Widely-Practiced Problems in the Online Voice Over Industry

I am writing this today because, as of late, I have been doing more and more Quality Assurance on auditions submitted through Voice123. At the same time, I answer emails from voice talent, who express to me that they have not gotten work. Whether they are experienced in offline voice over casting or not experienced at all, they all manage to make the same mistakes that I have seen cost them voice over work.

I am basing this article on information gathered via:

1. Customer service emails.

2. Auditions and demos listened to while doing QA at Voice123.

3. Both voice seeker and voice talent complaints about working online.

Just from stating those three factors above, I get a sense that some may get emotionally charged up, which is EXACTLY why one should keep reading. Also keep in mind that I am describing mistakes made by 'everyone' at some point. I have now seen it happen, and I blush because I made the same mistakes I am about to mention at some point, while using Voice123.

I understand where a talent comes from. I also know the greatest education comes from those who have made mistakes, and then learned why they were mistakes.

Problem #1: 'Working online is not war':

Working online carries with it, greater need for understanding. If you approach working online, as if it is, 'Me vs. Them', you will find yourself unemployed. I have seen notes and emails go back and forth between clients and talents such as:

• "I watermarked my audition, so you cannot steal it."
• "Your budget is laughable, but I am auditioning anyway."
• A budget quote: 'You tell me.'
• An audition remark that states, 'I have 30 years experience, and I have never seen someone so cheap in all my years....'

For a voice talent, seriously, if something upsets you, it is best to walk away from the audition. Do not waste energy or time on being aggressive online. It is too easy for people to fight back, remember you, and there are still 'humans' doing the hiring. If you want to start a fight, you will get what you want, and then some.

Problem #2: 'Slaaaaaaaaaating...or....Aggressive Slating'

I think this is the most common. What many voice talent do not understand is that working with computers instantly means you are dealing with people with short attention spans. A study showed last year that from 'mouse click to frustration', you had a time frame of only 3 to 20 seconds. Keeping that in mind, if you are a buyer or producer, with even as little as 10 demos to listen to, how often can you take the following slates before you just get frustrated:

• "Hello, my name is *** and I will be doing 3 takes, of 3 different reads for you, and I have watermarked each one to protect myself".
• "Hi my name is ***. My website is *** and you can find out more about me at *** I will be doing 3 reads."

Those 'slaaaaates' are killers. Not only is the first one displaying that a voice talent may be paranoid (a sign of inexperience while working online), but they both go on for more than 10 seconds. Try this, and this lends itself to why it is not a bad idea to know about online customer service:

• If you walk into a 'store', and you ask where to buy soda, if the guy behind the counter explains every single detail of the store for 2 minutes before telling you what you originally asked for, you may just walk out.
  
• Online sites...their interfaces provide your name, and they are about to hear you anyway, so there is no point in explaining for 20 seconds, what they will hear for the next 20 seconds.

Problem #3: Paranoid Behavior and Watermarks

When online casting started, watermarks made sense, but not so much anymore. Why? Because the online community has been around for several years now, the Internet sites have gotten wiser about who posts jobs, and there are a 1001 ways to verify someone before they post a job, and if for some reason they try to take the audio...websites have that covered, too. How do I do it? I am not telling anyone. It took me years to figure out how to catch people, and I am not going to shed that skill in public. So, what do I see talent doing?

• Loud watermarks that sound more like tests of the emergency broadcast system.
  
• Announcements that there is a watermark, and that it is being done to protect their work. That one alone turns off a buyer immediately. It may sound like a good idea, but it makes a voice talent sound nervous.
• Lastly, submitting auditions with poor audio on purpose, and then explaining it away that 'I did this to protect myself', only makes one think you are making excuses for yourself.
  

Problem #4: Not reading directions

The common response I get when I mention this is, 'Well, they do not tell me enough to go on.' That happens, yes, but I am referring to specific times when a buyer asks for something in a description, and the voice talent thinks it is a good idea or it is ok to submit whatever they want, and make up a reason, as to why it was done. If you do not understand how that feels to the buyer, try this:

1. Imagine you go to a restaurant, and you are trying to impress your loved one.
2. The waiter takes your order, and you are waiting for it to arrive.
3. The waiter comes out with a completely different order, and says, 'I know you asked for this, but I wanted to give you something different.'

Knowing that working online is like 'being your own business', how do you think it makes a buyer feel when you do the opposite of what they requested? How would it make you feel, if you were hiring?


Problem #5: Not understanding the 'give and take' of working online

Like it or not, auditioning online carries a heavier burden of reassurance that a job can be done. It is not about, 'I auditioned! Now, someone will call and tell me what I have to do next!'. You have to have that business plan in place for yourself. If the 'seller' gives the 'buyer' too many tasks ahead of time just to hire the voice talent, it simply will not happen. This does not apply to negotiating contracts. I am referring to those that believe, 'All I have to do is audition, and the rest will happen for me.'

That may have been the case, offline, but when you work online, you are directly in contact with the buyer, so there is no 'agent-filter' or production house you must report to on a certain date and time. It is all about you, from A-Z.

The 'give and take' that is taking place...As the 'seller of your voice online', you have to own a professional online business known as YOU, which you will present to buyers of your voice over skill. You have to be the 'giver' because this is a new playground, with a new way of doing business in voice overs. I will not lie. It is not always easy, and it does take some time to learn how to communicate online.


Problem #6: Not seeing the forest for the possible 'greens'

Working online is about building relationships, and not 'paying to play'. If you want to pay to play something, try online poker.

I say this because the 'budget' you see may be lower because the person simply has no idea who you are, and what you can do. Everyone is equal when you work online, even those with decades of experience, so those budgets you see may be 'teasers', and once they know you...and know you can do what they need...the real money will come in.

I have been told several times that Voice123 shines because of the 'repeat clients', not the job postings. These voice talent know the difference between 'playing online' and 'working online'. As a tip, just to close this out, I did something two weeks ago to help a very experienced offline talent of many years. He explained to me that working online was difficult. I told him the following:

• If you are experienced offline, find someone younger than you, and show them your profile and auditions.
• See if they could re-write what you send in emails, and audition remarks.
• I also told him to stop doing some of the behaviors above.

He swallowed his pride and ego, and agreed, and we agreed he could tell me I was wrong forever. He booked his next online audition, after a 2-year drought. I take no credit. I give credit to the young man who re-wrote the text for his uncle to make it more net-savvy, short and sweet. The idea came to mind because I wrote my brother's yahoo personals profile, and the next day, 8 women showed interest. I have always believed that the 'arbitrator' tells a story better.


Problem #7 Whatever has you upset about the website you use, do not mention it

They know already, trust me. They deal with it too, and tell us about it. If you want to relate to someone, do so on a positive level. Voice123 works on issues all the time. We have constant communications with over 10,000 emails a month. Showing you know something, by not saying it, shows experience, and that...is the trickiest thing about working online:

• 'Finding out what others think when you cannot get in touch with them.' I realized several years ago, the way to go was to build on what was working, and go from there.
  
• That is why audition remarks like: "The audio you will hear is not good because Voice123 insists on using 96 KBPS, which sounds awful!" If that is your only remark, what have you accomplished? Your purpose was to be hired, not file a complaint, and the seeker knows it is an audition process, anyway.

Final note: This is kind of a big deal...Please be careful when someone requests an accent, that you do not completely offend someone's nationality:

You have to understand that when someone is highly offended, they usually feel compelled to just hit back, and not say why. I was lucky enough to have people who hired talent from Voice123, stop and take a moment to explain some of what they heard. Just some small tips on the subject:

• A French accent request does not mean, 'Sound like Pepe Le Pew'.
• A Spanish and/or Hispanic accent request does not mean, 'Sound like Speedy Gonzalez or Cheech and Chong'.
• An Italian accent request does not mean, 'Sound like a Joey Soprano.'
• A German accent can be confused with an Austrian accent.
• An African accent does not mean 'Sound like you are from the Bronx'.
• A Chinese accent does not mean 'replace the letter 'L' with the letter 'R'.'
• A Scottish accent does not mean, 'Mike Meyers 'Big Sexy' impersonation'.
  

I say this because they are truly innocent mistakes made because sounds and images are stuck in our subconscious mind, and we may mean no offense, but still, I have seen these errors offend people greatly, and when working on an international stage, it helps to be aware of what your buyer feels. Certain 'characters' in the North American culture of entertainment are deemed highly offensive in other countries. I have actually learned this through my years of traveling. I also worked in Times Square for 7 years, considered the 'crossroads of the world' for good reason.

As we all know, people can be very sensitive while working online, no matter who you are, so there has to be a level of understanding that we are all starting over in this online playground. Yeah, we can audition...but can we be so much more than 'just a voice talent'?

In the interests of helping people see what I see behind the scenes,
Steven
former Voice123 talent and former other website talent

When You Can't Say Yes, There is Opportunity for Success!

Customers are the backbone of every business. Yet, there are times when you simply cannot give them what they want, because a customer may not always be fully aware of a company’s financial status, product development ability, or the majority of a company’s feedback. So, what do you do when you have a demanding customer whose needs you cannot meet? Start by getting into the mindset of what the customer is really looking to accomplish:

• Does the customer, maybe love your service and could possibly want to be more involved, but his/her way of showing it is to offer suggestions?
• Is the customer possibly an influential person in your industry, and is maybe looking to do more business with you?
• Is the customer truly a big fan of your service, and just wants to show you that he/she cares?
• Are there alternatives you can explore with the customer?

Online customer service is quite interesting this way. The customer behind the computer is always looking for reassurance that his/her needs are being met, but not everyone knows how to communicate needs with written/typed words. This is quite often the case with customer service emails that involve ‘product development’ suggestions, and that can be difficult because a basic customer with no computer experience may not understand why something is necessary or unnecessary.

After starting at Voice123.com in July 2007, there were several corrections that were implemented in our customer service team to assist customers, even at times when we had to say ‘No’.

• Never make a promise you cannot keep to make someone happy: A failure we had seen with several websites was that they were making statements such as, ‘We will work on it!’, when there was no intention of developing the idea. Broken promises have long-lasting and damaging results to any businesses reputation, online or offline.
• If you do use an idea by your customer, give that customer some credit on your website: Voice123 has done this in the past. When an idea never struck us until a customer said so, we promote them through our email campaigns and Voice123 blog. Showing appreciation for the website user has a powerful affect, and makes your users feel like celebrities. This is important because all customers need to feel special when using a product. If you are showing true appreciation, you should do something both in public and in private. Giving voice talent free subscriptions for helping Voice123 become a better website is one way we like to return the favor.
• Create personal relationships between your customer service team, and their customers: It is true that there are some customers who will have amazing ideas one day, and the next day, they may just contact you to complain a bit, and that is great! You will always have people looking out for your business this way, and you will be looking out for your customers! Even when working in Times Square at ESPNZone NY many years ago, I found myself being a friendly ear to customers who just wanted to let off some steam about ESPN, and their programming decisions. I did tell them that I had no control over such things, but they appreciated that I just listened. These same people came back time and time again, and it was a pleasure to serve them.

I have found that working online requires a larger ear for listening, if you will, because of its anonymous environment. There will always be that ‘need for reassurance’ from another person, that even though you said ‘no’, that the idea was taken into consideration.