Tip for Increasing your Booking Ratio

October 14, 2019

As you go through your VO career, ah-ha moments are so valuable. They can mean huge growth and sometimes even increase your booking ratio.  For Steve Henderson that ah-ha moment not only changed his booking ratio but he’s been teaching it for several years now. Here’s the tip Steve has for you that may help –

Overcoming the difficulty of giving yourself permission to truly be yourself during your delivery was a huge turning point in my career.  Once I permitted that freedom, I noticed my booking ratio increase immediately.  You are the best person at being you.  No one else can even come close.

Thanks so much Steve! We’re so thrilled to have Steve teaching a NEW class at Atlanta Voiceover Studio. It’s called The Character of You and will be on Wednesday nights from 7-9pm. It’s for all levels but you must have taken at least our Intro to VO workshop (or the equivalent somewhere else).  Here’s to being YOU this week! We think you’re pretty awesome.

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

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The Gift of Time

October 4, 2019

I’ve been feeling very inspirational lately…so perhaps I owe you an apology. Perhaps not. Maybe it’s what you need to hear? I promise, I’ll send out some more meaty, voiceover-specific emails soon.  Time is the root of so much impatience. We either have too much or not enough.  If you’re feeling especially anxious at how slow your VO career is going or frustrated that you have a great month, then a slow month, let me share a story not related to voice over.

Before I left radio, I started a blog called Parties for Pennies. It was a creative outlet and I knew I didn’t have all the tools needed but figured I’d learn as I went. The one thing I DID do was promise to be consistent. I did learn – how to take better pictures, how to format posts, best way to get noticed on Pinterest, etc. I also was consistent. I posted EVERY single Wednesday except for two for SIX YEARS straight. I spent A LOT of time on it and finally I realized that just making $12k/year from something that took so much time was not wise. It felt like such a HUGE failure after all that time invested to walk away. Honestly, it’s taken me a year and a half to grieve cutting ties. A few months ago, I finally sold my site Parties for Pennies. I still got traffic but because I wasn’t posting, major players were hacking my site. I sobbed on my desk.  It felt like an even bigger failure. All that work now gone forever.  BUT…that’s not the end of the story. First of all, SO much of what I learned from blogging I applied to Atlanta Voiceover Studio. I never would’ve realized the value of an email newsletter if it wasn’t for Parties for Pennies. I never would’ve known how to edit a WordPress site or create graphics.  AND…last week, HGTV Magazine emailed me and said they wanted to feature my Christmas tree from 2015 in their December issue. They found it on Pinterest and LOVED IT.

All those years, I dreamed about doing something worthy of notice from HGTV magazine. NOW…TWO years after I stopped blogging and THREE months after selling the site, it was noticed.  I tell you that whole long story to hopefully ENCOURAGE you! You are adding the right ingredients – training, learning, practicing, growing, consistency…the magic that brings it all together is just TIME. We never know when it will happen but instead of us looking at time impatiently, let’s look at it with expectancy.  It WILL happen…you just never know exactly WHEN!

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My Biggest Regret in Voice over

September 23, 2019

You may already know my VO story. When I was in radio and got on with my first big VO agent (Richard Hutchison Management), it took me FOUR years to book my first job. I was auditioning pretty regularly too. However, I truly believe that time frame would’ve been shortened had I gotten into classes or training. I loved radio and never planned to leave, so VO was always my “side thing.” Which is probably why I didn’t truly pursue training. But that is my biggest regret!  Looking back from where I am now, there are a couple routes you can take – the long route and trying to figure it out on your own (or just treating it more apathetically) or the shorter route in learning from people that have figured out the tweaks needed to be competitive. I tried to figure it out on my own and it just took me much longer to learn. I wish I had taken the shorter route.

Those may be the routes but every journey is different. You could book your first audition or it could take some time. With some of my agents, it’s taken up to a year to see any fruit and other agents I’ve booked one of the first things.  You can’t always control where your journey takes you but you can decide which route to follow.

We’re so excited to be in a new studio so we can offer you more resoures to help your career! THIS WEEK, we’ll be announcing the new classes and workshops starting in September! Stay tuned.

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

If you’d like to stay in the loop about everything that’s going on at the Atlanta Voiceover Studio, subscribe to our email newsletter! Mike & Heidi (the owners of Atlanta Voiceover Studio) send a JUICY VO tip every Monday morning along with the latest and greatest educational resources, workshops, and classes at AVS. Here’s the link to sign up: http://eepurl.com/chj7kT

The Greatest Challenge You’ll Face in the VO Industry

September 16, 2019

The greatest challenge in the voiceover industry actually isn’t setting up your home studio or even booking a job. The greatest challenge takes place in your mind.  A couple weeks ago, I encountered a challenging mind week. There were 3 jobs I was on hold for. One was a singing job and I was SO excited about that. Another was a booking for an agency I had worked with before and the other was for a big name brand. ALL 3 fell through within 3 days. It felt like one disappointment after another. These things happen all the time. I’ve encountered my fair share but when it happens all at once, it was a tougher pill to swallow. On top of that, I was asked to join a management team and really unsure if I was a good fit. I started doubting myself.  Weeks and even months like this happen. It’s pretty guaranteed. But here are two pieces of hope 1| the more mental challenges you get through, the easier they become to handle and 2| there are ways to get through them. Alcohol. Lots of alcohol. Just kidding.    Here are ways I deal with the mental challenges when they arise –

In addition to these steps, I am a huge believer in exercise as a way to recalibrate your mind challenges. Meditation, prayer, church, etc are all great ways to shift your mind back to the right space.  I know we got a little deep in this email newsletter. Sorry about that but I hope this was encouraging for you as you tackle this week.

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

If you’d like to stay in the loop about everything that’s going on at the Atlanta Voiceover Studio subscribe to our email newsletter! Mike & Heidi (the owners of Atlanta Voiceover Studio) send a JUICY VO tip every Monday morning along with the latest and greatest educational resources, workshops, and classes at AVS. Here’s the link to sign up: http://eepurl.com/chj7kT

Get VO Experience & Practice THIS Way…

September 9, 2019

In our Intro to VO workshop, we talk about volunteering for GaRRS (Georgia Radio Reading Service) as a great way to get experience in front of the mic. Marion Hopkins let us know about another way to get experience and practice, all from home.

You can sign up to be a volunteer at Learning Ally – https://volunteers.learningally.org Learning Ally produces audiobooks and trainings for kids who have learning or visual disabilities. Marion says she’s able to record her projects from home. It would be a great way to test out your home studio, get yourself comfortable with recording and editing.  Application is absolutely necessary in acquiring a skill but it’s tough sometimes to get that experience. Volunteering for Learning Ally is a great way to do that.

Thanks so much Marion for that recommendation!  Thanks again for being patient as we move, grow and strive to provide incredible training and opportunities.

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

If you’d like to stay in the loop about everything that’s going on at the Atlanta Voiceover Studio (and be the 1st to know when the Oct Intro to Animation is avail), subscribe to our email newsletter! Mike & Heidi (the owners of Atlanta Voiceover Studio) send a JUICY VO tip every Monday morning along with the latest and greatest educational resources, workshops, and classes at AVS. Here’s the link to sign up: http://eepurl.com/chj7kT

What Does “Billboard” Mean?

September 3, 2019

Today we’re going to talk about another common VO direction note. Sometimes the director will say “billboard ____ word/phrase.”

What does that mean? 

Well Jill Perry (our Monday night Beginner Intensive teacher) shared a great list of terms with her class, put together by Rudy Gaskins. I loved the way he defined it so I thought I’d share.

I particularly like the 2nd part of that definition. “staying within the tone of the overall performance.” Many people will go too far on billboarding something. The billboard doesn’t walk over in front of your car, waving it’s hands and jumping up and down. It’s off the side of the road, wanting to grab your attention for a moment with the message it hopes you take away.  Are you enjoying these VO terms? Either way, let us know. This helps us figure out what to do for future email newsletters.

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

VO Direction Defined: “Romance the Copy”

August 26, 2019

I thought it’d be fun to ask voiceover directors how they would define certain terms heard a lot in sessions. Today’s term is “romance the copy.” 

The expert? Rudy Fernandez, Creative Director Porter Novelli

Here’s his take:

Rudy is a fantastic director and he’s usually very specific in his direction, so he wouldn’t normally give a vague direction like this but he’s right. Another way I’ve heard this direction given is when you’re describing food. That juicy burger needs to sound like it’s juicy and delicious.  What are some terms you’ve heard that would be helpful to define?

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

Turn Social Media from a Burden Into an Opportunity

August 12, 2019

A couple weeks ago, I interviewed Jonathan Tilley for the Atlanta Voiceover Studio podcast. Stay tuned for when we release that (it’s jam-packed with great tips), but I wanted to share this simple mindset shift that may help you reframe social media:

Voice123 Tips

August 5, 2019

January of this year, I signed up for my first “pay to play” site ever…Voice123. So many students that come through AVS ask us about pay to play sites, so I wanted to test it out so I could help you navigate it.

1| Set rate standards      I didn’t do this at first and quickly became annoyed at the amount of emails. Honestly, there are very few voiceover jobs (according to industry standard rates) that will pay under $150, so you can start there if you’re not sure where to start. Keep in mind that if you DON’T have a professional home studio, booking a studio will come out of your pocket. We charge $125/hour, so set your price range beginning at a rate you’d feel comfortable shelling out money for a studio.  2| Know your sweet spots     Don’t submit for anything and everything. Know your sweet spots and range. Only submit for things you know you’re really right for. We go over this during our Beginner Intensive Class one night.  3| Bookmark GVAA Rate Guide     On your computer, bookmark https://globalvoiceacademy.com/gvaa-rate-guide-2/.That way, you can quickly check the rate. I don’t submit for A LOT of things due to the rates. It’s hard to say no sometimes, but if you want to truly build a career out of this that “NO” is saying “YES” to a great career.  4| Create your own V123 schedule (get in under the allotted auditions they ask for)     It’s really important to get in under the number of auditions they ask for. For instance, you’ll see number of auditions requested and number of auditions received under the project. If they asked for 30 auditions and they’ve received 41, I wouldn’t submit. You have a better chance of booking it if you’re one of the first 30 or 50 or whatever number they requested. Because of that, I’d figure out what blocks of time you have during your week and set that aside for whatever Voice123 auditions come up. That way you can be the first in the gate. The good news is there are a lot of auditions that are posted on the weekend, so if you have a 9-5, you can devote some of your weekend to voiceover.  5| Use “Additional Proposal Details”     Many times, the project will have a rate budgeted. You may be able to tell if the project is an industrial, for TV, radio, etc but usage isn’t always included. That’s not fair to ask you to submit an “in stone” proposal not based on all the facts. For some projects without all the details, I’d include something like, “Budget agreed to with proper usage.” If they email you to book you, just have them email you the intended usage. That way you can make sure they’re not intending to pay you $300 for a radio commercial that will run for 3 years.  6| Bring in the Big Guns     This leads me to the last tip…you can always bring in an agent. I weigh the scope of the project, the budget of the project and the complexity of the project. I booked a big text to speech job through Voice123 recently. The original budget was large but without a lot of information, it was hard to know if it was the appropriate rate. Plus, text to speech is still a tricky genre to figure out rates for. So I brought an agent in to help me. We tried to negotiate the rate, which didn’t happen, BUT he created a contract for me so I’m protected.  His commission was at least significant enough for that and I didn’t worry about being taken advantage of.

This is a lot of info, I know! Hope this helps you a little bit. I’ll keep navigating things and help you when I can.  Have a great week!

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew

What Does OLV Mean & Why It Matters

July 15, 2019

You may notice these letters creeping into your audition breakdowns – OLV. What do they mean?? The first thing that comes to mind is Olive Oil…but that’s just because I love it drizzled on just about anything.  Nope…nothing to do with food, obviously…I know you already knew that.

As a voice talent, this helps us differentiate between deliveries. We all know radio requires a different delivery than TV. So far, with online video I treat it like a TV ad but I have a feeling this will change over the next year. With the wave of addressable TV and more targeted advertising, we’ll see more and more importance placed on personlized connection…not just connection.

Now we know what OLV means and I’m now craving italian bread dipped in olive oil and seasonings.  Have a great week!

-Mike Stoudt & Heidi Rew