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voice over business

VO Business Year in Review

December 13, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

Reflections on 2021

It’s somewhat hard to believe it’s now December. Somehow the last few months have blown by in a busy whirl. For me, as a working mom of twins who happen to be high school seniors, this fall was extremely busy. With the New Year fast approaching, I am starting to reflect on 2021: what I’m proud of and what I might have done differently. The year is not over yet, and I plan to use the rest of the month to end strong.

Thoughts on My Business

I like to think a lot about where my business came from. The clients who came directly to me, not through a pay to play or an agent, were up 44% from last year. Repeat clients makeup 2/3 of my business. Clients from my website were up 136% compared to 2020, so I was very pleased with that number.

I also grew my coaching and demo production business substantially this year, and it made up about 3.5% of my annual income thus far. I was pleased with that.

My pay to play numbers were down. While I did have some stellar bookings on CastVoices that I am pleased with as that site is just starting, my bookings on Voice123 with new clients were down more that 30% from 2020. While I continue to submit, I find this quite frustrating. One major goal is to surpass my 2020 numbers in 2022.

Reflections on Equipment and Gear

I made some sound equipment upgrades this year that I am very pleased with. Dave and I added the Presonus to direct clients when they come in for demo sessions. I got a fantastic new desk setup for outside of my studio space. I am really happy with this. I added the EVO4 preamp to my travel rig. I also finally got to use my new rig that I invested in before my trip. That has been fantastic for me. Most recently, I upgraded my laptop that I use daily when outside the booth. My original one was from 2015, and it simply died. I am so happy to have a new, fast, working device.

Marketing Thoughts

I have a lot of thoughts about my marketing efforts. This is the one area I put so much time and on-going effort, every, single day. I updated my headshots. I kind of felt that the photos should actually look how I look, and if I looked in the mirror and looked nothing like the gal in the photo it was probably time to change!  My website was then updated with the new photos. My website was not only updated superficially, but it got an update from the inside out, as it also now meets the requirements for Google Core Values. That update actually just happened, and I hope that clients now have an even easier time finding me. I continue to reach out to clients and industry friends with my monthly newsletter. After so many years, I am finally feeling more comfortable with mail chimp and have improved the format. I have also gotten a lot better with Canva this year and use their template consistently for my instagram posts. I have tried to be very much on top of my social media posts in 2021 and have grown a much larger following. I have also continued to blog at least once a week, and sometimes twice a week. I am proud that I have maintained my efforts with my blog.

I do feel that since August I have not been as on top of my direct emails. I feel that as I got busier with my twins, I became too relaxed and did not follow up as I typically do, especially in two main areas: with repeat clients and with my radio imaging outreach. When I sit and do it I regret that I dropped the ball a little.

Let’s end the year strong!

The year is not over! The next week and a half until Christmas can be a strong one! All marketing an be done with gusto. All auditions can be awesome. All booked work can be submitted with extra effort to make clients feel appreciated. Every single day matters, and each booking counts. As I reflect back on the year, I am so thankful for another year to pursue my dreams, and another year to work in the field I love. With the SOVAS this weekend, I am so excited to spend the last Sunday before the holidays surrounded by so many industry friends who are flying in from all over. Sometimes I say “there are no words” but for this weekend there are many words, and they are words of reflection and gratitude.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: als, bookings, CastVoices, coaching business, consistency, desk, gear, Google Core Values, headshots, Home Studio, mail chimp, new clients, newsletter, pay to plays, prosonus, reflections, Repeat Clients, small business, Twin Mom, VO, voice over, voice over business, voice over coaching, Voice123, voiceover, website, working mom, workspace

It Can All Disappear in a Moment

November 22, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

Time of Thanks

This season, I think it’s natural to spend time thinking about what is going well in our lives and what we are thankful for. Thanksgiving seems to bring that out in all of us. I have a wonderful pilates instructor, Gwen, and when we are alone and I can actually breathe, when tend to talk about real issues. Recently we were chatting about health and well ness and how we are amazing that you can get to a point where you reach your goals, that are or were not so easy to reach, and how quickly they can all be undone. A run-in with some candy or a birthday night out and we are set back on our endeavors and it feels dreadful. How easily we are reminded when we give thanks that perhaps we are always teetering on the brink of perhaps being in a state we do not want to be in.

VO Foundations ChecklistOf course this chat with Gwen about our health made me draw a parallel to voice over and think about how easily it can all be undone. Imagine years of hard work and suddenly the ups and downs of voice over just continue to spiral down. I of course thought back to hearing Dave Fennoy, world famous voice actor best known for his video game roles, who I had the privilege of hearing speak for an entire day back in 2016 at a conference called VO Revolution. Perhaps it was his lack of pretension that got me, but Dave talked about how after a few big bookings he thought that he had made it. He shared how his business peaked and then plummeted. He advised working as if every day is your first day in voice over and warned that if you don’t you can lose it all. I carry this with me. This has always had my wheels turnings. So, if all that we have worked hard to build can slip aways so easily, here are some of my best tips to lay a strong foundation for your voice over business:

Be Accountable

You need a support system within the voice over community to be accountable to. When I first started in voice over, I used a journal system where I wrote my goals and focused on them and revised them. This was good but it was not enough. You need a group of others that you will meet with and answer to. I have met with and continue to meet with my accountability group weekly. They are my secret sauce and without them I would not be where I am today in my career. Every group is different. Some groups work on craft. Our group is more focussed on business. But, you need to answer to someone other than yourself.

Keep Auditioning

Auditions matter. Sure it’s great when you are on rosters and clients hire you without auditions, bur how do yhou expect to get new clients and new bookings? I once heard Bob Bergen, world renowned voice of Porgy Pig say the audition is the job. He talked about how he gets up in the 5 o’clock hour to begin his day so he does not miss out on any work opportunities. That was Bob Bergen, not some struggling actor no one has heard of, but one of the industry leaders talking about the importance of starting your day and getting on those submissions. Now, some voice actors like t submit more than others. I like to audition a lot and submit a lot. Others don’t. Remember, the better your booking ratio is, the more chance you have of getting more clients, all from auditioning.

Maintain the Client Relationships You Have

This should be a joy to do. These people already like you. They have already hired you. Now you simply have to keep in touch and remind them why you being there makes their life easier. Don’t let them forget that you have already done great work for them. Make sure they remember you are available. You can send follow up emails, newsletters, holiday cards, thank you notes, and try to get to know the people you work with.

Continue to Work on Your Craft

Remember, trends in voiceover shift. What was sought after five years ago is likely not en vogue today. You need to continually have your finger on the pulse of what is booking right now in all of the genres you work in. From continuing to attend conferences, to working with coaches, to on-going practice, your work on your craft in voice over will never end. Just as doctors and lawyers must attend conferences and professional development work shops, so must voice actors. If you see a dip in your bookings, it is often because trends have shifted and you likely need some coaching to understand what is booking right now.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: accountability, auditioning, Bob Bergen, Dave Fennoy, foundation, grattitude, health, relationships, VO, VO Revolution, voice over, voice over business, voiceover

What Values Do You express in Your VO Business?

November 21, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

The Choices You Have As A Business Owner

As a professional voice over actor, we have the glory of being the queen of our own kingdom! And as we get to make all the calls on how we run our small business, we have the luxury of deciding which of our values we reflect in the way that we choose to run our business. As solopreneurs, our choices and the we treat others gives our clients a glimpse into who we are and what matters to us. Therefore, it behooves is to put a lot of choice into all of these decisions. For me, I focus on several core values in my daily business practices:

Treat Everyone the Same

Treat everyone the sameI consider the is to be the “Golden Rule” of voiceover! Whether a job is worth $200 or $2000, I treat every single client the same. If a new student books a single lesson or a five pack, they too are treated equally. First, I truly cherish each and every booking. Whether as a talent or as a voiceover coach, folks have a choice of who to work with. When casting, there are many who do what I do. Whether it is the conversational, millennial sound that I provide, or the fast turnaround, I am aware that I am not the only shop in town. Next, in terms of coaches, there are many wonderful VO coaches. Depending on your needs and what style you respond to, different coaches are better for different people. Again, I am aware that everyone has a choice. So, I treat every single booking as if it is my most important booking.

Value Others’ Time

Value timeOne of my values is respect of everyone’s time. In the last year, I made a shift to using Calendly to book meetings and sessions. Automating bookings has been a huge improvement not just to my quality of life, but is also a giant nod of respect to my own time. There is no longer a repeated back and forth just ti schedule a 20 minute introductory zoom. Or when a student needs to book a session they have paid for, I no longer waste their time waiting for me to confirm a booking. It all happens seamlessly, which benefits everyone. Another way that I try to be respectful of everyone’s time, whether it is in a Clubhouse or a live session, is that I always am mindful of how much time has been booked. If an hour has been allotted, I try to work within the hour, and not run over. I always keep in mind everyone has a schedule.

Don’t be Penny Wise and Pound Foolish

The big pictureTry to be giving when you work with clients. Don’t nickel and dime them, try to think of the big picture. When you go out to eat, and you ask for extra of something, how do you feel when the waitress immediately snaps about extra charges? Even if there are extra fees, there are pleasant way to introduce them, and then there is a tone that makes you seem like an anxious money grubber. Recently the traversing rod in my bedroom broke. I had to reach out to the local upholstery man, John, who had made them to come back and repair them. I had no idea how much he was going to charge and I had to call him repeatedly to beg him to do the work. I was worried that with each pleading call the price would go up. Instead, when he came to do the work, he charged me less than I expected. In this scenario, I was delighted by the quality of his work, his turnaround, and hsi fair price. This is how I want clients to feel every time they work with me.

Be a Mensch

Be a MenschMake it easy for clients to get what they need. Once you have a booking, turn that booking into a repeat client by making it is easy as possible for your customer to get exactly what they need by being genuinely helpful and kind. For example, I happen to have a lot of international clients. Often, the scripts were clearly not written by a native English speaker, and they need revision. I offer Copy Writing. If the changes are minimal, I do not charge. If the changes are quite involved, I send a helpful and caring note and suggest my usual hourly rate for this before I move forward.

It’s YOUR business, so at the end of the day you make the call on what feels right to you. Each interaction, each conversation, each policy reflects your values. Think about what you want to reveal and how you want to make clients feel as your work together.

Filed Under: Business Management, Voiceover Tagged With: automated booking, business values, calendly, copy writing, Golden Rule, sessions, talent, values, VO, VO Business, voice over, voice over business, voice over coach, voiceover, voiceover talent

Why do Headshots Matter in VO

September 14, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

Recent Epic Mistake

Laura Schreiber With tongue outWhen I started my voice over business years ago I had headshots done for my website. While a long time ago people used to say that voice actors did not need to show their face, as the VO industry has continued to evolve and we, as talents, now have to bring in the bulk of our own work, it is on us to run our business like a business. If we want our clients to connect with us, having current pictures is a must. So, about a year back, I was presenting at an online eLearning conference and I was super excited. When they asked for my head shot, I became for cognizant of the fact that the photo no longer resembled me. I was thinner, my hair was shorter, I always wear glasses… the list went on. I decided to take new photos and update them. While my old headshots had been done by a professional, I took the new ones in my booth with an iphone. I loved them and was thrilled.

I loved the photos so much that when I did my website refresh and rebrand this January they were featured in the banner. Do you sense the train wreck coming. Well, middle-aged me does not have perfect vision. I failed to notice that in my main photo I am sticking my tongue out. I tend to be both silly and flirty, and apparently I stick my tongue out. Often. Worse, I could not see that my tongue is sticking out and this photo is everywhere.

Fast forward to this summer. I was accepted as a presenter for the OneVoice conference in Dallas. They asked for a headshot. I send them this photo. I was so elated when I was listed on the page of speakers. I clicked on my photo to make it bigger, and for the first time realized in horror that my tongue was out. Clearly the photo had to be replaced.

Brand Awareness

It’s amazing that even in the NY metropolitan area it is really hard to find a photographer to do corporate branding work. Further, it is amazing how much range there is in their rates. Beyond that, it amazes me how few were even willing to respond. There are so many things that i think about when interacting with clients: rates, making it about them, speed of response, and yet finding someone who got what I needed AND responded AND charged a sane rate seemed like the Red Sea parting. I was delighted when I actually got in touch with a photographer who had an entire corporate branding page and took the time to look at my website. She was kind and flexible and her work is beautiful. She was not easy to find and I’m so thankful that I did!

For me, I wanted these pictures to help instill brand awareness, so clients really know what it’s like to work with me. This meant:

  • letting my personality come through
  • choosing colors like pink and avoiding other colors
  • including my kids and my dogs
  • showing details of my home and office life

This is all a part of what I have built my brand on…

Chance for Clients to Get to Know You

For these headshots, I put together three looks: formal, fun, and business casual. As I work in different genres of voice over, and deal with people with differing job titles, different looks work for different people. A head shot that is ideal for radio imaging is very different than one that is ideal for corporate narration. But, I wanted my happy, upbeat, fun vibe to come through in all of these looks. I wanted my youthful, millennial personality to shine.

Face of Small Business

While I am a solopreneur, I do run my VO business like a business, and I had very specific thoughts about these photos and their usage. Having been in the voiceover industry for so many years, I knew just how I’d use these pictures and could already envision their placement as soon as I got the proofs.

Opportunity for Social media

Laura Schreiber Fun New Headshot

I also wanted to have much better images for instagram posts. This was really important to me. I was really excited to see what Erica came back with, because I immediately felt inspired and had tons of ideas. From posts about social media, to life as a working mom, to booth life, these headshots will be in the mix!

How often should you update them?

Basically, you should look like your pictures. Your hair should be relatively similar and no one should have to guess who it is. Likely every 5-7 years will make sense. It it’s more than that you have to question if you are doing yourself a dis-service. In this world where we zoom so often, people expect you to look like your photo. Using an old, out of date, or air brushed photo is almost worse than not having a picture because it undermines the foundation of your brand: you. So keep your headshots up-to-date, and have fun with them!

Filed Under: About Me, Client Relationships, Marketing/Branding, Voiceover Tagged With: brand, brand awareness, branding, Business, happy, headshots, millenial, small business, social media, studio dogs, upbeat, VO, voice actor, voice over, voice over business, voiceover, working mom, youthful

Voiceoverview: A Must Have tool for voice actors

August 8, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

Do You Have a Tool You Can’t Live Without?

The first few years I ran my business, I used a CRM called Nimble.  I’ve said this often, but as a professional voice actor, whatever genre we work in, we wear a lot of hots. As a small business owner, tracking our clients, prospects, and outreach is essential to our success. Nimble offered some features that I needed, but to be frank it was way more complicated than what I needed and it drove me a little crazy. I almost felt tormented by it.

Clubhouse with Dani States and and Diana BirdsallAbout four years ago my world was rocked when Dani States created her amazing tool Voiceoverview. It’s a business tracker with a CRM component. At the time of its inception, Dani was then partners with my dear friend Joe Davis who everyone knows from Voice Actor Websites. That’s how I first heard of it. So, before I go into Voiceoverview’s amazing features and why you should sign up today, I should tell you a few other details.

Last Friday Diana Birdsall and I were lucky enough to have Dani join us on our Clubhouse panel. Dani answered our questions and those of our guests and I learned SOOO much! Even as a longtime user of Voiceoverview, who has VOV open on my computer everyday, I still learned from Dani during our clubhouse!

How Voiceoverview Began

Dani explained that she was home, on unemployment, and started working as a voice actor about eight years ago. In order to track her progress, she had created spreadsheets. Dani’s husband took it a step further, and actually created a dashboard for her. Dani began sharing this with her friends, and although they occasionally messed it up, Dani realized she had created something that would benefit the voiceover community as a whole! Dani then began chats with Joe Davis, who as I mentioned become Dani’s business partner.

The Beauty of VOV

Dani explained that Voiceoverview is a business tracking tool built so that voice actors can understand the scope and breadth of our business. As a professional voice actor and voice over coach, I cannot tell you how essential such tracking is to your success. As we chatted, Dani was saying that the difference between having a business and having a hobby is tracking and analyzing your data. Whether you got voice over work through rosters, agents, LOLB, and casting sites, you need to be able to see where you work is coming from, how your numbers change, and what genres you book from whom. VOV allows you to see and analyze just that. The biggest barrier to using this tool is failing to incorporate it into your daily routine. Dani explained that it should be open on your computer all the time, and Diana and I said that we both use VOV throughout the day every day. Finanaces should not be a barrier to use, as it is $9.99/month or $96/year and Dani assured us it will remain at that rate, so it really is quite affordable, especially relative to other CRMs.

VOV’s Special Features

VOV special featuresOne of the features I was super excited to learn about was the ability to duplicate a job! I had no idea that if you have another booking with the same client you can do this! Wow, my mind was blown. We talked about favorite features including integration with WavesApp for invoicing, allowing for seamless invoicing and tracking of payments. Dani said that Fresh Books and Quick Books are coming soon! We talked about the year to date and past year comparisons. We also talked about the top ten client feature. Not only can you see you work with your top 10 clients during this year and in years past, but when you click on it you can get a ranked list of all of your clients from all time! We also talked about the reports feature. As a user, you can run reports on any data: contacts, jobs, expenses. You can then export and extract the data. Lastly, we spent some time talking about job reminders settings, and as I go through me notes I realize that I need to log in and reset my own! These job reminders can be set to off, 30 days, 60 days, or 90 days. The features are remarkable and were created by a voice actor for voice actors.

Some Questions from our Guests

New voice actor David Jacobs said he is using Hubspot at present and asked Dani if he can import his contacts? David also wanted to know if he can connect his email for tracking purposes. Dani explained that if hi has certain components like full names and email then yes, she is happy to help import contacts. She also explained that at the moment there is not email tracking and she herself uses something called Cloze to do that. Diana and I chimed in and said we both switched to VOV from Nimble and are really happy with it as a CRM. Dani also offered sound advice that it is really important to start tracking your business as you build it so that when your business grows your system is already in place and you do not have to get used to a new one. You need to have the tools and systems in place to manage your business.

Philip Koloctonois wanted to know about contacts and if bulk reminders can be set to reach out every 30 days. Dani set at the moment that is not an option but she loved the idea and will implement it. She also said she is exploring integration with Cloze for such a feature, and it depends on their API.

How It Has Changed Dani’s VO Business

Understand what your are doingDani said she is far more motivated since she has this in place. She also has a goal of doing at least 100 auditions per month to continue to bring in new clients, and it helps her track that ratio. She also said that the invoicing feature has been huge for her. I can tell you that Voiceoverview has been a game changer for me too. I am not guessing and as my business trends shift, I understand why and where it is going. It helps me make informed choices about my marketing strategy as well.

Advice for Other Entrepreneurs Thinking of a Side Gig

Diana asked Dani if given the opportunity, if she would do this again and without a moment of hesitation she said yes! Dani just finds this so valuable and really wants to help people. Dani did not start out thinking that she was creating something that she could sell, she created something she needed and it turns out others do to!

Hitting a Goal for Subscribers and What that Means

I was surprised to learn on our Clubhouse that Dani does not draw an income from VOV. Instead, she continues to reinvest into her brainchild, to make it better and better for the voice over community. While she describes its existence as being like a small country, she is building something and it isn’t about Dani, it’s about us. She is creating something for all of us. I can tell you it’s amazing and my business would not be where it is without it. If you are not using Voiceoverview, sign up today. You can get a 30 day free trial when you create an account, and if you were in the clubhouse you can get an extra month free!

Filed Under: Business Management, Client Relationships, Marketing/Branding Tagged With: API, business tracking, Cloze, Clubhouse, CRM, Dani States, data, Diana Birdsall, Expenses, Features, Fresh Books, income, Integrations, Job Reminders, Joe Davis, nimble, Quickbooks, Reports, small business owner, Tracking, voice actor, voice over, voice over business, voiceover, voiceoverview, VOV, WaveApps

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