Post Projects! Enjoy Voice123 Technology!

Last week, I posted a project on Voice123 to find voices for a new search feature that we currently have in development. The project received a great response! I tell you this because there is so much behind Voice123 technology, that knowing 'how to post a project', and 'what to do after', can make finding a voice over talent-producer, quick and easy.

First, check out my posting, where I specifically needed a broad range of talents. Your needs may indeed be very different, but you will see how important the project description, script, and parameters are to getting a response: New Search Feature Project.

Second, once you begin listening to auditions, you will have the opportunity to 'rank' people, which can take place even after you have hired someone, as well. It is helpful to leave a ranking for talents, especially if you have hired them.

Third, I have heard job posters say they want the client to listen to the auditions, unbiased by budget quotes, names, company logos from Voice123, etc. That can be done! Look at this shared inbox link, which has been set up to only show talents names and demos!

Fourth, posting a project is very easy! Give it a try once more, if you have not had the chance to try any of our new technology the last time you had posted a project.

Finally, the Voice123 staff is here to help you! Come by live chat, call, or write us, and we will gladly assist you!

Thanks for your time! We hope this helps you with your next project!


Steven Lowell
Public Relations Manager
My Blog

Voice123 News: Inauguration & Forums

In the spirit of the 2009 Presidential Inauguration in the US, we share with you one more time the forum thread from The Political Impersonation Contest, held on Voice123 last fall. Over the next four years, we hope that all of them find work using their creative impersonations and styles.

On the subject, this week, the founders of Voice123 and myself made a somewhat last minute, late night decision to drive from New York City down to Washington D.C., which we posted about here. We hope you can take a look. It was amazing to be there.

Voice123 is always looking for ideas to write about, so that we may assist those who wish to post jobs for voice talents, and help voice talents develop their voice over careers. If you are posting a job, a coach helping out your students, and/or a voice talent, with something you wish to contribute that will be a positive influence on the voice industry, please post a thread about it and tell us!

Thank you always!


Steven Lowell
Public Relations Manager
My Blog

2009 Updates at Voice123

Voice123 has some updates to announce for 2009!

• Our Voice123 System Training is starting up again this week:
  We took a break over the holidays to work on some issues. If you ever have any questions about Voice123 and SmartCast works, I encourage you to take the time to attend the training.


• The Voice123 Premium Forums are very busy:
  The Voice123 Premium Forums include very helpful tools to get questions answered, find coaches, or simply relay news and make connections. We hope you can stop by and post a thread!


• Position Change:
  As of January 1st 2009, my position at Voice123 officially changed to Public Relations Manager, in addition to working in QA. If you have any recommendations, comments, or ideas, please shoot me an email, or write to me on the forums! I would love to hear from you, and possibly speak with you in the future!


• Product Development:
  We are working on several developments, that we will be announcing over the coming months. I hope you will keep an eye out, and we will keep you in the loop via email, blog, and forums!

We thank you for being a part of Voice123, and look forward to a busy 2009!


Steven Lowell
Public Relations Manager
My Blog

Voice123's Holiday Season

The most difficult part about being in the voice industry during the holiday season is that it works on an opposite time-schedule from most jobs. Given the trying times facing everyone today, Voice123 decided it would be best to work through the holiday season to make sure we were here to handle job opportunities, auditions, and inquiries. Getting them processed quickly would attract more work, and be helpful to those auditioning. Personally, it is hard to forget that feeling of having recording equipment just sitting there, then being expected not to work because of the holidays, knowing all too well that my next paycheck could be out there somewhere.

I know there is no greater feeling in the world than to be 'a working voice over talent.' I also promised myself that if given the opportunity to make a change, I would make it a point to see that no one else would experience a downtime in being able to work. However, there is an international demand for using Voice123 and I could not do something like this alone.

This is why I am very happy and lucky to be a part of the Voice123 team. Over the holidays, our staff, including Tania Isabel Zapata, who co-founded Voice123, and Carmen Texeira (a new proud mom on December 19th, 2008) came back at their own will, and we were all very excited to work the extra hours and keep Voice123 going, both for those who needed to work, and for those who needed voice talent. We enjoyed the holidays together too!

We all made the best of it as a team by keeping in contact with each other at all times via laptop, cell phone, computer, Skype, etc. even when on vacation in various parts of the world or at our own family gatherings. We were online at midnight to say Happy New Year to each other! Some can say this was a bit excessive, but it was still a great deal of fun, and users of Voice123 were equally pleased to see we were here.

From this end of the operation at Voice123, we always feel our greater responsibility to the general public is to make sure we are here for our users to make sure they can do what they love, whether a talent or a seeker.

As a result, we had over 680 SmartCast jobs posted on Voice123 for the month of December 2008, up from 569 posted in December 2007. We also watched as talents auditioned well into the night as late as 3AM EST, and we had a good time listening and passing auditions to international clients.

We sincerely hope that in doing this many more people were able to book work and post jobs through Voice123. We had a wonderful time this holiday season, we thank you for being there, and we were glad to be here for all of you. There truly is no greater feeling in the world than giving back to an industry you love to work in.

We wish you a Happy 2009, and look forward to a positive future!



Steven Lowell
Public Relations Manager
My Blog

"Good Speaking Voice? It may not be enough."

The following is an article contribution to Voice123 by Gary Terzza, a Voice123 Coach from the United Kingdom.

"Has this ever happened to you: You are chatting to someone on the phone or in person and they suddenly comment on your voice; it might be a remark about how deep, husky, or even sexy it is? They may have gone further and suggested you could do radio or TV ads. If this sounds familiar then perhaps a career in voiceovers could be a possibility, but is having a good speaking voice enough? The answer, though, is no. To earn a living, part or full time, using your vocal cords you need something else.

Voice-overs are only partly about the way you sound; they are, also about the way you interpret a script and crucially the way you read someone else's words. The aim of the voice actor is to bring these words to life, no matter how complex, alien or even boring they may be. This is because what the client wants to hear is the idea being transmitted. The vocal talent is in being able to communicate a message clearly and with meaning.

You have to sound like you know what you are talking about, even if you do not. The golden rule of any voiceover is to possess the words; that is to say you have to own them and make them yours. Only then can you truly enrich them with meaning. This has nothing to do with the tonal quality of the voice, but everything to do with the mindset. It is all about the attitude of the reader; does she/he sound convincing? Are they hesitating, or putting in too many pauses? Is there too much drama in a technical piece, or too little energy in a hard sell commercial? Is a corporate video being delivered with frivolity rather than authority, or a charity appeal lacking gravitas? A good director will be able to mould the artist accordingly, but often the talent will be recording at home and have to rely on their own judgement. Learning to trust your own ears is essential.

Also are you able to meet deadlines? The audio track is often the very last element to be considered in a project and the decision about who will perform the piece is sometimes left to the very last minute. That's why agents, production companies and producers want people who can deliver the sound sample on time and within budget. So flexibility helps, as does the ability to record at home for a fast turnaround. Ask yourself if you would take criticism to heart. Many budding voice artists have their egos dented by clients' and agents' comments and this can throw them off course. You need to develop a thick skin. Because voice-overs are subjective, one person's opinion of the way you sound is exactly that, an opinion.

However when you have put lots of effort into a project it can be hurtful to be rejected, but keeping a dispassionate distance can help any bruised pride. Are you prepared to treat your new career as a business? The more professional you are, the more your prospects are likely to take you seriously. Keep tax receipts, issue invoices with payment terms and sell yourself like a true pro. It works wonders. So your natural timbre and pitch are simply not enough on their own to give you a career using your larynx. Always bear in mind there is much more to the mouth industry than meets the ear!"

by Gary Terzza
http://www.vomasterclass.com


Voice123 thanks Gary Terzza for his contribution to this blog, as well as, a Voice123 Coach.

News About Voice123 Training & Forums

This is a quick message to let you know that the next two Thursday's are Christmas and New Year's, and as such we will not be holding the regular Voice123 training as usual. We will use this time to work on a new system to use for training that should be more user friendly.

Also, the Voice123 Premium Forums have picked up activity and I wish to thank all those who contribute, or simply stop by to show their faces. If you wish, please visit some of the current most popular forum threads:

Invoicing: When to do it?

Recourse for Unpaid Talents?

If you have a topic you would like to discuss, please post it here.

OH! One last thing... From 12/22/08 to 1/2/09, the co-owner of Voice123, Tania Isabel, and all management, will be filling in for customer service at various times. Voice123 wants to 'keep the ball rolling' while some take vacations. It is great to have her back with us for this brief period of time.

Our staff wishes you a Happy Holiday season and we are glad to be here for you always as the most reliable voice casting service in the world!

We look forward to working with you all in 2009 and beyond!

Thank you always!


Steven Lowell
Quality Assurance Manager
My Blog

From Bad Apple to Good Apple

I recently wrote about my issues with a Mac battery that almost exploded. I then wrote about the resolution to the issue. In that last article I gave some unverified tips on how to possibly scale any issue with your Mac to the highest practical level. I asked my readers to let me know if they were successful in using them.

Well, I didn't have to wait for anybody to test them. I had the opportunity of testing them myself. Last Thursday my MacBook Pro died. I did some research online and found the reason. I called Apple and explained the issue to customer service person. He told me that I had to go to an Apple Store or an Apple-certified service provider because they couldn't help me over the phone on this issue.

Following the tips I had written myself, I asked to be transferred to the Customer Relations Department. After a few minutes I was successfully transferred. I explained the issue once again and told the lady (I didn't write her name this time) that I needed my computer fixed quickly. She told me that I could go to the store for an assessment, but also gave another alternative. I could mail in the computer to Apple, and they would take care of the shipping fees. I agreed. The next afternoon (last Friday) DHL arrived with a special box and picked up my computer. Tuesday, at 10 AM, I got my computer back via FedEx. It is working perfectly.

I am happy, now, to report that the tips I gave you seemed to have worked.


by Alex Torrenegra
President and Co-founder

Forum Hot Topics & A New Addition to Voice123 (Sort of)!

Hello! This is just a brief email to let you know of the some Hot Topics that are being talked about in the Voice123 Premium Forums:

• Re: This Forum (General discussion about the state of the forum).

• Do You Think Custom Demos Are Necessary? (A question on every talent's mind).

• Post your own thoughts and ideas here!
  

In other news, there will be a new addition to the Voice123 Team very shortly! Voice123's Operations Manager, Carmen Texeira, whom many of you know already from her time as Customer Relations Manager, will be going on maternity leave to have a new baby boy!

We are all very happy for her at Voice123, and we will equally miss her while she is away! As a part of the Voice123 day to day operations, she will equally miss all of you! If you have time, please read what she has written to all of you.

Thank you always!


Steven Lowell
Quality Assurance Manager
My Blog

Re: Caution! Avoid Exploding Notebook Batteries & Geniuses!

An update on this developing story:

It seems that the store manager of Apple on Fifth Avenue found out about my complaint. He called me and left me a voicemail along with his phone number. I called him back and got an automated answering system. The system told me I had to wait because there were three people ahead of me on the phone. After five minutes of waiting, the phone system once again told me that there were still three people ahead of me. Of course, I didn't wait and hung up.

Yesterday I got another voicemail from Apple. This time the phone call came from California. Following the instructions, I called back Sheila, a member of the Customer Relations Department at Apple (she asked me to withhold her last name). She told me she had read my blog because a Voice123 talent sent her the link (small world!). She explained to me that the objective of her department is customer retention and that they are able to do many "exceptions" in order to keep customers happy. She apologized for the bad experience I had with Apple and asked me if there was anything she could do to make me happy. I answered to her: "Many talents of Voice123 use Mac machines. I don't want them to experience the same I did. Is there a way they can contact you directly if they have an issue with Apple, as I did?". She insisted that most Apple managers should be able to handle issues like the one I had, but went ahead and gave me the information listed on the next paragraph. I went on to tell her two other the issues me and wife Tania had had with our Apple computers on top of my battery issue: First, the battery of Tania's laptop died after her computer had ran out of warranty (her battery didn't explode, it just stopped working suddenly). Second, my MacBook Air MagSafe Power Adaptor broke down in my recent flight to China even though it was only the 2nd time I had used it. Sheila offered to replace my damaged battery, Tania's damaged battery, and the damaged power adapter by sending refurbished replacement and recycling the damaged ones back. I said yes.

So, if you ever have an issue with Apple and you want to escalate it, this may be one of your best and quickest alternatives:

• Call Apple Customer Service during United States business days and business hours. Their phone number in the US is 800 275 2273.
• From the phone system menu, select Tech Support.
• When you reach an actual person, ask him/her to put you in touch with the Apple Customer Relations Department
• The tech support person, Sheila said, will always ask you for the details of the issue before being transferred. Be patient and describe the issue to the person.
• You should then be transferred to the Customer Relations Department in charge of customer retention. With some luck you will find yourself to be a happy Apple customer.
  
  

I decided to share this with you because many voice over talents at Voice123 have Apple computers and, as such, this info may be handy. If you don't have an Apple computer, your computer manufacturer may have a similar department. A Google search may help you find it. I didn't try these instructions myself. Also, I am not sure how much of a "secret" or "back door" this information may actually be. As for me, I had no idea of the existence of this department before I posted this issue.


by Alex Torrenegra
President and Co-founder

P.S. If you ever follow these instructions, would you mind letting the rest of the voice community know by posting it in the forums? If they work for at least one of you, I will share them via email with the rest of the Voice123 talent base. Also, if you also have similar tips for other computer manufacturing companies, it would be great if you can share in the forums. Thank you!

P.P.S. I always liked Apple, and would have continued buying their products. Why? Because Mac OS X is very good. It allows me to be more productive than Windows. Having said that, I should clarify that, in my heart, I am not an Apple-guy, nor a PC-guy. I am a geek. I am a Linux guy. Voice123 runs on Linux :)

Come to NYC the Weekend of December 5th!

The Holiday Season is always good fun in New York City. For voice over industry folks, there is even more reasons to come to NYC the weekend of December 5th!

On Friday night December 5th, there will be a Voice Over Mixer from 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM. Click here to see more details in the posting provided by Voice123 Talent, Erik Sheppard. The Voice123 gang, Alex, Tania, Juan, and myself will also be there, and we look forward to seeing everyone!

We also heard that on December 6th & 7th, Bob Bergen will be holding a workshop at John Marshall Sound Studios on 9th Avenue at 44th Street. To read about it, check the Voice123 Forum post by Marian Massaro.

We hope to see you December 5th! Be sure to set your Voice123 profiles 'on vacation', too, if you cannot audition during the Holiday Season!

Happy Holidays!


Steven Lowell
Quality Assurance Manager
My Blog