anyone can see what earlier visitors have contributed.

It’s the kind of thing you need, often when you most need it.

You can also search for any entries by the same categories, even by script genre.. Everything’s dated, names are included, and everybody’s civil.

Listening to these offerings either tends to make you feel like you’re ahead of the crowd, or you need lots of work, or anything in between.  It’s a great barometer of what’s out there, especially those who are posting the work that they got paid for…THAT’S what clients are buying!

As I said, it’s free, but does require you registering with the site.  Trading your contact info for a service like this — I think — is a pretty darn good deal.

Give it a whirl….what’ve you got to lose?

CourVO

 

Filed Under: Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Bustin’…

August 11, 2011 By 1 Comment

…at the seams.

Have you ever before in the history of VO seen so much information flying around?!  …and people wonder why I’m such a big apostle for Social Media!

I’m about to launch into a list of helpful info / great sites / reminders / notices… that if you haven’t seen you SHOULD see…so forgive me if you so “in-the-know” that I’ve wasted your time.  :)

No matter what you think of Voice123, I think you’d have to admit that their “Community Development Guru” — Steven Lowell — does a pretty darn good job of putting a human face on the company.  The guy is all over social media, the forums, and almost always offers some pretty good insights on the business.  Now, he’s compiled all that knowledge into a wonderful online resource called  The VoiceOver Guide.  Frankly, I think this is chock-full of stuff almost anyone…at any level of voice acting can use.  And…OK…he added this blog to his list of VO resources…so there’s your disclaimer.  Nice going Steven!

The latest Blue Microphones newsletter is out, and it’s always nice to see what this innovative company is up to.  Including their Blueberry…with a transformer-balanced Class A discrete amplifier circuit and hand-selected diaphragm capsule.  Yeah, I’m not sure what that means either.  You’ll have to read the Blue Microphone newsletter and follow the links to understand.

Fellow Social Media addict and VO friend Terry Daniel pointed out a site on the web that gives instructions for adding the Google +1 button to your site.  This is much like the FaceBook “like” button, and can only increase your influence on the web if you’re hoping to be noticed.  Thanks, Terry!

Speaking of Terry Daniel…VoiceOverXtra is hosting Terry, Trish Basanyi and your truly in a trifecta of Social Media-learning webinars starting next week.  Terry is first, covering that 800 lb. Gorilla of social networking:  FaceBook.  Trish will share VO job-finding secrets she’s perfected on Twitter, and I’ll be bringing up the rear a few days later with info on LinkedIn, YouTube, Google+, Blogging, and I’ll have a live interview with VU founder Zurek.  If you haven’t seen our whiz-bang artwork…well, here it is:   

Clicking on that snazzy picture will whisk you away to the info/sign-up page.  It’s time to mark your spot…the webinars begin next Wednesday the 17th, then Thursday the 18th, and finally the 24th.

Brandon Drury over at the Recording Review always posts useful information that voice-over artists can use too.  I say that, ’cause his site is designed mostly for musicians and souond engineers, but don’t let that throw you.  Voice Overs is always the lost stepsister of this industry, so just look past the misdirected references to “guitars” and “singing” and take advantage of articles like: Home Studio Diffusion 201: What You Need To Know.  See all the articles mentioned in this month’s newsletter on the Recording Review homepage.

I’d better get going, now, and work on my webinar materials for the 24th… but there’s more…much more out there on the internet…keep your eyes open…and let me know if I’m missin’ something big!

CourVO

Filed Under: Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

7 Scariest Words for Freelancers

July 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

“WE HAVE JUST A FEW MORE CHANGES”

This quick, concise article explaining how to handle that deadly sentence comes from Freelance-Zone.com…a great resource you should bookmark, or take their RSS feed, or otherwise flag for regular visits.

Take a moment to click the link below and read it. Some useful information especially for those of us in the Voice Over business…’cause there’s almost ALWAYS “…just a couple of little changes..” Right?

CourVO

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/nPFOky
URL:  http://freelance-zone.com/blog/advice/the-7-scariest-wo…

 

Filed Under: Published Articles, Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Blogging Brothers

July 12, 2011 By 4 Comments

The best thing I can do in this blog is tell you about great VO resources.

It doesn’t matter if that resource is another blog.  NOT to tell you about two new great blogging resources for VO information would be totally disingenuous of me…and besides they’re both friends.

Make a plan to visit these two blogs every day (just like you do  mine, right?)

DEREK CHAPPEL’S VOICE OF YOUR BUSINESS BLOG
Derek is an attorney, but he’d rather be voicing.  He’s actually been blogging for quite some time, but lately he’s been on a seriously consistent roll, and has been posting some great stuff.  Be sure to visit.

RICK LANCE’S AMERICANA BLOG

I first ran into Rick Lance in person at VOICE2010.  He is The Voice Of Americana.  Now his blog is off and runnin’.  I’m sure he’s gonna have plenty of good stuff to say.  Stop by and learn.  Then comment!

CourVO

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Referral

Curating Referrals

May 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Nothing is more important to an independent freelance artist than the referrals they get from satisfied clients, trusted friends and colleagues.

Sometimes you really just have to ASK for those referrals.  Most of the time, your client, friend or colleagues is only to happy to do that for you, much as you would for them.  Can I write one for you?

Some VO’s swear by the quoted testimonials they glean from clients.  I must confess I have not tried this, but I see it a lot voice acting websites.

I do a lot of referring on this blog.  Most of the time, it’s to great articles I find on the topics of voice over, social media, technological advances, and equipment (among others).  In fact, I ever have a category called “referrals”, and the articles are an encyclopedia of great links I’ve found over the years.

CURATING

At the risk of beating the drum too much, I want to once again mention the VO aggregator site I’m “curating” with VO Fran McClellan called “Scoop.it”.  That word “curating” is one that’s much bandied about in the world of journalism and social media in recent months.  Here’s a great article on what that means when it comes to being in charge of content as it washes over us in internet waves.

The Scoop.it site I’m curating is turning up stuff I’d never seen before, and believe me I go searching for VO stuff all day every day for my blog.  In that sense, the Scoop.it algorithm for seeking information about voice over (according to the keywords I’ve chosen) is very thorough.  My job as  the “curator” of all that stuff is to weed through it and make sure to choose those entries that truly deserve to be content on the site.

Here are a few of the headlines I’ve found recently:
Top Voice Over Agency: Voice Over LA- How ToGet Into The Voice Over
Children & Kid Voice Talent – 7 Directing Tipsto Get the Most Out …
How to Build a Character For Voice Actors – oora.info
Voice Over Coaching Courses – Do They Help Discovering Work and …
Voiceover techniques for professional results
Carrying out Voice Overs is Effortless Cash Wrong! | 3dsmod.net
Voice Acting Advice » Acting Advice Online – Free acting advice and acting tips
Voice Over Jobs – How to Start a Voice Over Career: Work Jobs at Home | Work At Home Jobs – Easy Work At Home Video Tutorials
Voice Actors Needed! ~UPDATED~
Do You Have An Alpha Voice?
Finding The Appropriate Voiceover Talent For Your Script | Watch …

I’m not saying I’ve read all these articles…but a lot of them.  And I’m not claiming all of them are appropriate for all levels of the profession.  Admittedly, I’m casting a wide net…but it’s incredible the amount of information out there, meaning more and more services like this will find a valuable place on the net for people hoping to quickly review the available trends in their field.

Check it out when you have a chance, and be sure to subscribe while you’re there.  I guarantee you’ll find something to click on that you’ll find interesting.  The page is issued in a traditional “front page” style that’s easy to scroll through.

SCOOP.IT/VOICEOVER is the site.

Thanks for visiting.

CourVO

Filed Under: Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Wednesday VO Digest

May 18, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Being a newsguy by trade, I just can’t sit by and let great info stack up without sharing it.  So again it’s time to unload the great VO “stuff” I’ve found in a blog digest.

I love Jim Kipping‘s mention of a useful method for employing Skype in your studio.  “…my biggest gigs have always been through my ISDN setup at the house. Still are, but I am doing so many more SKYPE sessions where my production rig is routed through the Skype GUI, where they are getting broadcast quality audio of me on their end to direct, but I’m rolling on my end. THEN not even posting it on FTP, but dropping it in the chat window for immediate download…”
Love it!…Thanks, Jim!  (and thanks to Terry Daniel who administers the Voice-Over Pros FB Group where I found this tip)

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Nick Ivanov has been a great addition to my Voice-Over Friends FaceBook Group page.  Nick runs Graffitti Studios in Sophia, Bulgaria, and recently posted some great articles about setting VO Rates.
Setting VO Rates, Part I
Setting VO Rates, Part II

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My friend Karen Commins is a very smart cookie, and a good audiobook narrator. What she writes in her blog, I eat with a spoon. One of her latest offerings is:  1o Ways to Get Work in AudioBook Narration.  Worth the time to see her suggestions if you want to pursue this niche in VO.

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Don’t worry if you missed last night’s excellent session on VoiceOverXtra on the Basics of ProTools with George Whittam.  You’re probably waaay ahead of the crowd, and will most benefit from the next session on Thursday about ProTools for advanced users. At $39 for George Whittam…they’re practically giving it away!

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Growing your Voice-Over Business is as easy as 1-2-3 according to the author Bill DeWees, who has a natural, easy-to-watch style in this YouTube video.  Good stuff, Bill!

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I’m a big believer in the power of LinkedIn as a way to build my VO business, but it’s a more serious social network than Twitter or FaceBook, and there are some pretty important (but not hard) basic rules.  Chris Tompkins covers it well in his quick-read: “5 LinkedIn Must Haves“  I really like suggestion #2…You must join groups.  Why don’t you go over to my Setting VoiceOver Rates LinkedIn group right now and ask to join!  (I administer a private version of this group, too:  Voice-Over Rates – Private)

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Mel Allen has written a wonderful summary of headphone use on Your Audio Pro. Luckily, I’m using two of the “cans” he recommends in this exhaustive look at quality/affordable headphones.

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Maxine Dunn‘s newsletter is a goldmine, and her latest issue has a must-read article on revamping your website called: Does Your #1 Marketing Tool Need a MakeOver?

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Speaking of newsletters, Melanie Haynes just published her first one, and it’s modest, but this pro will have plenty to say in coming weeks that you’ll want to hear, so why don’t you support her first effort by going on over to News From Melanie, and sign up to get her newsletter.

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If you want to really learn dialects, and can be in San Fran from June 4-6, Doug Honorof is conducting a chance-in-a-million weekend workshop that just might give you an added dimension to your work.  See details on VU:  Dialects with Doug Honorof.

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The author of CloudDrive — Jerry Wang — liked my blog on CloudDrive enough that he wrote to tell me of another product you might like if you’re investigating storage solutions in the cloud.  He writes:  “…Google Docs offers 1 GB of free storage, and you can extend it up to 16 TB at a fairly cheap rate: $5 USD for 20 GB per year. However, the lack of folder uploading support really prevents Google Docs from becoming a practical online storage solution. If you want to backup a folder, you need to manually create all the subfolders and upload files to the corresponding subfolders one by one. It is tedious and terrible! GDocsDrive can greatly simplify the uploading/backup process by enabling drag and drop folder uploading. All that is needed is to drag the files/folders which you want to backup and drop them into the GDocsDrive window. With folder uploading enabled, GDocsDrive allows people to fully utilize the cheap and reliable storage offered by Google..."

He goes on to say: "...we have a new upgrade for CloudDrive, named GDocsDrive, which is a client app for Google Docs. We would very much appreciate it if you would review/introduce it on your website again. Here are some information about GDocsDrive: Website: http://www.gdocsdrive.com GDocsDrive is a desktop client for Google Docs with a folder uploading enhancement. With GDocsDrive, you can backup thousands of files or folders to your Google Docs account with just a drag and drop, which makes your Google Docs a cloud storage drive (GDrive). Additionally, GDocsDrive covers most of the features of web- based Google Docs, so you can manipulate your Google Docs files from your desktop."

I’ve installed GDocsDrive and it’s pretty slick.  You gt a 14-day trial, then the full one-time ownership fee is $19.

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Finally, my good VO friend John Pruden highly recommends Alkolol when he feels his throat getting a little raw.  He says he mixes it with equal parts water and mouthwash. Yeah…I’d never heard of Alkolol either, but John says it’s an old reliable and effective product that you have to ask for from the pharmacist, even though it’s not prescription.  Here’s the Alkolol product website.  Thanks, John!

CourVO

 

Filed Under: Digest, Referral Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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