The summer months are passing quickly and already there's a whiff of back to school in the air!

I thought we should welcome August by setting the agenda for the Fall on the VOX Daily blog.

By leaving a comment on this article, you'll be able to give suggestions for the kind of articles and subject matter you'd like to see over the next several months.

And the bass keeps runnin' runnin' and runnin' runnin'...

Salutations!

Lately, I've been immersing myself in some pretty intense voice over research and reviewing, something that has been extremely exciting and inspiring.

I've learned a lot and also have become impassioned to learn more, do more interviews and also stir the pot a bit.

Setting the Agenda

What's up? I'm bringing some ideas to the table and am also opening the floor up for you to help set the pace for the next several months on VOX Daily.

Over the next little while, I'll be presenting a number of series regarding particular topics of interest as they relate to voice over, including:

๏ Radio
๏ Shades of Gray (misconceptions, myth busting, etc.)
๏ Audio Recording
๏ Unions

Town Hall Meeting

Do you have any suggestions for topics, subjects, or series to be published and discussed here on VOX Daily?

Your feedback means a lot to me so I hope to hear from you, even if you're just saying "hi" :)

Looking forward to your comments!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/Chad Anderson

A couple of weeks ago, you may remember that I wrote an article about the Midwest Voice Conference, but what I didn't say at the time is that I will also be there!

In this article, I've detailed the conference program so that you have a chance to learn more about what you can expect from this one-day event on Saturday August 9, 2008 in Chicago.

Will you be coming?

Let me know by adding a comment so that we can meet up :)

Conference Program

8:00 am Coffee, Continental Breakfast, On-Site Registration

8:30 am Introduction and Welcome by Dr. Steven Sims

8:45 am “Current Methods in Singing Voice Rehabilitation” by Karen Wicklund, DM, MHS CF-SLP, Chicago Center for Professional Voice, Associate Professor of Voice and Musical Theater Voice at Western Michigan University

9:15am “Reflux Disease: A Prospective from ‘Below’ the UES” by Jay Goldstein, MD, University of Illinois at Chicago, Vice Head for Clinical Affairs, Department of Medicine

9:45 am Presentation on Obesity by Carlos Galvani, MD, University of Illinois at Chicago, Associate Professor of Surgery, Bariatric Surgery

10:15 am Break

10:30 am Presentation on Voice Training by Randy Buescher, Your True Voice Studios, Vocal Therapist

11:00 am Presentation on Allergies and Sinus Disease by Stephanie Joe, MD, University of Illinois at Chicago, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology

11:30 am Presentation on Neurological Diseases (Parkinson’s Disease, Stroke, ALS, & Spasmodic Dysphonia) by Arlene Barr, MD, University of Illinois at Chicago, Associate Professor of Neurology

12:00 pm "Finding Your Authentic Singing Voice," by Lyndia Johnson, Executive Director/Voice Coach, Sterling Voice Coaching, Ltd.

12:30 pm Lunch

1:30 pm Presentation by Steven Sims, MD, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago Institute for Voice Care, Director

2:00 pm Hands-On Workshops

3:45 pm Wrap-Up/Conclusion

Conference Objectives

Principles of Speaking Voice Restorative Therapy

๏ Learn basic principals of abdominal breathing to support voice production
๏ Understand the role of head resonance in amplifying voice and reducing the work of speaking
๏ Learn about the role of voice/ rest/conservation of the voice/general voice care: vocal hygiene guidelines

Common Medical Diagnoses that affect the Voice: Allergies, Post-Nasal Drip, LPR, Hormone Related, Colds

๏ Learn about how allergies create drainage that irritates the vocal folds
๏ Learn how acid reflux is more than heartburn and can harm the vocal folds
๏ Learn about how estrogen, progesterone and testosterone affect the voice and how disorders with the hormones produce voice changes
๏ Learn how to support your immune system and fight a cold

People who would benefit from this conference include:

๏ Actors
๏ Singers
๏ Radio hosts
๏ Clergy
๏ Telemarketers
๏ Politicians
๏ Teachers
๏ Lawyers
๏ Coaches
๏ Aerobics Instructors
๏ Receptionists
๏ Sales People
๏ Homemakers
๏ Brokers

The fee to attend is $35.

Conference Date, Time and Location:

Saturday August 9, 2008
8am - 4pm

UIC College of Medicine
Research Building
@ Moss Auditorium
909 S. Wolcott St.
Chicago, IL 60612

Click here to fill out the form to register.

Hope to see you there!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/Mark Strozier

Earlier on July 29, 2008 (today) there was an earthquake in SoCal (Southern California) that shook several communities and inspired voice actor Bob Bergen to produce a brief report in character detailing happenings to do with the quake.

The Associated Press reported that the 11:42 a.m. quake was initially estimated at 5.8 by the U.S. Geological Survey but was revised downward to 5.4.

To hear a special report from the Looney Tunes on the SoCal earthquake, read on.

How Did Porky Pig, Marvin the Martian and Tweety Bird Respond to the Quake?

To listen to the report recorded by Bob Bergen (voice of Porky Pig among others), click on the link below:

Looney Tunes News - Earthquake Coverage.

Were you affected by the SoCal earthquake?

Add a comment and let us know that you're OK.

Best wishes,

Stephanie

Photo via FoxNews.com

Where will you be on August 16th and 17th, 2008?

I'll be at Pat Fraley's Silly, Serious and Subtle VO event in Buffalo and I hope you can join us!

Want to hear more about it?

This summer is proving to be one busy sojourn!

On Saturday, August 16th, I'll be attending a workshop presented by Pat Fraley in Buffalo (Amherst), NY, an event that I've been looking forward to now for months.

Toni Silveri, Pat's host in Amherst, has generously invited me to be part of this special weekend and I'd love to share more with you about it now.

At this summer event, you'll be able to hone your skills at creating and delivering character voice performances for the specific demands of the top three mediums.

The Silly:
Animation voice over work is 85% comedy driven.

The Serious:
Interactive/Gaming work is 85% serious drama driven.

The Subtle:
Audiobooks require a heightened sense of realism and a subtle touch.

Event Highlights

• Participate in animation recording EXACTLY as they are directed professionally.
• Record Interactive/Gaming characters for audition and professional application.

Cost: $375.00
Place: 130 Bondcroft Drive, Amherst NY 14226 (716) 836-4339
Date: Saturday, August 16th, 2008
Time: 9 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.

Continental Breakfast Served at 8:30.
Lunch included.

Enrollment:

To enroll, visit Pat Fraley's website to complete the mail order form. Space is extremely limited. I heard that there are only a couple of spaces remaining, so if you want to be part of this, I encourage you to get moving on it now to avoid disappointment.

A maximum of 12 performers will be allowed to participate in this unique event.

Also, you should take note of the workshop on the Sunday, taking a leaf out of Pat's Billion $ Read!

Same bat place, same bat channel but on Sunday August 17th, 2008.

To learn more about this set of workshops, you can visit Pat's website.

Hope to see you there!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

P.S. Pat Fraley is also the featured guest on this week's edition of Voice Over Experts. Be sure to tune in and subscribe if you haven't already!

This week has been very good from the buzz I've been hearing around the VO world, and let me tell you, I couldn't be more excited to find out what you've all been up to!

I did a little running around myself on Friday, picking up Voicey awards and shipping the first round of them out at Canada Post to a number of winners.

The Voiceys are dazzling and I can't wait until each reaches its owner over the course of the summer :)

What did you do in your voice over business this past week?

Let me know by leaving a comment on this article :)

Hallelujah!

Do you ever get the Hallelujah Chorus ringing in your ears when something you've been working at for a long time finally comes full circle?

That's how it felt when shipping awards for me and I sincerely hope you experienced something exciting and fulfilling recently too.

Next to the iPhone, the Voiceys are the most beautiful objects I've laid eyes on in a long time, mainly because I'm brimming with joy and am so proud to be part of this celebratory aspect of our industry. One of the awards due south belongs to Pat Fraley, the Lifetime Achievement Voicey award winner for 2008.

I'll be seeing Pat in a few weeks at his workshop in Buffalo, NY and maybe I'll be seeing you there, too! If you haven't heard about the class, I'm going to talk a bit about it this week on VOX Daily so stay tuned.

Did anything beautiful happen in your business last week?

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/Blackbeck

How are things going?

With so many questions coming in about the new Platinum membership, I felt it would be timely to provide a brief update on how things are going and what has been accomplished after two short weeks.

Successful Launch

The initial press release announcing the Platinum membership has been read 248,216 times according to PRWeb.

This is exactly the type of coverage Platinum members will be receiving throughout the year with their own customized public relations campaigns.

Advertising Network

The Voices.com Ad Network is also experiencing some promising growth. Impressions and click through rates have increased. This means Platinum members are receiving targeted traffic to their personal websites.

Content Production

We've been busy writing and creating new content for each of the partner websites. Each site now has several articles which have been instrumental in attracting new traffic from the search engines including Google, Yahoo! and MSN.

Each of the partner sites also provides a brief tutorial on "How to Hire Voice Talent" that instructs clients on the process of using the website, contacting the voice talent and what to expect after they've handed over their script.

Search Engine Optimization

While some people believe that it takes more than 1 year for new sites to gain top spots in Google, we've proven it can be achieved in a matter of days -- and we're just getting started.

Not only have the home pages of each of the 10 partner websites achieved top rankings in Google, many profile pages are already showing up in the search results. This will be a huge benefit for those looking to improve their own search engine visibility.

Social Media

We're launching some heavy duty campaigns this week, in fact, one of the biggest campaigns we've ever done. Articles and voice talent profiles will soon show up on social networks like Facebook, MySpace, Digg and Twitter. Erica Bontje, Voices.com's Social Media Manager, continues to work wonders in promoting the Voices.com web service and is ready to do the same for these new sites.

Exclusive Insider Marketing Reports

The first Insider Marketing Report is due out at the end of the month and it's going to be mind-blowing. David, our CEO, has been working on creating a powerful and actionable document that will give Platinum members an opportunity to capitalize on a new market that we've discovered.

Public Relations Campaigns

Platinum members waste no time. There are nearly a dozen unique public relations campaigns in planning. Those who've experienced our marketing machine at work know that our proven methods drive huge amounts of traffic in a short period of time. Better yet, we position the public relationship campaigns to have a lasting effect.

Design Updates

Each of the home pages have been redesigned to more prominently feature the professionals who wanted the visibility on the niche voice over sites. Here's what some of the specialized voice-over sites look like now:

TV Commercial Voices

Radio Commercial Voices

Cartoon Voice Talent

Movie Trailer Voice Talent

Business Voice Talent

Phone Voice Talent

Internet Voice Talent

Podcasting Voice Talent

Audio Book Voice Talent

Videogame Voice Talent

Any questions or comments?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes,

Stephanie

P.S. To learn more about the Platinum membership, click here.

Do you know the difference between marketing and advertising?

Those two terms are often confused, however, as you'll discover, they are entirely different.

Today, we'll take a closer look at how you can really get a hold on your marketing and advertising activities by clearly identifying what's what and executing on a plan to get your voice over business on the road to substantial growth.

Before we get to the meat and potatoes of it all, here's a couple of definitions and a direct comparison of advertising and marketing:

Advertising

The paid, public, non-personal announcement of a persuasive message by an identified sponsor; the non-personal presentation or promotion by a firm of its products to its existing and potential customers.

Marketing

Marketing is an ongoing process of planning and executing the marketing mix (Product, Price, Place, Promotion often referred to as the 4 Ps) for the mutually advantageous exchange of products or services.

Marketing tends to be seen as a creative industry, with marketing professionals often specialize in one or many of the following areas:

๏ advertising
๏ branding
๏ communications
๏ database marketing
๏ professional selling
๏ direct mail marketing
๏ event organization
๏ field marketing
๏ global marketing
๏ international marketing
๏ internet marketing
๏ public relations
๏ search engine marketing
๏ marketing strategy
๏ social media marketing
๏ strategic management
๏ marketing plan development
๏ market research

If anything is of interest to you or an area you are unfamiliar with I recommend Googling the terms to learn more about those specific topics.

Find a Marketing Professional So You Can Focus on Your Areas Of Expertise

In business, it is wise to learn how to focus on what you do best, and outsource or delegate the rest.

Do a little surfing on the Internet or ask someone in your business network to refer a marketing professional whose service has a track record of proven results.

Always work with people who practice what they preach.

Does anyone have any questions on yesterday's post discussing marketing budgets or today's posts defining advertising and marketing?

Add a comment to join the conversation.

Kind regards,

David

©iStockphoto.com/muharrem öner

Do you have a marketing budget?

Deciding how much your marketing should cost - including how much should be invested in making sales grow - and how that amount should be allocated is completely up to you, the professional voice talent.

Advertising costs are a completely controllable expense.

Marketing budgets are the means of determining and controlling this expense by dividing it wisely among different strategies, marketing channels and service providers.

To Build Sales, Advertise

If you want to build sales, it is almost certain that you will need to advertise.

How much should you spend? How should you allocate your advertising dollars? How can you be sure your advertising outlays (expenditures) aren't out of line?

A marketing and advertising budget helps you set how much you have to spend as well as how you are going to spend it.

What you would like to invest in marketing and what you can afford are seldom the same. Spending too much is obviously an extravagance, but spending too little can be just as bad in terms of lost sales and lowered visibility.

Costs must be tied to results. You must be ready to evaluate your goals and assess your capabilities - a budget will help you to do exactly this.

Percentage of Sales or Profits

The most widely used method of establishing an advertising budget is to base it on a percentage of sales. Advertising is as much a business expense as, say, the cost of labor and should be related to the quantity of services sold, such as billable studio hours, or total revenue from voice-over projects.

In the short run a voice talent might make small additions to profit by cutting advertising expenses, but such a strategy could lead to a long term deterioration of the bottom line.

By using the percentage-of-sales method your marketing spending is directly proportional to the amount of money you are earning as a voice talent. Profits, especially over the long run, should also show an increase, of course, if your advertising outlays are being properly applied.

What Percentage?

You can guide your choice of a percentage-of-sales figure by finding out what other businesses in our industry are doing. This is known as the "ratio of advertising expense to sales". These percentages are fairly consistent within a given sector of business.

As a point of reference, Microsoft currently spends 18%-19% of its revenues on marketing their company.

Other technology companies surveyed [PDF] have reported an overall average of 20.7% of sales reinvested in advertising and marketing, with some companies spending as much as 26%.

Alternatives to Traditional Advertising

The book "The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR" makes a persuasive argument that small businesses should avoid costly advertising such as print campaigns and mailers, and focus on public relations as a means of attracting new customers and growing their business.

The Bottom Line

If you're a voice actor and earning $50,000 per year, then it's wise to invest 20% of your earnings, which equals $10,000 in marketing.

Do You Have a Marketing Budget?

Add your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

David

©iStockphoto.com/muharrem öner

Do you have a Facebook account?

Facebook makes it easy to stay connected and share information with friends. You can started a conversation with Facebook Chat, check your friends' latest photos and status updates, look up a phone number, or upload your own mobile photos to Facebook on the go.

The new Facebook design is about highlighting new content relevant to the user and fostering conversations about that content. Today, we'll do a crash course on what's new, and what's changed to help you get the most of Facebook, with a special spin for voice actors.

Home Page

The biggest visual change people will see on the home page is the combination of status updates, wall posts and news feed items into a single content stream.

This is kind of like "whoa!" when you first see it, but there are little yellow tabs that when clicked upon explain how you can make use of the new features and learn how they will benefit you well in advance of the update.

Profile Page

On the profile page status updates and other mini-feed items are also combined. As a user, you're shown a big text box at the top encouraging you to update your status by answering the question "What are you doing...?"

Publishing

The top of the newsfeed now displays links to the publisher box on the new profile. This enables quick access for posting new notes, new photos, new videos and sharing links with your friends directly from your profile.

Groups

There are a number of groups dedicated to voice actors, voice talent and people involved in the performing arts. You can see the new designs of our favorites here:

The Voice Acting Hub

Voice Overs Group

I'm a voice actor...???... YES I get paid to do that!

Voice artists who do dubbing and voiceover work

Fan Pages

Organizations can set-up a Fan Page to represent a business, band, product and more by creating a distinct and customized profile. You get a free presence where Facebook users can find you through their friends, search, and more.

While we're on the subject,
we're inviting you to become a fan of Voices.com :)

Conclusion

The new site design is much cleaner and simplified a lot of the features on the site. Facebook is expected to announce the new design to its users over the coming days. Until then, anyone can log in at www.new.facebook.com to see your new profile and check out the new features and layout.

Any Comments?

Best wishes,

Stephanie

P.S. If you would like to add me as your friend on Facebook, just look for Stephanie Ciccarelli. My photo is Voice Girl just like on VOX Daily.

Howdy, partners!

Last week, the Calgary Stampede was in full force (July 4-13), and at the event, there was a very special historical moment that involved voice over that I'd like to share with you.

In addition to that, as we do every week, I'd like to ask you about the kind of work you lassoed this past week in the wonderful world of voice overs!

There's a lot going on in the biz and I hope to hear from many of you who've been waiting to holler your successes from the highest hilltops.

Find out more about this special milestone and add your comments to this week's edition of VOX Daily's Who Got the Gig!

Voice Over History Made at the 2008 Calgary Stampede

The 2008 Calgary Stampede GMC Rangeland Derby was an historic chuckwagon event that marked the final time that legendary announcer Joe Carbury voiced his trademark slogan – “And, they’re off.” After a distinguished 45 years as announcer of the Stampede’s chuckwagon races, Carbury rode off into a well-deserved retirement after this year’s Stampede.

Hall of Fame Worthy

Joe Carbury was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.

Joe started broadcasting sports events in 1948, now 50 years ago, and to that end is one of the most recognized voices in sport in western Canada. The good old hockey game was his first love having broadcast well over 1,000 games from semi-professional to Junior.

The art of Play-by-play was a great passion for Joe, and over his career he performed play-by-play for the Edmonton Eskimos and the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Over his career, Joe Carbury announced at boxing matches, curling and a number of amateur sports including high school football.

Joe Carbury broadcast over twenty-five thousand thoroughbred races and his distinctive voice has thrilled people from around the world at the Calgary Stampede Rangeland Derby Chuckwagon races.

All in a Half-Century's Work

I came upon this piece of information because I was driving to a friend's last night and happened to hear an interview featuring Joe Carbury on the CBC. Before he announced at the Calgary Stampede, he started out in radio announcing sports games, and later found himself with a regular gig announcing at the infamous Stampede in Calgary, Alberta for a record 45 years. Talk about longevity!

That Being Shared, What Have You Been Up To?

Looking forward to reading about your successes!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/Catherine Lane

We're pleased to present you with the results of our Voices.com Q2 Client Experience Report for 2008.

By providing quarterly documentation to our community members, we are able to share how Voices.com has progressed and reveal detailed reports consisting of significant information regarding the experiences of clients (buyers of voice over services) who use the service to hire voice talent at Voices.com.

Highlights

• Voices.com now serves 92,736 people.
• The number of job postings at Voices.com has increased by 130% from this time last year.
• The number of voice talent hired at Voices.com has increased by 548% from this time last year.

Trends

Clients increasingly depend upon polished voice-over demos, custom auditions and quick turn around to complete their projects in a timely manner.

New conferences, educational resources and marketing opportunities are paving the way for motivated voice talent to use this time wisely and leap-frog their slower to adapt colleagues.

Voice Over Demo is Still King

The voice-over demo continues to be the single most important factor in obtaining work. Other factors include the need for an authentic accent or regional dialect, response time on the job posting, proposed turn around time on completing the work, or the client has worked with a voice talent on previous projects and opted to work with them again.

Want to Learn More?

For case studies and more download the Voices.com Client Experience Report now!

Best wishes,

David, Laurynda and the Voices.com Team

Who won the duels?

Find out today.

๏ Charlton Griffin performing Crime and Punishment VS George Guidall (WINNER!) performing Crime and Punishment

๏ Grover Gardner (WINNER!) performing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer VS Garrick Hagon performing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

๏ Nadia May performing Middlemarch VS Kate Reading (WINNER!) performing Middlemarch

๏ Jim Dale (WINNER!) performing Peter Pan VS Tim Curry performing Peter Pan

๏ Christopher Hurt (WINNER!) performing Fahrenheit 451 VS Ray Bradbury performing Fahrenheit 451

๏ John Lee performing The Call of the Wild VS Frank Muller (WINNER!) performing The Call of the Wild

๏ Juliet Stevenson (WINNER!) performing Persuasion VS Anna Massey performing Persuasion

๏ George Guidall performing Ethan Frome VS Scott Brick (WINNER!) performing Ethan Frome

๏ Davina Porter (WINNER!) performing Anna Karenina VS Nadia May performing Anna Karenina

๏ Jim Norton performing Dubliners VS Frederick Davidson (WINNER!) performing Dubliners

To find out the nitty gritty, you can check the final polls featuring the duel results for each duel at Audible.

A special thanks to Audible.com for this fun contest and also a hearty congratulations to some familiar names here on this list.

You might recognize Jim Dale (narrator of the Harry Potter series of audio books in the US from the Guinness Records post), Davina Porter (she was mentioned on this blog before for her work in Innocent Traitor), Scott Brick (who teaches and blogs as well as performs), and the late Frank Muller who has been given another tribute through this timely contest.

Do you have a favorite audiobook narrator?

Leave a comment!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

Time to talk world records!

Here are 10 Guinness World Records from the 2008 edition that are related to voice over and voice acting.

I hope you'll find these particularly interesting.

Enjoy :)

1. COUNTRY WITH THE HIGHEST RATE OF TV VIEWING

Americans watch more hours of television per week than any other country in the world, watching 4 hours and 32 minutes per individual per day according to Nielsen Media research started tracking television viewing habits in the 1950s.

2. MOST EMMYS FOR A TV SERIES

The Emmy awards are US television's equivalent to the Oscars. As of May 2005, the most Emmys won by the same show is 101 by Sesame Street (PBS, USA).

3. LONGEST TIME PROMOTING ONE BRAND

Since 1991, Thomas Gottschalk (German) has been in every advertising promotion for candy manufacturer Haribo. In 14 years, he has appeared in 206 TV and 118 radio commercials for the company.

4. HIGHEST AD RATE (TV SERIES)

An average of $2 million per 30 seconds was paid by advertisers for slots during the hour-long, last-ever episode of Friends (NBC, USA). The show aired in the USA on May 6, 2004, and was seen by an estimated 51.1 million Americans.

The highest TV advertising rate ever was $2.4 million per 30 seconds for the NBC network during the transmission of Super Bowl XXXV on January 28, 2001.

5. LONGEST TV COMMERCIAL

A commercial advertising Lipton Ice Tea Green lasted for 24 minutes and was broadcast by the Yorin television channel acorss the Netherleands in March 2005.

6. SHORTEST TV COMMERCIAL

Shortest TV Commercial is half a frame and lasts just 1/60 of a second. Advertising MuchMusic (Canada), 12 versions of the commercial were produced, the first of which was aired on January 2, 2002.

7. MOST POSITIONS IN AN AUDIOBOOK CHART

Narrator Jim Dale (UK) occupied six positions in an audiobook chart when his readings of the Harry Potter books held the top six placed in Amazon's "Best-Selling Audiobooks of America" in August 2005.

8. MOST VOICES IN AN AUDIOBOOK

Jim Dale is the performer who brings J.K. Rowling's creations to life in the Harry Potter audiobooks. He secured a Guinness World Record for creating an incredible 134 voices for The Order of the Phoenix.

9. HIGHEST PAID RADIO HOST

The highest earning radio host in 2005 was Howard Stern who earned $31 million.

10. LARGEST MOVIE STUDIO

The largest movie studio in the world is Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad, India which opened in 1996. It measured 1,666 acres, with 47 sound stages and permanent sets ranging from railroad stations to temples.

Do you know of any other world records that relate to voice over or voice acting?

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

Voices.com is pleased to provide promotional sponsorship for the Second Annual Midwest Voice Conference in Chicago, IL on Saturday, August 9, 2008 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

If you use your voice to earn a living, make your way to this very informative, enlightening and practical conference in Chicago!

On August 9, The 2008 Midwest Voice Conference will be a one-day workshop discussing the effects of common disorders, such as obesity, reflux disease, neurological diseases, and allergies on the voice.

Hear World Renowned Faculty Explain:

๏ How the Voice Works
๏ Diagnosis of Voice Disorders
๏ Tools to Protect Your Voice
๏ Common Medical Conditions Affecting the Voice
- Reflux Disease/ GERD
- Allergies & Sinus Disease
- Stroke, Parkinson's Disease, ALS & Spasmodic Dysphonia
- Obesity
๏ Hands-on Workshops and Demonstrations

Speakers include:

๏ H. Steven Sims, MD
๏ Stephanie Joe, MD
๏ Carlos Galvani, MD
๏ Jay Goldstein, MD
๏ Karen Wicklund, DM, MHS, CF-SLP
๏ Arlene Barr, MD
๏ Lyndia Johnson
๏ Randy Buescher

As a voice actor, this conference will give you a different perspective on how to use and take care of your instrument (your instrument being your voice, of course!).

People who would also benefit from the conference are actors, singers, radio hosts, teachers and anyone who uses their voice to make a living.

The fee to attend is $35.

Conference Date, Time and Location:

Saturday August 9, 2008
8am - 4pm

UIC College of Medicine
Research Building
@ Moss Auditorium
909 S. Wolcott St.
Chicago, IL 60612

To register or for more information contact Colleen at ckenost@uic.edu

Will you be in attendance?

Best wishes,

Stephanie

Audible.com has a really neat competition going on that pits narrator against narrator, pairing two different interpretations of the same audio book in a duel of feudal proportions.

Which narrators will win?

Dueling Narrators is now in full swing at Audible.com. You can listen to samples of each of the performances and also learn more about the audio books and narrators.

Here's a list of those dueling:

๏ Charlton Griffin performing Crime and Punishment VS George Guidall performing Crime and Punishment

๏ Grover Gardner performing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer VS Garrick Hagon performing The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

๏ Nadia May performing Middlemarch VS Kate Reading performing Middlemarch

๏ Jim Dale performing Peter Pan VS Tim Curry performing Peter Pan

๏ Christopher Hurt performing Fahrenheit 451 VS Ray Bradbury performing Fahrenheit 451

๏ John Lee performing The Call of the Wild VS Frank Muller performing The Call of the Wild

๏ Juliet Stevenson performing Persuasion VS Anna Massey performing Persuasion

๏ George Guidall performing Ethan Frome VS Scott Brick performing Ethan Frome

๏ Davina Porter performing Anna Karenina VS Nadia May performing Anna Karenina

๏ Jim Norton performing Dubliners VS Frederick Davidson performing Dubliners

Do you have any favorites to win?

Vote at Audible.com!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

Hello Nurse!

The long awaited day finally came on Friday July 11, 2008 for millions of Apple fans worldwide with the introduction of the iPhone in markets outside of the US.

Did you get one? Share your story by adding a comment!

It's A Beautiful Day

Friday was a day like any other unless you are one of the people who courageously left your home to get an Apple iPhone.

Well, you could say that's somewhat of an understatement to put it frankly. More than just iPhone fanatics were affected.

The iPhone was everywhere, on television, radio ads, in the newspapers, magazines, podcasts, live streaming shows (thank you Leo Laporte for your 24 hour coverage of iPhone madness!), Twitter tweets, social networking site statuses, and on the lips of people in shopping centers from New Zealand to Canada.

It all started years ago with the hope that Apple would one day make a cellular phone. You could feel the anticipation as Steve Jobs (CEO and founder of Apple with Steve Wozniak) repeated "It's a phone, an iPod and a browser" during Macworld 2007 in San Francisco, heralding the future arrival of the iPhone, releasing it on the market on June 29th of last year.

With a grin from ear to ear, I'm pleased to share that we have one!

It was worth the wait and using it is as easy as using my MacBook Pro. The experience is beyond what I ever expected and the 3G is really something else. Imagine having Internet wherever you are whenever you want... It's amazing!

I was updating my Facebook status on Saturday from a party and sent my first message using the web browser.

We've also become fans of some of the applications, Jirbo is fun if you've found that one.

Aside from the web functionality and accessibility, another neat aspect about the iPhone is that you can record your voice using it, at least for personal purposes.

Another feature I love is how you can turn the iPhone on its side to make the web browser enlarge the screen. Also, the actual phone feature is great and easy to use. Taking pictures is fun and the pictures come out very clearly.

It's an astounding piece of technology that will change lives, undoubtedly, for the better.

What are your impressions of the iPhone? Add a comment!

Best wishes,

Stephanie

What kind of voice over work have you been recording in your studio this week?

In this edition of Who Got the Gig, I want to hear about your victories this past week, particularly if you got work that challenged you but didn't get you down.

Share your stories with the VOX Daily family.

Feeling victorious?

Leave a comment letting me know about what you voiced this week!

Enjoy your weekend,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/chuwy

As you may have noticed over the past couple of days, a lot about being a successful business has to do a great deal with having a solid vision, living that vision and inspiring others to help you to meet your goals.

Anne Becker, former CEO of the London Public Library, gave a very impressive lecture on what it takes to be a leader who can instill passion and purpose as well as gather a group of committed people who contribute to make the vision a reality.

The first thing a business person needs to realize is that it's not all about them, it's about the team.

Coming from a background where she had once been a General Manager and twice a CEO, Anne Becker was able to express from her own experience just what it means to rally people behind your cause, business or purpose.

How Does This Relate to Voice Actors?

Most voice actors work on their own with little to no collaboration, however, the people you are working for or are working with need to be good leaders, listeners, communicators and participants, not just artists.

What Do People Expect From Leaders?

๏ Inspiration
๏ Communication
๏ Clarity
๏ Direction
๏ Ability to prioritize
๏ Encouragement
๏ An open mind

How Can You Do Your Part?

Make sure that you can remain focused, staying true to the vision and using strategies to streamline the process and add more value.

Execute on what you say you are going to do to align all efforts and empower your team.

In order to make magic, there needs to be cooperation and a firm foundation of trust and mutual respect.

What Happens if People Do Not Cooperate?

There is a huge cost, including:

๏ Not reaching full potential
๏ Failure to engage
๏ Waste of human resources (talent and skill)
๏ An open mind

Leadership Matters

Anyone can be given a leadership role but not all people are good leaders or lead well.

That being said, leadership is not something you are born with, it's a skill you develop over time that presents new adventures and challenges along the way as you increase your field of influence and foster relationships with other people.

Learning how to lead effectively and passionately is a good skill for anyone. You can be a leader within your family, your community, place of worship, organization or corporation.

I attended this conference because although I am not the CEO of our company, I am a leader in my own right within Voices.com, and as I've come to realize, within the industry as well.

Being in the presence of such accomplished women was exciting and encouraging. The fact that I was able to participate and speak directly with them at the event was particularly special.

Finding the Voice of Leadership Within Yourself

To be a strong, authentic leader, you first need to be clear on:

๏ Develop your Vision
๏ Be Disciplined
๏ Have Passion
๏ Follow your Conscience

See all of the possibilities and identify how you can make a difference. To have a vision and lead with your vision, you need to be a dreamer, a people believer, an enabler, empower others, be hopeful and strategic.

People seek leadership from those whose vision and passion comes straight from the heart, a vision that is crystal clear, authentic and committed.

I pray that as I continue to grow in my role I will have your support. Thank you for reading this series of lectures. I hope they've been of service to you!

Any comments?

Best wishes,

Stephanie

Dr. Theresa Topic, former principal of Brescia University College who has recently retired from her post, gave a lecture called "Do You See What I See?".

The goal of this presentation was to help those in positions of leadership align people behind their vision by offering value, attainability and benefits directly related to their participation.

Voice actors can use this information when building a team of service providers around your company to help you succeed and when applying for work.

How Do You Inspire People to Follow Your Vision?

a) You need to find people who are willing to sign on

b) You need a vision with power and strength that will speak to all

1. Believe in the Vision, Understand the Vision, Explain the Vision

You need to sell a vision and keep the end result in sight. As a voice actor, this means to live your vision out and be able to communicate it clearly to those with whom you wish to work with and serve.

2. Do All You Can to Enthuse and Engage Others

This could mean communicating, innovating, making use of word of mouth, cheerleading and being able to articulate your vision.

3. Be Flexible

Understand that the vision must change and evolve as others become involved.

What does that mean?

Simply that if you expand your team to include a secretary, personal assistant, producer, or otherwise, you need to allow the vision to be embracing of view points other than your own. By listening to those you work with and respecting their ideas, you empower them and give them more reasons to feel more closely knit to your vision to help you achieve your goals.

Let It Fly

Dr. Topic detailed an example of how strategic planning was conducted at Brescia to provide a forum for discussion and feedback.

Town Hall Meetings occur at Brescia on a regular schedule giving people including the faculty, staff, students, physical plant workers and others who are involved in the Brescia community the opportunity to congregate and openly discuss how they feel they could make Brescia a better place, asking questions such as "Where should Brescia go?"

A mixed blessing at times (obviously, not all feedback will be positive or applicable), the outcome is certainly worth it, but Dr. Topic also emphasized that you have to say "No" sometimes.

4. Understand Your Role

Although you are the head of your company you have to realize that other voices can be of benefit to you. Your voice alone is not sufficient when it comes to drawing people other than yourself into your vision. These voices might be your teacher, agent, studio engineer, vendors, legal counsel, peers, or family members.

Recognize and Reward Participants

We all appreciate having our work acknowledged. The best way is to track success so that it can be recognized and singled out appropriately. A little recognition goes a long way.

6. Entertain

In order to sell your vision, you'll need to be able to entertain and tell a story that captivates those you intend to gain support or work from. For instance, if you're auditioning and submitting a proposal, you can use that opportunity to paint a story about how you will serve them using elements of your vision to persuade.

7. Keep the Vision in Mind

Keep the end result in sight. People need to see that they are on course and heading toward their goals. This could mean presenting a client with a detailed outline of your workflow should they need it. Keeping in touch and communicating often will be a welcome change for people who need reassurance or are on a tight deadline.

Any comments?

Thanks for reading,

Stephanie

IWIL Conference

A few weeks ago, I attended a conference for women's leadership offered at Brescia University College’s first Institute for Women in Leadership (IWIL) professional development conference for women on June 19th, 2008, with the inaugural conference program entitled, "When opportunity knocks, are you ready?".

The focus of the stream I was in had to do with leadership and what it means to have a vision.

Do you have a vision for your voice over business? If not, learn more about how you can write one here at VOX Daily.

Three very intelligent women lead the sessions I attended, each successful in their own regard with a wealth of knowledge to share.

The first lecture was presented by Janet Frood of Horizon Leadership Coaching and Consulting called "Creating a Compelling Vision". I'll be highlighting Janet Frood's lecture today.

Janet began her talk by saying that most people want a vision and not many people or organizations have a clear vision.

What is a Vision?

A vision is a written declaration of what your objectives are as a businessperson and justifies why your company exists. A vision is forward thinking and focused.

Here's an example of Brescia's vision:

Brescia will be the university college of choice for women seeking an inclusive community of learning that combines academic excellence with opportunity for service and leadership.

Gets to the point elegantly, doesn't it?

The Role and Purpose of a Vision is:

- To create common ground
- Make work flow more efficiently
- To assert alignment
- Lets other people know what direction your business is going in
- Distinguishes the role and aspirations of your company
- Provides inspiration
- Answers the question of "Why am I here? What's my purpose?"

A vision should be built upon an inspired foundation and be able to evoke emotions complementary to achieving the goals at hand.

How to Develop a Vision

Go to a quiet place where you can think. Make it a place where you feel comfortable and energized. You'll need to create your own space to feel grounded and at peace -- be sure to develop your vision in that place.

Keep these 3 words in mind when you are brainstorming:

1. Purpose
2. Vision
3. Values

Articulating Your Vision

When you are articulating your vision, use powerful, positive language. Paint yourself a metaphor and imagine all of the possibilities, in other words, think beyond the horizon line.

Answer this question:

"What do I want to create or change in the world?"

Use the answer you come up to flesh out and guide your vision. Remember that visions have to be fully integrated, lived, and breathed or else the vision will not be fulfilled.

Visions Can Change Over Time

Circumstances may cause you to change your vision in the future. You may find that you need to reevaluate basic things like why your company exists and re-identify what makes you unique.

When Do you Know You're Fulfilling your Vision?

You'll know when you are striking a chord and resonating on new levels with those you encounter. If your customers know your vision, for example, like how fans of Apple identify with them, you're doing very well.

Honor your values and make your vision statement a living piece of yourself that can be shared with the world.

Do You Have a Vision?

Share your vision with us here on VOX Daily as a comment!

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Stephanie

Oil and Water

Public skirmishes between SAG and AFTRA have got the unions in the headlines quite a bit in the past few months.

To sum up, AFTRA went on to talk up the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) on their own after suspending their joint bargaining agreement with the Screen Actors Guild, and came out with some kind of solution.

AFTRA's parent union, SAG, is now embroiled in talks following their expired contract (July 1, 2008) with the AMPTP, bargaining for more money and residual pay. The AMPTP has made their final offer (July 2, 2008) and SAG requested more time to study it. No further meetings are scheduled at this point.

There's a lot going on between SAG and AFTRA

AFTRA has an election coming up this fall and SAG is currently running a campaign of their own to the chagrin of AFTRA. For two unions that represent a significant portion of the same people and overlap in a variety of ways, it would be nice if they could get along for the sake of their members, or as some have suggested, merge and unite under one banner.

Where does this leave those in the middle? Is there a middle?

As SAG and AFTRA continue to spar, take a moment to read this article written by a former union member with Financial Core status, Lani Minella, and her take on this often intentionally neglected yet very real dues paying non-member union designation.

Financial Core VS Union : The Real Deal

By Lani Minella

Okay everyone, I'm sure I can tick off a lot of people by opening up this Pandora's Box, but I really want to clarify a few things which I'm happy to expound upon later if asked.

Financial core = a dues paying "non-member" who's allowed to do union and non union work.

The only thing they can't do is vote on union issues and IMHO (in my humble opinion), the union doesn't ever consider it's members' votes anyway.

Yes you can join as Fi-Core even though many union peeps may try to tell you otherwise. It is not true that you have to join as union first and then go fi-core!

Where some agents stand

There has not been a talent agency union franchise agreement in place for over a year and a half. The agents got ticked at the union trying to tell them how to run their offices and denying the agents the ability to earn extra money by either teaching or co-producing projects and as a result, agents have nothing against you being Fi-Core and there's no stigma involved.

No clients will ever know you are FiCore

That is something the union wants to keep a secret because once it gets out how many people are Core, the union would have No Clout at all. When a client Station 12s the list of talent that will be used on a union project, they submit the talents' social security numbers and the union responds with either the words "Okay, Must Join, or Taft Hartley" beside each actor's name. Charlton Heston who once was the president of SAG was Core and there are tons of well-known actors who have gone that route.

Most talents do not know that a client has to pay 60% extra on top of the actual union wage to the payroll company to cover state and federal taxes, the Health and Retirement 14.3% and the 10% agency fee.

These are the union rates for interactive VOs as of 1/1/08:

Up to 3 voices or 4 hour day = $759
Additional voice = $253 per voice
6-10 voices or 6 hour day = $1,518

Here's a rate not many people know exists: 1 voice/1 hour = $379.50

If you do a cartoon (that's direct to DVD) you only get the half day rate for the entire full first day. If you work beyond the first day, rates return to the above. Not sure if this is different for cartoons that are aired.

As FiCore, if you work a union gig, your 14.3 % is still paid and goes toward your possibly qualifying to buy your own health coverage. You have to earn a minimum of $15 K a year as a single actor to be able to purchase union health coverage. It's not free.

If you're union and considering going FiCore

If you are already union and considering going FiCore, all you have to do is fax or mail your union office a letter stating that effective immediately you are going Financial Core Status and you wish your dues to be adjusted accordingly. You won't save more than about 90 cents on dues, but after they get your letter, someone will inevitably call you to try and talk you out of your decision.

They will tell you how it could cost you over $1000 to reinstate yourself to full union status (why would you ever need to?) and they will try and tell you how you are hurting the union's ability to best serve you. That's BS. As I said, no one will ever know you are FiCore except the union and you. I was full union status for SAG and AFTRA for over 15 years and I went FiCore about 2 years ago. Never a problem.

You have to mail them back your precious membership card (Big deal--go to Kinkos, make a color copy and frame it if it's so dear to you.)

No one will ever ask to see your card.

If you go to a union job, you are considered union.

Agents can talk freely about FiCore now without thinking a Mobster from the union will slit their throat.

Here are a few issues I have about the union.

It's supposed to be a national union that we belong to. But instead of facilitating us being hired outside our locale, the union makes a client prove they've done an earnest local search for talent and couldn't find anyone with your qualifications before they are "allowed to bring you into their locale." Technically with everything being electronic nowadays, this seldom presents an issue, but when it comes to travel fees, it can cost the client more than your performance to pay for your travel anytime you go outside the 30 mile radius from the nearest union office... figured on $139/per hour and 39 cents a gallon for gas. Boy they sure don't pay well for gas. Anyway, your mileage is figured out using something like MapQuest from your door to the studio's door.

Being that our union offices in San Diego closed years ago, LA is considered our office. But if we try and get the travel fees we are entitled to as union members, LA clients will either find a local talent or say, "If you want the job... all it pays is scale... take it or leave it."

Yes the union will fight for you if you tell them to, but you will soon be blackballed in the industry if you do.

So even though we belong to a national union, it's rather discriminatory as far as making jobs universally user-friendly to actors in different cities.

Same thing goes if you have a problem getting an agent or a problem with the agent you have. The union will follow up on a complaint if you file one, but they will admit that if you stir up things, you'll soon be on the undesirable list.

I respect anyone who doggedly stays totally union, but I merely wanted to point out some facts which few people know to allow everyone to make up their minds based on truth rather than rumor.

NO one will blackball you if you are FiCore. On the contrary, agents love it when they can send you out on every kind of job. And no clients talk to each other comparing notes about how much they paid a certain actor for different jobs.

I've had people think FiCore means we don't pay dues, but we pay 99.99% of the same dues as every other union member. We don't save $5 anymore either for belonging to both unions. Membership dues are also increased every time you earn more with each union job.

Here's the last thing many people don't know about collecting unemployment from a union job. Just like our normal unemployment works by being cumulative... once you reach a certain quarter, every union job you work for will allow you to go collect unemployment the day after you record for that client.

Yes you can even do that as a FiCore member as long as the job was a union job. They say the LA unemployment office has a special side door for the big stars to collect after they finish their multi-million dollar movies.

What's bad about this is how this client you worked for, who may have several full time employees at their business that they pay unemployment insurance for... maybe hit with a rate increase for their unemployment if they start getting a lot of claims by actors who may have only worked for them in a studio for an hour.

And here's the final question which few people can find an answer to;

Of all the Health and Retirement contributions we've put into the kitty over the years-----what can we expect to reap (dollar-wise) when WE retire?

If anyone knows that answer, please share.

Lastly, people have considered legal action against the union because it seems unethical to be a dues paying NON member. How can you pay dues to NOT belong to something?

But no one has followed up with that idea because the union is it's own CLUB and can have its own rules.

Best to all,

Lani

~~

Any comments?

This article was republished here with the purpose of facilitating a conversation.

We are welcoming opinions from all perspectives on this issue.

Best wishes,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/TIM MCCAIG

Ever hear a voice over and think to yourself "Who's that?"

For someone who listens to voice overs day in day out (on purpose) and pays special attention to subtle elements of the art form, that question often pops into my head.

Sometimes I know who it is, and when I do, I smile to myself with great satisfaction. Other times, I'm left pondering "Who's that voice?".

Does that happen to you?

Voice overs are everywhere, that's for sure!

Last night, I made a run out to one of our local grocery stores to pick up a few things and decided for the first time ever that I would try one of those "self-checkout" aisles, and you guessed it, it talked.

I wondered to myself "Who's that voice?"

The people behind me, who were obviously well-versed in the act of self-checkout, were likely a little miffed that I took so long (the pressure was on, believe me!).

Thankfully, that's not the focus of this article :)

Real Canadian Superstore Self-Checkout Voice Over

A female voice greeted me and guided me along. She directed me to scan each item, put the items into bags, and basically prompted each step along the way. I felt more at ease than if it were simply a computer screen. The lady's voice was very professional and I wouldn't be surprised if the voice actor has a listing on Voices.com.

So, if you're the North American (possibly Canadian) female voice actor who did the voice over for the self-checkout at the Real Canadian Superstore (parent company is Loblaw Companies Limited), please be sure to comment so that I can thank you personally!

Who's That Voice?

I also want to give you the opportunity to chime in with voices you recognize. This will create a wonderful way to find out who voices what through community collaboration. Genius!

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes,

Stephanie

P.S. I wanted to especially send a shout out to my friend Bobbin Beam who referred Burt's Bees to me. The beeswax lip balm with pomegranate oil was one of my purchases, ieri sera. Grazie ;)

It's the 4th of July (happy holidays Americans!) and also time for another round of Who Got the Gig.

What have you been voicing lately?

Without further preamble, what kind of voice over work kept you busy this past week?

Comment below if you are already on the blog. If you are reading this message in your email, click through the linked title "Who Got the Gig" at the top of this message to get to the blog in order to join the conversation and have your say.

Looking forward to hearing from you :)

Best wishes,

Stephanie

©iStockphoto.com/Igor Balasanov

This week, we've been "getting back to our roots" as it were with the launching of the Platinum membership.

I'd like to tell you a bit about how dreaming big and working hard has helped us to succeed in our business, and sometimes that means going back to the beginning and some good old-fashioned elbow grease.

First off, I want to say that although I wasn't able to post yesterday, I was thinking about you guys :)

Now, to the subject at hand.

Platinum Membership

It has now been fewer than two days since we introduced the Platinum membership and less than a week since innovations were announced relating to the Summer '08 Update of the Voices.com site.

Since the concept of the Platinum membership emerged a short time ago, it has been the source of a number of interesting conversations.

Great Response

I'd like to thank all of the people who supported us during the early hours of the service announcement and especially to thank those who showed interest and have chosen to invest in the Platinum membership.

There has also been some very encouraging commentary in the voice over blogosphere from respected professionals for which we are grateful.

Back to Our Roots

This week has been a refreshing change for David and I. It has also been a time of service, construction, and great attention to detail.

For those of you who remember the days of InteractiveVoices.com (the original site from 2002 before we changed our name to Voices.com in 2006), you may recall that we custom built all of the profiles, uploaded all of your audio for you, auditions were submitted by email, special pages were created for each client to view responses and literally everything was done by David or I prior to hiring our first team members, Wesley and Carol in spring of 2004.

Back in those days, I could tell you every name of every voice talent who was registered with our site (which I can still do now to a degree), what their specialties were, what cities they were from and every job they had booked from clients who used our web service.

By the time we finally had our systems automated for registrations and profiles, we had been writing HTML code for 45 days straight, creating dozens of profiles and literally doing everything by hand.

What a labour of love that was!

The Platinum membership has given us the opportunity to return to our roots as we build each profile piece by piece and word by word. Again, we're sitting side by side, just like in the beginning, and are applying our best efforts as we work hard for our customers on a very personal level to achieve great results.

The entire team at Voices.com is involved to some degree with this new level of service which is a blessing in itself that we are grateful for.

Platinum Membership FAQs

We've received some related questions that I would like to answer here for you:

1. I'm a Premium member. How will the Platinum membership affect my membership?

The Platinum membership differs from the Premium membership in name only with regard to the services received on the Voices.com site.

To clarify, Platinum members are not going to get better jobs at Voices.com, they will not get the jobs first, nor are they ranking higher than Premium members.

Premium members and Platinum members receive the same features and benefits at Voices.com. It's the additional services provided outside of the Voices.com site that differentiate these memberships.

2. Why is the Platinum membership available?

We have received feedback from many professional voice talent over the past couple of years asking for a service such as this. After much thought and consideration we decided to present a more robust level of service to fill that need.

3. What Differentiates the Platinum membership from the Premium membership?

Platinum is based upon the Premium membership with the addition of 4 very specific and highly valuable offerings that are exclusive to the new Platinum level of service.

Those 4 offerings are:

1. Listings on any or all of the 10 partner websites
2. Participation in the Voices.com Advertising Network
3. Public Relations service (2 press releases per year for members)
4. Exclusive monthly reports providing insider information, marketing strategies and industry trends

Full Circle

We'd like to thank everyone for sharing their feedback and suggestions over the years and we're privileged to celebrate your successes along the way as we continue to serve you.

Best wishes,

Stephanie, David, Wesley, Carol, Laurynda, Erica and Lin

©iStockphoto.com/panorios

The Platinum Membership includes your very own Voices.com website as well as listings on 10 niche voice over websites, a public relations campaign, ad placement on the Voices.com advertising network, and all the features and benefits of the Premium membership, including 100 MB of storage for your MP3 voice-over demos, videos, priority ranking in the search results, unlimited Featured Talent Directory listings, and access to the industry's hottest freelance voice-over jobs.

The team at Voices.com has thoughtfully considered suggestions and feedback presented to us by our members and is now prepared to meet this need by offering a higher level of service at our website exclusive to 100 voice actors on a first come first served basis.

Is opportunity knocking for you?

Create a Website

At Voices.com, we know that there's more to you than just your voice. We see your website as your storefront on the Internet. Your personal voice talent website (http://yourname.voices.com) will advertise your services for you. You can easily create your own website and optimize it for the search engines, no programming skills required. Simply fill out the registration form to build your elegantly designed voice over website. Choose your Personal website domain name by selecting a username for your account.

Job Opportunities

Audition for all of the voice-over jobs that interest you and meet your capabilities. Job postings are sent directly to your email box the moment they are approved by the Voices.com staff. You can read job details and audition online by submitting a brief message, price quote and MP3 demo. There are 80-100 jobs posted every week and you can tailor which notifications you wish to receive by completing your profile and setting your preferences.

Unlimited Featured Talent Directory Listings

Gain visibility throughout the Voices.com website by having your name and voice-over demos listed in the Featured Talent Directory. The categories in the directory are often the first place clients go listen to demos that are specific to their needs. By clicking on your name, clients are linked to your Voices.com website where they can learn more about you and your voice-over services.

100 MB of Online Storage

Securely store multimedia files online. Showcase your voice-over demos and headshot on your Voices.com website. You can even host PDF and Microsoft Word documents. Once uploaded, these files will appear on your Voices.com website, available for clients to review.

Accept Online Credit Card Payments

Accept credit card payments online using the industry standard escrow service SurePay to receive payments directly to your PayPal account. When a client hires you at Voices.com, they are directed to a secure payment page where they enter the amount of money they are paying you using the Voices.com SurePay escrow service. Alternatively, you can use your regular billing methods to accept funds for depositing to your business bank account.

Listings on 10 Partner Websites

Be listed on any or all 10 niche voice over websites and expand your reach in the voice over universe. We'll craft a profile for you and work together to help you promote your voice through each partner website. Clients looking for very specific kinds of voice overs will be drawn to the partner site that best meets their needs, placing you directly in the path of prospective customers seeking the perfect voice for their project.

TV Commercial Voices

Radio Commercial Voices

Cartoon Voice Talent

Movie Trailer Voice Talent

Business Voice Talent

Phone Voice Talent

Internet Voice Talent

Podcasting Voice Talent

Audio Book Voice Talent

Videogame Voice Talent

Advertising Network

How's your market visibility? As a Platinum member, you'll get a large banner ad placed throughout our advertising network, which includes Voice Over Times, the industry's online news source and the 10 Partner Websites. Your ad will be a 300x250 graphical ad, which is the Internet Advertising Bureau's standard ad unit and the generally accepted best performing ad size. Voice Over Times, currently receives over 100,000 page views per month from thousands of unique visitors including RSS and email subscribers. Visitors invests a significant amount of time reading the headlines, articles, reviews and how-tos on the website.

Graphic Design

Need a banner ad designed for you? Part of this innovative service offering is graphic design. We'll create an advertisement for you that will promote your website and invite more visitors to listen your voice. You can also make use of the graphics for your own marketing purposes.

Press Release Writing and Distribution

Twice a year, our team of internet marketing gurus will craft a press release informing the media and online visitors about your recent successes. Since we've developed strategic relationships with partners, vendors and media outlets, we guarantee that your press release will be included in Google, Yahoo! and MSN.

Insider Marketing Reports

Want to know what's going on in the industry before everyone else? As a Platinum member, you'll receive exclusive monthly reports that will not be accessible or distributed anywhere else as well as heads up on insider knowledge before it hits the marketplace and news wires. Each report will include future trends, current affairs and marketing strategies.

Expert Service & Support

If you need us, we'll be there! Call us toll-free, send an email, fax the office, or click online to have a Live Chat. We also have a spectacular knowledge base with over 500 solutions to voice-over questions. Customer Service is one of our specialties.

Price

The Platinum Membership fee is USD $1995.00 / year and is designed with people in mind who are serious about expanding their territory, getting the word out about their voice and attaining more visibility online like never before.

If you’re a professional voice over talent that wants immediate, targeted traffic from the industry leader, we’d love the opportunity to work with you.

Sincerely,

Stephanie and the Voices.com Team