As voice talents, many of us are obsessed with our social media status. Some more than others, like myself. 😉 As a community, we’re pretty terrible at it. See this blog entry from a while back to see what I mean. On top of that, almost every week I see at least one voice talent crash & burn online like the gentleman from a few weeks ago.
I bring this up because a few days ago I got a casting notice that asked for our number of social followers. Not long after that, the subject of social media followers as a factor in castability came up in a Facebook Group thread. I guess I wasn’t the only one who found the inquiry a tad peculiar. Over the years I’ve heard that vetting an on-camera actor’s social media status is not uncommon, especially on the West Coast.
While I appreciate the power of having or capitalizing on a strong social media presence, this is a lot of nonsense. Nobody gives a crap about who is voicing any given spot except for the people who are producing the spot and the person who got cast.
If you are a voice seeker and you want your ad to go “viral” or whatever, either hire a celebrity or, here’s an idea! Make sure your ad doesn’t suck! Do a really good job producing it and cast an effective storyteller, not someone who may or may not be investing in click-farming.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Voice talents are a bunch of narcissistic masochists. The trick is try to keep it under control and make informed, objective decisions when it comes to our social media status.
Focus less on quantity of followers and more on quality of followers. On how many fingers can you count the number of actual voice seekers who follow you? Seek out voice seekers online, connect with them, engage them (without being a stalker-y weirdo) and put good content in front of them.
Ensure your social media content has a freaking point. Your content should be about 80% engagement, 20% promotion and be an extension of your branding platform. You do have a well-thought out brand, don’t you?
STOP. BRAGGING. Nobody cares which voiceover you’ve just done. They may care if it’s for a product or service that is fun, inspiring, helpful, or a good cause. If it’s a milestone like your first or 100th gig, awesome! You should totally celebrate your victories & milestones. If it’s for a HUGE client that’s a household name, fine. Otherwise, keep it to yourself.
If you really want to improve your social media status in an organic, effective manner: invest in social media courses, do your research, develop your brand, and get out of your own way.
BONUS TIP OF THE WEEK
The next time you get a casting notice and the voice seeker asks about your social media status, tell them the following:
They are not looking for a voice talent to narrate their spot, they are looking for an Influencer to endorse their product/service.
If you are an Influencer, you will charge them more because they should pay that much more for your reach.
NEWS AND NOTES
Thursday, March 7th @8PM EST: My next Marketing 201 webinar will be “What Your Website Says About You”. We’ll talk about how to critique your website and make it a more effective marketing tool. Sign up here.
Thursday, March 21st @8PM EST: My next Business & Money 201 webinar will be “Tax Time!” Take a wild guess what we’re gonna talk about.
Sunday, March 24th @2:00 PM EST: I will be leading a “Manage Your Money Like a VO Pro” workshop at Arts On Site hosted by the Voice Actors of NYC Facebook Group. We’ll talk about all things financial as a voiceover business and tips about filing your taxes in 2019. FYI these VANYC donation-based events sell out FAST so sign up right here, right now!
ONLY A FEW SEATS LEFT! March 29-31, 2019: VO Atlanta 2019! My Breakout Session will be “The Sales Funnel” and my X-Session will be “Managing Your Money”. There are still a few X-Session seats left so sign up today!
EARLY BIRD SPECIAL! Thursday, May 30th 9AM-3PM EST. “The VO Tech Deep Dive and eLearning Extravaganza!” This all-day workshop will consist of two classes: in the morning Amanda Rose Smith will dive deep into audio engineering (from studio creation to mastering files) and in the afternoon I will run an intensive “Learning to do eLearning” seminar covering everything you need to know about the world of eLearning and Corporate narration (which includes live coaching). The Early Bird rate of $99 per class or $179 for both classes ends April 1st and are limited to a precious few seats. Tickets are on sale now!
September 13th-15: VOcation NYC! This is a shiny new conference which is all about the business and marketing side of the voiceover industry. Tickets go on sale April 1st. Go to www.vocationconference.com to learn more!
HAPPY HAPPYS
Happy Meatball Day and Small Press Month! As an audio book narrator and a comic book producer, I’m a big fan of Small Press Month. 🙂
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
Tom Dheere is a 20+year veteran of the voice over industry who has narrated thousands of projects for hundreds of clients in over a dozen countries. He is also a voiceover business & marketing consultant known as the VO Strategist and produces the comic book “Agent 1.22”.