Karen@KarenCommins.com

Karen Commins

Award Winning

Atlanta Audiobook Share-rator™

Voice-Over

Some advice about unsolicited advice

A few weeks ago, Drew told me that he found himself critiquing the voice-over actors on local radio commercials. He said he could recognize voice talent who need more training because they haven’t learned how to sound conversational in their reads. Among other things, he astutely detected that amateurs invariably let their voices trail off at the ends of sentences.

That same day, I called a major entertainment venue here in Atlanta to learn information about an upcoming event. I was rather shocked to hear a voice message in which the events and ticket prices were read in a choppy, uneven manner by someone with an accent. While some local commercials are produced by people with limited budgets, this complex has revenues in the millions each year. Its operations department unquestionably could afford to hire professional voice talent but has not.

In both cases, a professional voice-over artist like me could be tempted to offer her services to these businesses to fix their problems. However, both the people producing the commercials and those at the entertainment venue don’t think that they have a problem. My efforts therefore would fall in the category of unsolicited advice and most likely anger the people that I most wanted to impress.

I learned this lesson the hard way. As I was beginning my voice-over career, I wrote an e-mail to a local car dealer who runs a lot of radio ads. With my infinite wisdom, I explained that the dealer’s ads about Jenny in the office making a Bundt cake for all of the salesmen was offensive because it presented a very sexist and condescending attitude toward women. Mind you, I sent this message in the late 90s or early in this decade. The ad WAS sexist, but as a new voice talent who had no connection to this advertiser, it wasn’t my place to point out that fact. Naturally, I happily identified myself as a voice-over talent and offered to assist the dealer with future commercials.

I have auditioned for that dealer’s spots on numerous occasions but have never booked one. I have listened to my auditions against the ads that ran on the air. My vocal qualities and copy interpretation are eerily similar in many cases. Since I’m a positive person, I believe that maybe the producers knew the talent selected for the ads or perhaps never heard my auditions. I have to be honest, though, and acknowledge that an equally likely scenario is that my unsolicited advice was considered criticism and destroyed my chances of booking work with that advertiser.

“If I want your opinion, I’ll ask for it”

is an old adage that holds true in business. Bob Bly, a well-known and highly respected copywriter who has written many books, wrote a story with that title several months ago in the Early To Rise e-zine. He details valid reasons that you shouldn’t offer unsolicited advice.

When I feel my unsolicited advice could be perceived as criticism, I will keep it to myself, as Bly suggests. For instance, a nearby restaurant opened in the location of a previous restaurant. They changed the name and menu, which gave the customer one set of expectations, but kept the interior furnishings from the previous owner. The result was a hodge-podge of a poorly conceived restaurant with no unique identity.

During our one meal there, I told Drew a number of marketing ideas I instantly had for the establishment as soon as I walked in the door. I often have marketing ideas for businesses but usually don’t say anything because I don’t know the people. I didn’t say anything in the restaurant. It closed after being open less than a year.

If I am merely offering ideas for some new marketing twist, I don’t think the case against unsolicited advice is so clear-cut. When I am working with my clients, I feel that one of my value-adds to them is my marketing mind. I ask them if they are open to suggestions to changes in copy. If I see a way to promote their services, I enthusiastically point it out to them. My clients know that we have a collaborative relationship, and they always seem appreciative and excited about the leads, tips and ideas that I give to them. Certainly, when I am pitching an idea like an audiobook to a prospect whom I have targeted, providing a list of specialty marketing channels may be the key piece of information to seal the deal.

I still wonder what to do about those people who are in the category of potential clients. If I have a marketing idea for someone with whom I’d like to work, should I share it with them when we have no prior business relationship?

In three cases dealing with multi-million dollar corporations within the last month or so, I decided the answer was yes. The ideas had nothing to do with voice-over and nothing to do with me, but everything to do with the brand enhancement of the companies involved. (In keeping with Bob Bly’s recommendations, I wouldn’t have submitted the ideas if they could have been viewed as self-serving.) I suggested that 2 companies could partner on a promotion which would benefit both of them as they share the same target market, and I proposed a niche advertising campaign for a third entity.

I carefully researched the recipients so that the ideas would have the best chance of landing with the right decision-maker, but I can’t say whether anyone read my letters. The companies may not like or be able to implement my ideas. Like Bob Bly stated, these companies didn’t pay me for my ideas, so they might not find them valuable.

It’s one thing to approach somebody saying, “Will you hire me and pay me some of your money?” That line of inquiry won’t win you any friends when you continue with a recitation of perceived defects, like the web designer profiled in Bob Bly’s article or my letter to the car dealer. It’s another thing to approach somebody and say, “Here’s a way that you can make money!”

I think what you put out in the Universe comes back to you. If I was of service to someone else, the Universe will be of service to me. I sent these ideas freely, without any expectation of reward. I truly love all 3 companies and want to see their continued success and market domination. Of course, if any of these 3 businesses ever wants to engage me to voice commercials, point-of-sale and trade show presentations, training programs or anything else for their stellar organizations, I will be more than delighted to join their team!

 

How many languages does a voice talent need?

A musical instrument can produce melodious notes in any key playable by the instrument and known by the musician. If my voice is my instrument, why should I limit myself only to the words available in one language?

The world view of an American is someone is only knows one language. Foreign languages are not required school subjects here, so many people do not choose to learn them. English has become the global language for business and computer systems.

In 1994, Drew and I took our first trip abroad. Our destination was Germany, with a weekend in Amsterdam on the end of the trip. I had studied German in high school and college, but I had forgotten much of it since I had not had an opportunity to practice it. Don’t worry about the language was the advice of a friend. Everyone in Europe speaks English.

We discovered that the German people spoke German, at least on our first day in Munich. While our remembrances of that day now make for funny stories, the language barrier caused one of the most frustrating days of our entire marriage.

As a side note, I believe that the fear of the language barrier is one reason many people don’t travel internationally. This post and several others have been inspired by some trips, but this blog is not about travel. However, I will point out that if you attempt to speak even a few words in the native tongue of the country where you’re standing, you have just made a huge step forward in making your trip an enjoyable one.

In Germany, I found that I started remembering more of my German as I continued to hear it. I could speak sentences half in German and half in English to people. After the first day, more people started speaking English, even ein bisschen (a little) to us. When they said they could speak ‘a little’ English, they usually were fluent.

Two trips abroad this past year brought me in contact with students at language schools.

In February, I went to Brazil for the fantastic Inner Game of Voice-Over Workshop taught by my voice-over coach Susan Berkley and her co-instructor Rich Jones, an award-winning voice talent from Canada who now lives in Brazil.

Susan and Rich both speak fluent Portuguese. The workshop participants certainly were grateful for their translation assistance when we were shopping in the small countryside towns where English was not widely spoken! One of the most memorable uses of language was our studio session in Sao Paulo. Susan directed the talent in English and immediately gave production instructions to the engineer in Portuguese.

Rich also teaches English at the Millennium Language School in Sao Paulo. I was delighted in recent months when Rich asked me to voice some tracks for an instructional CD to be used at the school.

When I was in Brazil, the Brazilian students loved to talk to the Americans as it gave them ample opportunity to practice their English. I loved talking with the students as I was able to interact with people in another country on a more personal level than I normally do when I travel. The Brazilian students were all adults in a wide spectrum of ages.

When Drew and I recently visited Alexandria, Egypt, we saw a language school that was letting out for the day. The students ranged from small children to kids of high school age. They all appeared to be carrying books with English titles. We saw one boy carrying books labeled Chemistry and a SAT preparation guide. Those children and/or their parents see English as a necessary component to a bright future.

As an American, it would be easy (and somewhat arrogant) to think that I have no need to learn another language.

I have observed and read that more people around the world are learning my language. When I travel, I notice that more signs are in both the native language of the country and English. People usually switch to English when they learn I’m an American.

As a traveler, I have a goal to be multi-lingual. I declared this goal in my journal a few years ago when we were staying at a hotel on the tiny island of Bonaire near South America. One day, I watched the concierge fluidly and easily converse in 5 languages with the swarm of guests who approached her. I decided that day that I will speak German, French, Spanish and Italian. Being able to converse with someone in their own language emphasizes our similarities as people rather than our differences.

Most importantly, as a voice-over talent, I have a need to be multi-lingual.

Even without fluency in several languages, I at least need to be able to recognize, understand and correctly pronounce foreign words when they appear in literature so that I can perform audiobooks effortlessly. In addition, studying other languages always can improve one’s English since many of our words are derived from another language.

Even now, I can understand some German through hearing or reading it better than I can spontaneously speak it. I have recorded a voice mail system in German for a client who wanted continuity of voice-over for both English and German. I think that in most cases, though, my opportunities to perform scripts in a foreign language would be limited. If an organization wants to hire a voice talent who speaks a certain language, plenty of native voice actors exist who could execute the script flawlessly. I realize I would have the easiest time of first regaining my skills in German, but I have taken the challenge of learning French.

I am continuously adding foreign language programs to my reference library. I currently own language CDs in Spanish, French, German, Italian and Japanese. These CD sets are usually packaged with pronunciation guides, lesson books and/or pocket dictionaries. I am in the process of loading all of my language CDs on my iPod so that it becomes an incredibly useful tool to my voice-over career. I can quickly find and listen to the speakers with authentic accents, which helps me prepare proper accents for character parts.

A terrific source of these programs at low-cost is Costco. I also have found college dictionaries for foreign languages there. My philosophy is: the time to buy it is when you see it! Costco and similar shopping warehouses are notorious for having limited quantities of a product and not restocking them.

Of course, in this information age, we have almost unlimited opportunities to become armchair travelers and listen to the dialects and accents of those from other countries. In addition to the abundance of travel shows on TV, you can download podcasts and radio broadcasts from the Internet. You can play your favorite movie with the soundtrack from another language. I’ve read that audiobook narrator Kate Reading (Anna Fields) would go to ethnic restaurants as part of her research for books. I also know voice talent who have contacted embassies for particularly tough pronunciation questions connected with audiobook research.

Perhaps the typical American only knows how to speak English. I hope that statistic is changing. However, this American voice talent wants to know how to speak fluently in 4 other languages. In the meantime, I’ll be happy if I can retain the flavor of the accent enough to sound convincing to listeners of my recordings.

 

Susan Berkley’s inner circle and upcoming masterclass

Whether you are just beginning or a professional, I cannot recommend too highly my voice-over coach Susan Berkley for training classes. Susan is the voice of AT&T, Citibank and other companies. She holds teleclasses, voice-over bootcamps and specialized workshops throughout the year to meet the needs of voice-over students.

I am a member of Susan’s inner circle coaching program and have taken several classes that she sponsored. One reason I like the Inner Circle so much is because we have a monthly teleclass. We usually speak with someone in the voice-over industry, but we also have branched out and talked with experts in business areas like marketing. I was excited last night because we spoke with my friend and teacher Hillary Huber about audiobooks.

Hillary was just nominated for an Audie Award by the Audio Publishers Association (I linked to the complete list of finalists). The Grammys only have 2 categories for spoken word, so the Audie awards were established to recognize excellence within the audiobook industry. Hillary’s nomination for this prestigious award was in the mystery category for the book A Field of Darkness by Cornelia Reed.

Hillary talked with us about her process of researching the book prior to recording it. It’s not enough for her to simply look up pronunciations of words. Whenever possible, she contacts the author to glean insights about the characters.

She also talked about how she obtained the work. The audiobook industry is burgeoning, and voice talent can independently obtain work without an agent.

Next month, Susan is sponsoring a very specialized workshop in NY on obtaining work in audiobooks. The class will be taught by Pat Fraley and Hillary Huber, and it will be limited to 12 attendees. Special guests in this upcoming class will be multiple Audie-award winner Barbara Rosenblat (who is once again nominated this year) and Grammy-winning producer Paul Ruben, who will direct you in the studio. You will produce your audiobook demo while you’re in the workshop.

I took this class with Pat and Hillary in LA. They are lovely people and fantastic teachers. You can read about my experiences in that class on my blog. As marvelous as the LA class was, I think this upcoming New York class will be even better due to the presence of these particular guests. I almost wish I could go again!

On-going training is a necessity in this business. If you call Susan’s offices, please tell them that I referred you. You will always receive excellent value for the money with her programs.

 

25 ways to get publicity and traffic to your web site

I subscribe to a fantastic e-zine called The Publicity Hound written by Joan Stewart. In each week’s issue, she posts a question to “help this hound”, and the question this week was from another voice talent who wanted to know how to drive traffic to his web site. I answered with 20 suggestions on Joan’s blog but am including my answer here these ideas may help other people. Also, I am adding 5 more ideas that I didn’t include in my original answer.

As another voice-over talent, many newcomers to the industry ask me the same question. I have written essays on my blog in which I point out that voice-over is a business that requires a marketing plan. Like any business owner, the talent should determine where s/he fits in the marketplace and develop a marketing plan that targets the primary prospects on a steady and consistent basis.

Numerous ways exist to contact the prospects and depend on a person’s time, budget and creativity. If the goal is simply to drive traffic to a web site, obviously, getting a link to your site published in a popular e-zine like The Publicity Hound will do the trick!A web site is just one aspect of a marketing plan. In order to increase business and develop sustained relationships, the voice-over talent must be persistent in taking actions, such as:

1. Creating and maintaining a personal web site

2. Making phone calls to casting directors, producers, directors

3. Networking at industry meetings and events

4. Sending direct mail (postcards, newsletters, etc.)

5. Auditioning for one or more agents

6. Joining on-line casting services and submitting auditions

7. Writing postings in forums to show your expertise

8. Sending e-mails when you see opportunities such as those posted on CraigsList

9. Writing articles that can be reprinted in on-line e-zines

10. Exchanging reciprocal web links with complimentary sites

11. Listing your site on free web directories

12. Speaking at industry or community events

13. Presenting training classes

14. Placing industry advertisements in printed and web-based directories, CraigsList, etc.

15. Including your web site on the signature lines on your e-mails, on your business card, and on every piece of correspondence both on- and off-line

16. Sending imprinted products with your web site to your clients

17. Starting a blog on your web site and post comments on others’ blogs when you have expertise

18. Publishing a regular e-zine to maintain contact and requesting people to forward it

19. Asking for and rewarding referrals from satisfied clients

20. Posting testimonials of satisfied clients on your web site

This list is by no means all-inclusive, and most items don’t apply only to those in voice-over. By implementing one or more of these ideas on a regular basis, a person could spur traffic to his site and potentially increase his business.

Of course, I could have added a few more things, like:

21. Establishing a pay-per-click campaign

22. Generating press releases to announce your news

23. Getting feature stories written about you in the newspaper (a feature story is so much better than an ad! Just ask my friends and fellow voice talents Susan Berkley and Mary McKitrick if you don’t believe me)

24. Sending clippings of news stories of interest to your contacts

25. Joining an on-line networking service

26. Using search engines to locate potential contacts and querying them directly

27. Starting your own podcast

28……

I only promised 25 ideas but got carried away! When you aren’t working, you are working on obtaining work, using the tools and technology at your disposal and through whatever means you feel comfortable. It’s meaningless if someone simply visits your web site. I think a better goal is to think of ways to make connections with your prospects so that you can develop on-going business relationships.

 

Shining the light on pitches to prospects

One need only look at my voice-over studio to know that I am in love with Paris. The Eiffel Tower is my favorite thing in the world. I wear a gold Eiffel Tower charm on a bracelet, and I have numerous Eiffel Tower figurines in my house. The highlight (no pun intended) of my collection is a tall, lead crystal Eiffel Tower that sits on a lighted mirrored base. The base has colored LEDs, so the sparkling crystal shimmers in a rainbow of color as the base slowly turns.

A dear friend didn’t know that I had bought this crystal Eiffel Tower when I was in Las Vegas. As a birthday present, she surprised me with a smaller version of the one I had bought. It even sits atop a lighted mirrored base just like the one pictured here.

Granted, the peddlers swarming beneath the Tower’s four lacy pillars wouldn’t know those things about me as Drew and I exited the Tower on a recent visit to Paris. They would only know that I had been up in the Tower, and they should have noticed that I was carrying a shopping bag. Since it was dark, they may have been unable to discern that the shopping bag was from the Eiffel Tower, indicating I had purchased souvenirs at the Tower gift shops.

Just like at the Great Pyramids, these people all rush up to you, shoving their wares in your face and shouting prices at you. In addition to the ever-popular Eiffel Tower key chains that we have seen (and bought) on previous trips, the new craze was hand-held, flashing, lighted Eiffel Towers. A girl who loves the Eiffel Tower as much as I do and already has 2 lighted crystal Eiffel Towers is a likely target market for such a thing. At the time, though, I was most interested in dinner since it was very late, and we had to get up early for our flight home.

The seller’s approach has everything to do with the prospect’s interest. People shouting prices at me just make me want to hurry along to get away from them, no matter how much I might like their item. As Will Newman points out in his excellent article in the Early to Rise e-zine, you often have to use the word because with appeals to your prospect’s emotions if you expect to make sales.

One of these flashing light vendors started walking with us. Like the guy at the Pyramids, I’ll give him points for trying to create rapport with us. He even attempted to follow Newman’s advice to play to our emotions, but he made a critical mistake.

Since this incident happened a few months ago, I have forgotten exactly what he said to me, but I responded that I already had one. Even though I liked the light, I was thinking I didn’t need to spend money on his light when I had the 2 splendid crystal versions awaiting me at home. I also just had stocked up on Eiffel Tower goodies inside the gift shops.

Did he appeal to my emotions in any way? Did he use humor and charm and say something like, ‘Two are better than one, especially for such a handsome couple! You each could have one then!’

Did this merchant explain the benefits of his product to me? Did he use quick thinking to generate a sale and propose that perhaps I’d like to purchase one as a special gift? Did he mention that the lights were exclusive items to the vendors outside and not carried by the Tower shops? (At least I didn’t see them inside the tiny, crowded little shops in the Tower.)

If he had ever suggested to either of us that we could buy this little light for me as reminder of our romantic nighttime visit to the twinkling Eiffel Tower, he probably would have made a sale. I DID like the flashing light, and he had engaged us in some form of conversation as we walked rather than simply shouting prices at us.

No, he employed a different tactic.

He argued with me.

When I told him that I had one, he said, ‘No you don’t!’ When I assured him that I do have one and had received it as a gift, he yelled at me, ‘YOU LIE!’

Okay, so I don’t have a lighted Eiffel Tower that looks and works exactly like the one he was selling. I think his light was something like a plastic flashlight, while my pieces are lead crystal and only light up when placed on top of the mirrored base. Apparently, street peddlers don’t study marketing tactics or read books by Dale Carnegie, but I would think even they should know that you don’t scream at potential prospects and call them liars.

When contacting potential clients about utilizing you as a voice-over talent, you should research them as thoroughly as possible before making the connection. Look at their web sites and read industry periodicals. The cold-call instantly becomes a warmer call when you already know something about the background and current needs of the person or organization. Practice your script, and be ready to tailor your responses depending on the recipient.

Understand that your first pitch to a potential voice-over client is probably not going to elicit a commitment on a project. You’re not trying to sell some little gadget on the street to someone you probably will never see again. You are a professional person who is introducing yourself and hoping to cast the initial rivets in the iron foundation of what will become a towering relationship among your clients. You usually have to make 5-7 contacts before the light even goes on in the prospect’s head that you are a voice-over artist.

Above all, have respect for everyone with whom you contact. You never know the source of that next job. What you put out in the Universe comes back to you. Would you rather spend your time in darkness, generating negative energy toward the prospect who turned you down, or in brightness, radiating positive energy to attract those clients who are looking for your vocal characteristics, your style of reads, your specialty niche and your value-added services?

If you always speak to and about prospects with deference to their needs, sometimes that first pitch will be all you need to forge a relationship of lasting beauty.

5 Thoughts About Self-Promotion in Social Settings

Can you ever go overboard on the self-promotion and networking? If you had asked me this question a few months ago, I would have had a different perspective. You can have all the talent in the world, but talent alone will not win you jobs if no one knows about it. I’m a firm believer that you must learn how to promote yourself and your capabilities often, to the right people and in the best light.

I have gotten most of my voice-over work through my own self-promotion efforts. I am a perpetual student of marketing and publicity books and other resources. I observe what other people do both inside and outside the voice-over industry to see how I might apply the concepts to my business.

I learned from Wayne Dyer that when you ask the Universe, ‘How may I serve?’, the Universe will respond by asking that question of you. If you are constantly in a state of saying ‘Gimme, gimme, gimme’, the Universe will respond by serving up that statement to you. You will feel like you are always striving and never arriving.

The point I want to make today is that the needs of your audience still take priority over your own need to promote yourself. It’s not all about me, and it’s not all about you.

I advise people to tell everyone what you do. You never know where that next voice-over gig may come from. I mention my work while on vacation when people ask about it, and I tell them details when they ask questions. Sometimes I have seized opportunity while on vacation to make a pitch for work, but those times are rare. (I mean it’s rare that I have the opportunity, not rare that I would take it!)

After listening to a lecturer on our recent cruise, I compiled some guidelines about self-promotion when networking in social settings that you may find helpful.On our recent cruise, Drew and I met this guy while we were waiting to return to the ship from one of the islands. He told us he was a lecturer on the ship and proceeded to inform us about living in Hollywood, some famous people he knew, etc. As I have an interest in expanding my business with speaking engagements, I asked whether he lectured exclusively on cruise ships or in other environments. He was only too happy to tell me how he was the best of the best and got the job through an agent.

He gave us a brief history of his life including his acting background, which prompted Drew to tell him about my voice-over career. The guy asked about my credits, presumably to see if he knew my work. When I said I perform a lot of corporate narrations and audiobooks, he made some comment about reading textbooks for the blind, as if he had dismissed me as someone beneath his exalted stature.

I explained to him that commercial audiobooks are an $800 million industry and growing, in part because people are spending more time than ever in horrendous commutes. For instance, the average one-way commute in Atlanta is 34 miles!

The next day, Drew and I were enjoying a perfectly lovely lunch facing the water on another gorgeous Greek island. Mr. Lecturer had already called out to us while we were walking around the town, and now here he was walking along the waterfront, headed straight toward us.

He saw us.

I don’t know why I did it, but, before I could stop myself, the words were out of my mouth: I asked if he would like to join us. Naturally, he sat down. I didn’t know when I extended the invitation that he would spend most of his time sitting at our table and talking to the two crew members who happened to be sitting at the table next to us.

The man found the topic of himself to be endlessly fascinating. He told us about being a contestant on Jeopardy and his history developing game shows. He related stories of speeches past and happy audiences who were mesmerized by his words.

He never asked about us or noticed our needs that day. To be perfectly honest, we really didn’t care about his many past accomplishments because we would never be in a position to hire him. Maybe the retired senior crowd of fellow passengers would find him to be a sparkling conversationalist, but we thought he was obnoxiously boring.

All we wanted to do was sit out in the sun at this amazingly pretty and romantic place that we may never see again and look at the village scenery set against the water. We couldn’t even do that because the guy’s head blocked our view.

So, here are 5 rules for self-promotion when networking, especially while in a social setting:

1) Repeatedly ask yourself ‘how may I serve?’ when progressing the conversation.

2) Don’t talk endlessly about yourself. Other people lead interesting lives, too, and you may find out the answer to question number one by asking questions of others.

3) Don’t put down other people’s accomplishments to make yourself feel better.

4) No matter how talented you are or what you’ve accomplished in life, somebody else is always better or has done more. Don’t make bold, bragging statements like ‘I know I’m the best so they were wise to hire me’. No one wants to talk too long with someone who is a legend in his own mind.

5) Take your audience’s needs into consideration before you make your pitch. Are you on vacation in an exotic location? If so, the chance is very good that no one is interested in talking about business anyway.