Dave Courvoisier's Blog

Posts Tagged ‘speaking’

Somebody who gets it! 

NEVERBLUE is all about affiliate marketing. 

Don't ask what that is.  I haven't quite figured it out yet. But I know some people swear by it. (someting about getting rich repping other people's products on your site…kinda like franchising online)

Here's their pitch: "Neverblue is a premier global lead generation network that delivers
millions of profitable customers to clients from all over the world.
Experience better affiliate marketing."

OK, that clears it up.

But Neverblue has apparently figured out that voice actors actually have value, and in THIS blog, they lay out several scenarios in which a smart person would want to hire a voice actor for professional product.

They make pretty good sense.  'Might even be worth a cold-call?

CourVO

R U a member of FaceBook?  R U in any way interested in voice acting or voiceovers?

Then…R U a member of Stephanie Ciccaarelli's VOICE ACTING HUB on FaceBook?

If not, you should be.  Stephanie's great, and always posts quality material.

Click HERE to go….there….and if that link doesn't work, just go to "Join Groups" and search for Voice Acting Hub.

CourVO

Boy, am I late with the notice on this one, but that's what happens when I fail to visit the VO-BB for about a week.

Some months ago, one of the smartest marketing guys in VO approached me to proofread a publication he was writing specifically for newbies in Voiceovers.  His name is Peter O'Connell, and of course the first thing I wondered is why he was asking me. 

It doesn't matter, 'cause Peter is such a good author that I think I found a missing comma somewhere on page 56, but that's all, and even that was up for debate.

OK, so his FREE online publication is called THE VOICE OVER ENTRANCE EXAM…and it's so timely.

Why?  Because if you're having even marginal success in voice acting, and you've been at it for a while, and your marketing is starting to get out there…then you'll be regularly approached by the throngs of hopefuls who just KNOW that in a few short weeks, they'll be getting sacks of money delivered to their door for the voice work they do.  In fact, I just got approached by a local DJ today.

For those people…Peter's work is tailor-made.

Peter's work is visually appealing, well-researched, engaging, imminently readable, true, and for some:  hard to swallow.  That's because Peter doesn't mince words when mincing would be unkind and unfair.

This is a competitive business with loads of misconceptions…especially on the front end. 

Even if you're a seasoned pro in voiceovers, take the time to read this.

NICE WORK, PETER!!!

CourVO

OK, I admit, it's really late on a Tuesday…ahem, actually it's early Wednesday morning as I write this, but I refuse to face the reality…

I ran across this unique community for Sci-Fi enthusiasts.  SPACE AGE MAGAZINE…a Social Network for Sci-Fi writers and artists.  Hmmm…  close to MY heart.  Really.

Anyway, click HERE to see an offering there that is an amazingly succinct primer in how to record a fairly decent sound-file for podcasting and other purposes.

Apparently, they don't need us.

CourVO

My thanks to friend and mentor Frank Frederick (The Voice) for this tip.

He mentioned "MULTITRACK Studio" as a fully-functional , inexpensive, sound editor worthy of consideration for voice actors.

I decided to take the plunge and purchase the lower cost version: MultiTrack Studio Professional for $69 USD. Hey, I'd overpayed my AMEXCO card recently, and couldn't stand the thought of them making money off my misstep.

At any rate, it's just installed, so I don't have much of an evaluation for you, but it installed pretty doggone effortlessly on my Vista machine…and BTW, it installs on any MS OS all the way down to Windows 95.

Here's what their site says about it's mixing capabilities:  "MultitrackStudio has a powerful mixer structure including an unlimited
number of Effect Return and Group sections, numerous built-in quality
effects and VST and DX plugin support. The Pro Plus edition features
powerful sidechain routing options."

I'm such a sucker for new geek-toys.  Check back here soon for a better evaluation…or better yet, call Frank.  I'm sure he could tell you 10 ways it's better than Pro-Tools ;-}

CourVO

Julie Williams' excellent monthly newsletter is out in .pdf format, and is imminently readable and worthwhile. 

Click HERE to see her latest voiceover salary survey, get help with what to charge for your work, and find hints on avoiding unscrupulous voice coaches.

Great work, Julie!

CourVO

My thanks to "Joe Actor" (Joe Thomas) for pointing me to some fresh information coming out concerning a new online subscription site for voice actors:  VoicePunch.

On Julie Williams' online voiceover forum site you'll see a thread that raises some serious questions.

Click HERE.

I, too, rec'd an e-mail from "Chris Kellog" to do a link exchange with the new VoicePunch.  I never responded.  Joe Actor is seeking to have his unapproved link to the VoicePunch site removed.

CourVO

Time and again I've referred visitors here to workshops, articles, and offers from Pat Fraley…one of my favorite voice coaches and certainly one of the giants in our business.

Below, see the offer he's making to budding voice actors seeking work in Audibooks.  I've studied with Pat, and I have this set he's marketing.  It's the real deal.  Lots of really good tips.

'nuff said

CourVO

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Great minds think alike. 

Yeah, it's a hackneyed phrase, but I hadn't used it in a while, and actually I don't compare to John Florian's great mind anyway.

Yesterday, John and I both published content-laden articles composed by JS Gilbert.  John on his wonderful site: VoiceOverXtra, and me on this blog. Neither of us knew what the other was up to, even though we often collaborate and share content.

We had both sought-out JS's considerable expertise.  In this case, everyone's a winner, including you, JS, and our respective VO sites.  I encourage you to visit VoiceOverXtra today to see even more of JS Gilbert's wisdom on the business of voicing for video games.

As promised, though, I'm also going to publish the second half of my exhaustive Q & A with Gilbert.  Please see the very end of today's blog for a quick BIO on JS…he's an accomplished guy whom I applaud for selflessly sharing his depth of experience with us.

Thanks again, JS!

CourVO

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Well, I did it.  It’s 5 months late, but I finally got my most recent newsletter out the door.  You should have a copy waiting in your e-mail box.

This one’s pretty much all dedicated to Twitter.  I think Twitter is big, and so do millions of others.

You’ll find specific tips and links to VO-related Twitter groups and sites.  There are also suggestions for how to find stuff that VO people tweet.  Twitter can be a time-suck, but it can also be an incredible (and I can’t overstate that) resource.

If you didn’t get it, or just want to read it now, I’ve inserted a copy of it below-the-fold here.  If you like what you see, let me know.  If you don’t like it, or you find some mistakes…uh…don’t tell me today… wait till tomorrow. Heh.  (some of the color formatting got lost in translation when I copied and pasted…but all the info’s there)

CourVO

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