Big $$ for US Video Ad Spending

Big money is being spent on placing ads with more money being spent online. While TV buy still has the lion’s share, the digital landscape is increasing every year.

This article from eMarketer.com has 8 very interesting charts to help you wrap your head around the trends.

The targeted nature of online advertising has VALUE to the advertiser. Don’t short-change the talent who are part of the process creating the content for these ads. Especially if you want to be able to go to that talent down the road. If they don’t earn living wages for their talent, they will not stay in business.

When discussing a fair rate, always consider eyeballs and shelf-life. How long will this ad run? Where will this ad be seen? Be realistic about it. There is a big difference in a fair rate between a spot with a limited […]

2018-03-11T21:24:51+00:00 March 11th, 2018|Categories: Advertising, Business, Marketing, Negotiating|
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The VO Adds Drama

It is always a pleasure to work on a project with a well written script. The words seem to flow easier. The story comes to life easier. When you add great production values to the mix, the results are captivating.

A few years ago I was the narrator for Northern Light Productions documentary about cyber warfare. They wanted drama. I think they got it! This is the opening sequence from this documentary that now lives in the International Spy Museum in Washington DC.

2018-02-24T22:17:59+00:00 February 24th, 2018|Categories: Acting, Recording|Tags: , , , |
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Staged reading of “Silkworms”

I started writing as self-imposed therapy about 20 years ago and it blossomed into a stage play. I worked on it off and on over the years – mostly off and eventually put it away in a folder on my computer. At some point in the past year or so, I revisited it and decided that it had some merit.

After a polishing I sent it to a director friend who liked it well enough to want to produce it as a staged reading. He just wanted it beefed up a bit in the second act. With a possible performance date in December of 2017, I set to work to see if I could find the right place to add a scene or two.

The pressure of a possible performance date did the trick and my play “Silkworms” was performed for two nights in […]

2018-02-17T03:33:40+00:00 February 17th, 2018|Categories: Life, Writing|Tags: , |
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Video Marketing is Da Bomb…

Here’s a stat for you – Including video in a landing page can increase conversion by 80%.

This comes from EyeView – a video marketing technology company – and is just one little tidbit in a list of 27 Video Stats for 2017 compiled by Invisia.

Here’s another from that list – 4x as many customers would rather watch a video about a product than read about it. This tidbit came from an article by Animoto published a couple of years ago, so it could be more…

Here is an example of just that – a video about a product that I narrated recently – so you don’t have to read about it. This was a fun VO to do (a rare directed session!) and I think it turned out great!

2018-02-06T06:48:02+00:00 July 11th, 2017|Categories: Marketing|
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Are You Hitting the Mark?

No matter what we do in life we need to know if what we are doing is hitting the mark. This takes the ability to know what DOES hit the mark and then comparing it to what we are doing.

Self-Evaluation techniques are something that I have been teaching to introductory voiceover students in the class I have been teaching at San Diego City College since 1999. Prior to that I did a private seminar with the same focus. I also share the self-evaluation mantra with my peers at conferences and in social media.

As voice talent, much of what we do these days is in a vacuum and we need to apply these skills to not only our auditions in order land work, but in many cases to the job itself as so much of it is self-directed.

This takes knowing when something is […]

2018-02-06T06:48:02+00:00 April 20th, 2017|Categories: Acting, Communication, Life, Musings, Techniques, Tips & Tricks, Writing|
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Do You Choose Life or Beauty?

Silkworm and cocoonThe silkworm makes an interesting allegory about choice. In order to get the beautiful silk from the cocoons, you have to kill the silkworm pupae before it transitions into – what is today – a captive commercially bred and not particularly beautiful moth.

Of course, you have to save some of the silkworms so that they can become moths to lay eggs to become silkworms to start the cycle again. Without some balance, we end up with nothing but moths. With no beauty or wealth to feed the moths, we ultimately end up with nothing.

Do you choose beauty (and the wealth that can come from selling the silk) – or do you choose life? Do you chose a little of both?

Most of my choices are not life or death decisions. Do I get a new microphone just because I want one? Do […]

2018-02-06T06:48:02+00:00 March 4th, 2017|Categories: Life, Musings|
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VO Leads to Writing Leads to Production

JustDriveRemember when I told you I started doing some corporate scriptwriting again? My background is in corporate scriptwriting and producing (many years of it) along with on and off-camera spokesperson and announcer. Back around the turn of the century, I started to focus just on the voiceover side of things.

Well, voiceover work for someone who knew me in the “old” days led to the opportunity to do some writing for UCSD TREDS program. And that led to a request to produce a project to help curb talking or texting while driving.

So, ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce the first production in a long long time! Just Drive – Take Action Against Distraction.

Had a great production team spearheaded by the insanely talented Michael Brueggemeyer. Talent featured 3 former students (2 on-camera and the VO), a couple of actor friends and 3 others […]

2018-02-06T06:48:02+00:00 January 30th, 2017|Categories: Recent Work|
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Don’t Goof! When you Re-Roof

Found this little PSA I did in 2016 for Smart Home America and Dontgoof.org. After all the rain we have had here in California recently, I can tell you that I was wondering about my roof since it has been quite a while since the last one!

A handyman happened to be up on the roof yesterday for another reason and told me that the roof looked pretty good! Whew! I know when the time comes, I’ll be forking over some bucks, but better than catching leaks in buckets!

2018-02-06T06:48:02+00:00 January 28th, 2017|Categories: Recent Work|
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The Irony of ISDN’s Inevitable Demise

cdqprimatwThe ISDN world is contracting because of changing technology. Eventually, there will be no more ISDN. In some parts of the US, there already is no more ISDN. But it isn’t dead yet.

I have researched most of the other professional options available and have signed up and paid for some other technology that allows me to connect to studios with them doing the recording – much like what happens when I use my ISDN lines. Source-Connect, ipDTL and ConnectionOpen is what I have now. (Click here for the list I created of most of the options.)

There are others that require additional hardware codecs similar to ISDN and are in fact made by the companies who provide ISDN codecs. But, at the moment, none of the companies that I work with have ever mentioned that they will be switching to those […]

2018-02-06T06:48:02+00:00 December 3rd, 2016|Categories: Business, Marketing, Technology|
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