National Voice Over Appreciation Month

Most people are familiar with the art of acting, having watched performers on stage in a play, on television or in the movies.  Using the physicality of their bodies, their facial expressions and their voices, actors bring to life a multitude of characters from a script.

But the arts are home to another kind of actor who most often resides behind off camera or stage but may actually be experienced by the public much more frequently (often daily) than stage or screen actor. This artist is called a voice actor and his/her business is known as voice over.  It is this industry that September’s National Voice Over Month celebrates and honors.

While voice actors can also act on the stage and screen and vice versa, many voice actors (also known as voice over talents or voice talents) remain off camera, using their only their significant vocal skills to bring a writer’s script to life – much in the same way radio actors did before the advent of television.

But the mediums that voice over talents work in today is much wider today than it was in the early part of the 20th Century when radio was the dominant media. Today, with the explosion of communication tools brought on by the success of the internet, just a small; sample of the places voice talents’ work can be heard around the world include computers, stadiums and arena, video games, telephone systems, airports, colleges and universities, the internet as well as television and radio.

The specialized work of voice over talents is featured in commercials, video and DVD narrations, e-learning programs, cartoons and other animation, message on hold, political announcements, radio and television station promotional announcements, documentaries…basically anywhere a story needs to be told with more than pictures.

For the thousands of professional male and female voice over talents, the joy of participating in this industry is recognition enough.  But with National Voice Over Month allows everyone the chance to understand and appreciate these special artists.

Visit our site:  www.nationalvoiceovermonth.com

Contributed by Peter O’Connell

Popularity: 1%

Are You Stuck?

Are you stuck?  Before you answer, consider how much of your work is from repeat clientele and referrals, the amount and quality of testimonials you receive from your clients, the strength of your web presence, and the effectiveness of your auditioning and voicing techniques.  Take some time to reflect and be totally honest with yourself.  This is the business side of voice over and if you neglect it or forget to pay attention to it, you will find yourself stuck. Stuck has no momentum.  Stuck does not pay the bills. Stuck stinks!

Get “unstuck” and build momentum by taking time to analyze how you can improve your voice over business.  Think outside of the box.   If you do have repeat clientele, find out what it is you are doing that makes them come back to you.  Think of how you can provide even more value to them, whether you offer to voice their phone system, or add audio to their website, voice their blog, or introduce their podcast.  Next, identify which of your one-time clients you would like to have as repeat clients and do the same.  Take it to the next level by identifying your dream clients – the ones you want to voice for but haven’t done so yet.

Add some speed to your momentum by allowing your clients to advertise your business for you through referrals and testimonials.  Referrals and testimonials are powerful because they speak about the quality and integrity of your work and you.  Go ahead and ask for referrals.  Develop an arsenal of testimonials by asking your clients, especially your repeat clients, for a testimonial about their experience working with you and post these on your website.

Google yourself.  Are you on the first page? Better yet, how many pages do you fill?  The strength of your web presence is vital because the Internet is a major marketplace for voice over talent services.  Having a website is fantastic but you need to get plugged in to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube too.  Social Media is a powerful force in optimizing your web presence. Likewise, it allows you to access, connect, and engage other voice over talent, creative directors, and potential clients.  Leverage the power of social media to express your personality and brand your image – it’s free!  To optimize your social media, visit www.SocialMediaVO.com.

Finally, we audition a lot and we voice a lot.  Sometimes in the process it becomes more of a chore which inevitably comes out in our performance.  If you are finding your auditioning effectiveness to be slipping and the jobs seem to be fewer and further between, it may be time to revisit the basics or shake things up a bit and treat yourself by investing in a few training sessions with a professional voice over coach. Yes, even the pros get coaching to keep their competitive edge and learn new techniques!

Yes, even the pros have to get “unstuck” and find new ways to improve their voice over businesses. Going through this process is exactly what makes them pros and what sets them apart from the amateurs.  It’s time to get “unstuck”.

To your success!?

Popularity: 4%

What Do You Truly Want?

Seriously, what do you want?  Something for nothing doesn’t exist and unfortunately for many of us, neither does the land of Dairy Queen with its chocolate mountains adorned with peanuts, topped with ice cream and flowing rivers of chocolate and caramel!  So let’s just be real for a moment.
You’ve been told all your life that you have this great voice and should be a voice over talent.

That’s not enough!

You’re curious about the possibility of becoming a voice over talent.  People have told you that you have a great voice and it’s something you’d like to explore.

That’s better!

You want to be a professional voice over talent. You want to know how to do it right and want to get mentoring from real working voice over professionals who are doing what you want to do.

Now you’re talking!

If you want to be taken seriously, you must have serious intentions.  You must clearly define what you want and decide what you are willing to give to get it.   It’s quite simple, really.  To complete a triathlon you will need to be able to swim, bike, and run.  That will require some strength, cardio and endurance training. Additionally, you will need to fuel your body appropriately and have the right gear to complete the event. That will likely mean investing in some professional training to learn and improve your skills in each of the three sports, disciplining yourself to commit to the training regimen – even when you don’t feel like it – and investing in the appropriate gear so you can compete.

To compete as a voice over talent, you will need to be able to record your voice and deliver a variety of scripts, be teachable and directable, invest in professional training to learn and improve upon your skills and create a kickin’ demo.  You’ll need to discipline yourself to commit to the training, auditioning, editing and follow-through – even when you don’t feel like it – and invest in the appropriate equipment to get the job done.

You know what you need to do.  So what’s holding you back?

You need to want it enough to invest your time, money and energy into making what you want your reality. You need to want it – not your friends or all those people who have told you all your life that you have the most amazing voice.  If you don’t want it, investing your time, money and energy into training is simply foolish!

You need to want it and be bold enough to commit to it.  If you are not willing to commit to it, you will certainly fail because you will not be willing to give your full effort into making it happen. When you want it enough to commit to it, then the time, money and effort you invest in making it your reality will be an investment you are excited to make in yourself.

Good luck!

Popularity: 8%

Finding Networking Opportunities

Networking is critical to your success as a voice over talent so it pays to become a master networker.  While networking is necessary it doesn’t have to be a grueling experience.  Here are some tips to help you become a master networker.

Think of people who you know and businesses you frequent.  Do a bit of research to find the appropriate contacts and find out what their experience has been with current voice over talent and if they are open to accepting new voice over talent submissions.  Pay attention to any clues that may help you to serve them better than their existing talent base.

Look for networking opportunities in your local community where potential decision makers gather.  Chamber of Commerce meetings, marketing and advertising gatherings, and local business MeetUp groups are good places to start.  Attend these gatherings, introduce yourself and, in the course of the conversation, find out what you can do to help them accomplish their goals better with your voice over services.  Then make sure to follow up with these people within 24 to 48 hours after the event using the information you gleaned from your initial introduction.

Contact charities or causes for which you feel a passion.  The Animal Humane Society, The American Red Cross, The American Cancer Society, and so many more are wonderful and worthy organizations which you may offer to volunteer your voice for a commercial or event.  This gesture has also led to future paid voice over work for me.  Attend their events and you will meet other contacts of companies who support these organizations too.

Social Media Marketing is only growing and the people who are hiring voice over talent are using it as a tool to find talent.  If you are not yet taking advantage of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube you need to do so.  Check out SocialMediaVO.com to see what is new in Social Media and Voice Over.

Set a realistic networking goal for yourself and schedule networking events and activities into your calendar.  What gets scheduled gets done!

Finally, relax.  People are not thinking about you as much as they are thinking about themselves, their challenges and how others perceive them.  Make it your goal to make them feel comfortable and important. See how you can help them and they will respond in kind.

Put these tips into practice consistently and you will build a fabulous network and momentum that will continuously feed your business.

Popularity: 4%

Achieving Your Voice Over Goals

My favorite definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results!  Everyone wants to accomplish something! We all had dreams of what we wanted to do with our lives when we were younger.  Perhaps you wanted to be a famous actor or singer.  Maybe your ambitions were to become a doctor, teacher, lawyer, engineer or a celebrity sports figure.  Regardless, you made choices along the way that have brought you to where you are now.  If you would like to do something else, you need to make different choices that will create that reality for you.

Perhaps you want to become a voice over talent, break into a specific niche in the industry or expand your production skills to offer more to your clients and increase your earning potential.  Regardless of what you want, here are some steps to help you achieve it:

1.  Determine what you want.  Be clear about it and write it down.

2.  Find out what it takes to reach your goal by doing due diligence and researching to get accurate information from qualified experts who have accomplished what you want to accomplish.   If you want to be a voice over talent, don’t seek advice from someone who hasn’t achieved what you want to achieve.  Write down what it takes.

3.  Decide whether or not you are willing to do what it takes – not just what you want to do, but what it takes to accomplish your goal. If you want something bad enough, you will commit to doing what it takes.  Make a written pledge to yourself that you will do what it takes to achieve this goal.

4. Post your goal, the things you need to do to attain it and your commitment pledge in a place you will see it every day.

5.  Consistently and persistently work toward your goal by accomplishing at least two core tasks each day, one of which you would rather not do.  Hint:  If you want to achieve your goal quicker, then you will need to do more than two core tasks each day, especially those you would rather not do!

I am a voice over talent.  Yep, it’s what I do…every day!  How did I get to be a voice over talent?   I became a voice talent by consistently and persistently following these steps.   What do you want to achieve?  Create a new reality for yourself by consistently and persistently following these steps and one day you will wake up and realize that you have achieved your goal!

Popularity: 6%