1. Live Sketch Comedy Show with VO guys

    Posted September 27, 2011 by Bob

    Fred Willard will be joined by Kevin Delaney, Richard Horvitz and Bill Farmer this coming Tuesday at Second City in Hollywood.

    The MOHOS

    Details are at Kevin Delaney’s blog.

    Category: General, People | Comments (2)

  2. Cloud Drive

    Posted September 22, 2011 by Bob

    This was a fun recent job I worked on.

    Category: General | Comments (2)

  3. Pat Fraley and his character voices are coming to NYC

    Posted September 21, 2011 by Bob

    Pat Fraley is making a trip to the East Coast next month. If you are interested in character voices, audiobooks, animation and games you really should study with Pat. Details are on his web site.

    Category: Career Advice, General, Getting started in Voiceover | Comments (3)

  4. Profitable Advertising vs. Self-Indulgent Carp

    Posted September 20, 2011 by Bob

    My friend Blaine Parker publishes a weekly newsletter (or screed as he likes to call it) about advertising that he called HOT POINTS. He’s given me permission to republish his articles from time to time when he has something to say that I think makes sense to us in voiceover. Today is one of those days.

    —————————————

    HOT POINTS for The Week of September 19, 2011

    WHAT’S WITH THE CARP?

    Well, I was going to use a mild expletive.

    Then, I figured your spam filter might send it into the world of Nigerian scams and lottery winners and proposals from hot Asian brides.

    So I used my favorite replacement noun and let you fill in the blanks.

    All of this preamble to really no purpose, other than to lead into a total non sequitur, to wit…

    I HAVEN’T BEEN ON A HARANGUE ABOUT RADIO ADVERTISING IN A WHILE

    I thought about that last week as I sat here at my desk high above Park City, Utah, in the wee hours of the morning, listening to a rural New England radio station on my computer.

    Why New England and why so early?

    One of our clients was doing a radio interview in morning drive, and I wanted to hear it live.

    So, I’m sitting here, dark & early before the sunrise, in my Batman jammies with a cup of high-octane joe, listening to the live stream through the steam.

    In the commercial break, when the next spot came on, I almost blew coffee spray all over the monitor.

    This guy reading the commercial had a distinct lateral lisp.

    And he was literally phoning in the recording. It was telephone audio.

    THIS COULD BE CONSIDERED RADIO ADVERTISING HELL

    The worst possible, non-professional voice.

    The worst kind of low-fi recording.

    And ya know what?

    It was gripping.

    Seriously.

    As soon as I got past the initial surprise of what I was hearing, this guy was utterly engaging.

    Even though he was talking about wild mushrooms.

    I don’t care about wild mushrooms.

    Despite what could be considered amateur crap radio on a professional commercial broadcast, I loved this guy.

    CONTRAST THAT TO THE REST OF THE BILGE ON THE AIR

    Much of what you hear on air commercial-wise at this station is exactly what you’d expect in a small market from small businesses.

    The painful “slice of life” spots with two people who obviously don’t know each other, rambling on with long, complex sentences filled with the kind of ad speak that real people have never uttered in their lives.

    The “announcer” who sounds like they just pulled her off the switchboard, blathering on about why a particular substance abuse program is the best one for “all your recovery needs–” and she sounds neither like she’s old enough to take a drink nor aware enough to know what on earth she’s even talking about.

    But this guy with the lateral lisp talking about wild mushrooms in a radio spot recorded over the phone was really compelling.

    Ya now why?

    Because he was real. He knew what he was talking about. He was passionate. He cared deeply. And he was sharing it with me.

    THAT, MY FRIENDS IS AT THE CORE OF GOOD ADVERTISING

    Not merely radio, but all advertising.

    Genuineness goes a long way towards making a compelling case for whatever it is you’re selling.

    In a word: Truth.

    It sells.

    Nothing about the presentation is remotely slick–but it doesn’t matter.

    The guy talking knows his subject, he cares deeply, he wants to convey it, and he knows how to get you interested.

    It’s one of the things that makes eHarmony’s advertising so compelling: those people in their commercials are real.

    It’s what makes Mike Rowe so engaging: he comes across as real.

    It’s why hidden camera commercials can be so engaging: they’re showing you unvarnished truth.

    THINKING CAN KILL YOU

    Not smart thinking, mind you. Smart thinking is the kind of thinking that makes a skilled creator step out of the way and let the magic happen.

    But lazy thinking, entrenched thinking, clever thinking, self-important thinking–those and other kinds of lousy thought processes stand in between an advertiser and an audience.

    Any truly salient message ends up clouded or even obliterated by the ego and/or fear of the creator.

    People thinking that what they’re doing is “The way it’s always done;” people saying “What advertisements always say;” people thinking, “Gosh I’m funny, people are going to love me;” people thinking, “Gosh, I’m smart, people are going to be so impressed with me;” or any of a dozen other stunted thought processes–these are what stand in the way of good advertising communication.

    They stand in between the ad’s creator and the single most important person in the advertising equation: the prospect.

    Mr. Wild Mushrooms with the lateral lisp, it’s virtually a guarantee that his thought process was simply this: “I love what I’m talking about, and I want to share it with you in a way that will make you love it, too.”

    COULD I SAY THIS TO SOMEONE I LOVE?

    Ya gotta love what you do, and ya gotta love your customer.

    And you gotta ask yourself, “Would I turn around to someone I love and say, ‘I’m going to be here for all of your wild mushroom needs.’”

    Of course not. It’s lazy thinking, it’s obnoxious ad speak, and it’s a just plain weird thing to say. Your loved one should slap you.

    Speaking of love, let’s look at the eHarmony advertising for a moment, because this is a perfect example of smart thinking.

    It would have been easy for the ad agency to say, “We could write some really clever, funny advertising about internet dating and win a bunch of awards.”

    Instead, what they’ve said is, “These customers love this site, and they want to share it with people. Let’s step out of the way and let them share the love.”

    Contrastingly, there’s another dating site out there that shall remain nameless.

    They always show a couple of women standing around a computer, talking about dates gone horribly wrong. They show the bad dating scenario gone wildly out of control. Then, back to the computer. “So I’m just going to stick to this website for dating.”

    Ha ha! Funny funny! Big laughs!

    I don’t get it.

    WHAT’S THE MESSAGE?

    Because dating can go horribly wrong, I’m just going to stick to using this website for…dating?

    Um…

    Well then.

    All I can imagine is they fancy themselves as the website for people who don’t take dating too seriously and just want a hook up.

    Because there is nothing in the horribly bad dating scenarios that makes me go, “Yeah, THAT’S a good website.”

    The commercials for eHarmony are good enough to make me think, “Wow, if I were single again…”

    The eHarmony commercials are honest, they share the love, the people are not slick, and the message is clear.

    The other sites’ messages are contrived, they are not honest, they are look-at-me clever, and the message is vague.

    They come off as if the writers would rather be working for SNL, and that actual selling is beneath them.

    THE MESSAGE IS THE MESSAGE–NOT THE MEDIUM OR THE COMEDY

    The eHarmony messages would resonate if they were TV, radio, or even print.

    The core message is vivid, vibrant and resonant.

    And they are conveyed without professional actors. They’re real people.

    Similarly, Mr. Lateral Lisp Wild Mushroom, not a professional actor, is vivid, vibrant and resonant–despite his non-professional delivery and his lousy recording quality.

    The message is what matters.

    Not ego, ad speak, comedy, or slick production.

    If you can be honest and direct and convey a love your customer, if you can let your ego and your fear step out of the way, you can transcend almost any deficiency in the medium to hit a prospect right between the eyes.

    And make them care.
    As always,

    Blaine Parker
    Your Lean, Mean Creative Director in
    Park City

    www.slowburnmarketing.com
    www.spotsbeforeyoureyes.net
    Follow on Twitter @blaineparker

    —————————————

    IS SOMEONE YOU KNOW LOSING BIG MONEY–OR MAKING YOU CRAZY–BY NOT READING HOT POINTS?

    Subscription to this wretched weekly screed is now available to anyone you might deem worthy. Just send your victims to www.slowburnblog.com and have them look for the subscription sign up box in the upper left hand corner.

    Category: General | Comments (0)

  5. Spotlight on Dan

    Posted September 19, 2011 by Bob

    My friend Dan Friedman is the voice of this delicious video.

    Superb work, Dan!

    Category: General, People | Comments (0)

  6. The Golf Channel

    Posted September 16, 2011 by Bob

    A couple of days ago I narrated a program called PGA Tour Diaries for the Golf Channel.

    Category: General | Comments (0)

  7. WORD 2 WAV, new option

    Posted September 14, 2011 by Bob

    If you’ve been thinking about getting WORD2WAV, a fabulous program for anyone who does lots of telephony and eLearning narration work (the kind of thing where you’re producing hundreds or even thousands of small audio files with specific names for each file), there’s some good news coming out for you today.

    This just came from Hervé F. Chain, the man behind WORD2WAV.
    ————————————-
    If you like Word2WAV but don’t think you can justify a full license, consider the new Pay-Per-Click license!

    $75 will allow you record up to 1,000 files. Take as long as you need to record them — There is no time limit.

    And this 1,000-file limit is added to whatever is left from the 500-file Trial, so you can have up to 1,500 files available for your next project(s).

    Once this limit has been reached, you can add one or several 1000-file segments for $35 each.

    Get a $50 credit if you upgrade to a Professional or International license, or a $25 credit if you upgrade to a Standard license.

    Any questions or comments, email support@word2wav.com
    ————————————-

    (edited to fix typos)

    Category: General, Tools | Comments (0)

  8. A recent job

    Posted September 13, 2011 by Bob

    I love narrating audiobooks for Oasis Audio. Here’s a sample from a recent release for them, a book co-written by the legendary Zig Ziglar.

     

    Category: General | Comments (0)

  9. Added to the blogroll

    Posted September 12, 2011 by Bob

    Today I’m delighted to add the talented Doug Zanger to my blogroll.

    Category: General | Comments (0)

  10. Marice is also in Austin this month

    Posted September 10, 2011 by Bob

    Marice Tobias is coming to Austin, TX:

    Category: Career Advice, General | Comments (0)

  11. Marice in LA, this month

    Posted September 7, 2011 by Bob

    Details here:

    Category: Career Advice, General | Comments (0)

  12. Quote of the day, and maybe the decade

    Posted September 5, 2011 by Bob

    From the Monday Morning Memo of June 20, 2011:

    “When a friend is in trouble, don’t annoy him by asking if there is anything you can do. Think up something appropriate and do it.”
    – E.W. Howe

    Category: General | Comments (0)

  13. Quote for the day

    Posted September 4, 2011 by Bob

    Seen in a recent Simple Dollar blog post:

    I’m a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work the more I have of it.
    — Thomas Jefferson

    Category: General | Comments (2)

  14. So where are the dominos?

    Posted September 3, 2011 by Bob

    The other day I posted some thoughts that flowed from a Seth Godin blog piece at The Domino Project about luck and work and the old way of doing things in the publishing business. I made the analogy that auditioning for voiceover work is, in some ways, similar to the way the publishing business was run.

    Now, I have nothing against auditioning as a way of getting voiceover work. I audition for things myself and in fact book work from auditions multiple times each year. But, auditioning is a process that leaves only one person with a job when many applied for it.

    It’s much better when the work comes directly, without an audition, through relationships all ready established; or through relationships based on referrals from existing clients. This works very well for those of us who have been doing voiceovers for a while. But, as one of my good friends pointed out the other day, what about those who are just getting started? They don’t have a pool of existing clients from whom to get work or referrals.

    Those comments from my friend have led me to think about this subject quite a bit in the last few days. I certainly don’t want to leave anyone with the impression that building relationships and getting work repeatedly from clients happens by magic or just by thinking about it.

    Actually, thinking about it is important. But, after the thinking comes the doing.

    For example, are there things you could do based on your own creativity that can lead to work? One friend came up with an idea to market her voiceover services directly to a category of businesses in her area. Made some phone calls. Put in some effort turning her idea into something practical and useful to those businesses. It didn’t happen overnight and it took some concerted effort and persistence, but it paid off.

    Or, are there people who write about marketing (on a blog or in a freely distributed newsletter for example) from whom you can draw some ideas that you can implement yourself? Now, people writing for the general marketplace probably won’t offer an idea that can be used directly. You’ll probably have to think about how to adapt their ideas to the world of voiceover, but you’re a creative, intelligent person. You can do this.

    What are the businesses that hire the kind of work you do or want to do? For example, let’s say you want to narrate audiobooks. There are a few big players that you can find with little effort; but what about the other publishers who are in the second or third tier of the business? It may take some extra digging to find those companies and, having found them, to learn how to submit to them. Everyone wants the low-hanging fruit. Your goal is to find the fruit that’s not so easy to pick.

    I hope these few random observations help you start thinking about what you can do to move forward. And I’d love to hear how you make strides. Comments are always open.

    Category: Career Advice, General, Getting started in Voiceover | Comments (2)

  15. Something I’ve done recently

    Posted September 2, 2011 by Bob

    I just discovered that Pikewood Creative Services has a blog and on that blog they’ve featured a video spot for which I did the narration.

    Citynet: Shake Up from Pikewood Creative on Vimeo.

    Category: General | Comments (2)

  16. A life-changing book

    Posted September 1, 2011 by Bob

    There are lots of voiceover people who worked in radio at one time for whom dealing with the basics of the “technical bits” of voiceover (how to connect the cables, how to record and edit the audio, etc.) isn’t terribly difficult or terrifying. But, for lots of people working in voiceover, without any technical background at all, it can be a real challenge to figure out these “technical bits”; which is why I warmly recommend Dan Friedman’s book Sound Advice.

    I also highly recommend you read Dan’s blog post about the writing of Sound Advice. Good stuff, Dan. Your book has been a real help to me, too.

    Category: General, People, Tools | Comments (1)

  17. VOAT

    Posted by Bob

    My friend Dave Courvoisier sent along the following press release and asked me to share it with you today. I’m happy to do so.

    ———————————————

    Voice actor, Blogger, and Social Media advocate Dave Courvoisier announces a September promotion to help build an informational database that benefits voice actors everywhere, while encouraging a sense of community and providing a fun program offering valuable prizes.

    “In 2010, the NVOAM (National Voice Over Appreciation Month) event struck a chord with voice actors everywhere who agreed it was time to celebrate the profession of voice acting,” notes Dave Courvoisier. “With very little foreknowledge, hundreds of voice artists around the world responded with enthusiasm to the month-long ‘appreciation’. A central website collected the support of voice talent, showcased a series of collaborative Public Service Announcements, and kept a running and busy calendar of voiceover happenings in September.”

    VOAT in 2011 will capitalize on the positive response and momentum of the September 2010 NVOAM promotion, but with several important improvements. Notably, this year’s website (VOAToday.com) plays off the ‘VOTE’ homonym by asking voice actors globally to ‘VOAT’ on 4 different issues impacting voice actors…one for each week of the month. The ‘VOAT’ consists of an answer to a “question of the week”. ‘VOATing’ in this manner allows the website visitor to be eligible for specific voiceover-targeted prizes provided by well-respected voiceover equipment, service, and client-seeking providers.

    As an example, the question being asked of visitors to the site during the first week of September will be: WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE GO-TO MICROPHONE FOR THE PRICE? (given that this is a personal decision based on many factors).

    People responding, are required only to provide their name and an answer. No data is collected on the visitors. The site also allows respondents to upload a picture or soundfile to accompany their comment if they wish. “All the responses will be listed in a thread-like format for all to see on the website, creating a collective knowledge-base that will benefit the entire community of voiceover artists,” adds Courvoisier, “each week a new question, new comments, a new set of prizes, and a new winner.”

    Prizes for the month-long event are generous. High-profile businesses readily recognized by voice actors everywhere are contributing substantive prizes, including for instance, a free year’s premium subscription to Voices.com, a choice of free year-long/lifetime subscriptions to Voice123.com, various VO-related equipment offerings from Sweetwater.com, and a choice of demo or consulting services from Edge Studio in NYC. In addition, John Florian of VoiceOverXtra, is offering a free pass to an upcoming webinar, and as a Grand Prize, Dave Courvoisier is contributing an Alesis iODock device for recording on the iPad. This is not a complete listing of prizes.

    Sponsors include: Voices.com, Voice123.com, SaVoa.org, VoiceOverXtra, Sweetwater.com, and Edge Studio. “Voice actors are an extremely supportive, encouraging and giving people. Many of them have enabled and sustained my VO career, and this is an attempt to celebrate the generous nature of the business, while helping to inform and create a community of like-minded peers,” adds Courvoisier.

    Category: General | Comments (0)

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