 Hey, it's time for voiceover body shop and tonight George and I welcome one of our dear friends from we haven't seen her in a long time But she still looks great, and she sounds just as great and the answer. Thank you And great at promoting yourself Kelly buttrick. How you doing tonight? I am so excited to be back I'm so excited to see you guys. I'm excited to read Jody's name down there This is this is a lot of fun even for you know late night. This is this is really cool and wild for what you know Late eastern time. Yeah. Yeah, it's only five o'clock here Anyway, if you've got a question for Kelly about marketing throw it in the chat room Jeff Holman is in there writing down every last word you guys are typing in the comment section and We will get to those questions in a little bit But in the meantime, are you ready George by the way George is actually here in the studio with me now It's time for voiceover body shop right now Voice over body shop is brought to you by voice over essentials calm the home of Harlan Hogan signature products Source elements the folks who bring you source connect JMC demos when quality matters The oh heroes calm become a hero to your clients with award-winning voiceover training Voice actor websites calm where your voice actor website shouldn't be a pain in the butt voiceover extra your daily resource for voiceover success and by world voices the industry Association of freelance voice talent And now here's your hosts Dan and George Well, hello there. I'm Dan Leonard and I'm George Woodham. Yes, you are he's right over there And this is voiceover body shop or V.O. B S Alrighty, yes, I'm wearing my official voiceover body shop Look at this my logo polo shirt. You can have one. Nobody's we haven't really been selling these lately Is it work? Does this do we still have a store? I don't check it on the on the on the the home site because yeah There wasn't there was a cafe press thing on there And if it's not we will fix it and then you can get your own voiceover body shop polo shirt or Yes, my there was also a thong and a shower curtain You know the clock which I actually have on the wall over here and things along those will fix that because right now It's not there. We're gonna have to fix that pronto. Yes. Anyway, but yeah, I'm not wearing a Hawaiian shirt for the first time I think in 11 years. I'll think I'll wear it for tech talk though. Anyway Tonight we have a great guest a young lady who has been I don't think she's actually been with us since we were doing East-West audio body shop. It's been a while. Yeah, you know, maybe not since you know, I've been out here in California But let me introduce our guest Kelly buttrick is an award-winning voiceover talent with the reputation for professionalism easy Directability and exceeding expectations talk about hyperbole Her voice is heard on national advertisements documentaries and corporate productions And we always have a great time talking with her about her methods techniques and how she stands out from the crowd Let's welcome back Kelly buttrick Hey guys, hey there massive applause as she enters the studio. Yeah, right, right? That's all right. I'm doing good I'm so excited. I know I just said that earlier in the briefing, but I am excited I'm so excited to be here with you guys and and see all these familiar names. I just saw Don pop up there and It's just it's like old home week. It is. I love it. We need to all get together. That's right. You know, I mean I do miss I miss seeing everybody just being able to Hug everybody and I mean this has been a crazy time for all of us and I miss it Yeah, without the conventions. There is some severe hug debt going on. There is and I'm a hugger man I am such a hugger, which is why I love running into you at conventions. So it's How it all works But anyway, we have not seen each other or talked to each other much because we've been In this plague going on around the world We haven't seen you've written such a long time. How did you fare during the pandemic? How did it affect your business? it was interesting because It didn't necessarily affect my day-to-day because as most of us we'd all been working from home anyway But I did have a panic for about the first week because everything stopped I Don't know about you guys. It was just everything just stopped and I freaked out and I sat my husband down and said Brian You know, this may be the end You know, we may have to pull kids out of school, you know the whole bit but What it was was my clients were adjusting to working at home and they were setting up their work at home Spaces and trying to get used to working from home. So That's what it was and then all of a sudden Everything started really kicking up really fast because everybody was changing their messaging And I don't know if you guys saw it, but somebody in the advertising industry did a Timeline it was a an ad timeline of the basically the tone How it changed during the all right now like we're gonna go through this together Yeah, it's just for a short time and then you know, we're all gonna be back and then you know, kind of a this is the way it is and Especially in healthcare a lot of that messaging changed. So it became busy, but I'm telling you what that first week I thought I was done. I really thought I was done because I couldn't explain why it would just stop Yeah, I was of the opinion that you know as voice actors if it started to wipe out the world, which it basically tried to do We are all stuffed in our our booths here. And so if it wipes out humanity, who's gonna run the world voice actors? That's smart. That's smart. Can I be on your cabinet? Absolutely. Good. You're first on the list I need positivity and exuberance. I'm like good. I'll be I'll be positive I'll be the minister of positivity and exuberance. All right, sounds like a Exactly so but but business didn't fall off if anything I heard a lot of people just really did better during during the pandemic because There was so much messaging going on. I stayed honestly. I stayed about the same But and we'll get into this when we start talking about marketing But I think a lot of that was because of the existing relationships I had with my clients So it really I felt like the pandemic wasn't necessarily the time to go out and reach out to clients but rather it was the time to Continue to foster those relationships be there for them on their last minute Changes again as all these tones are changing so quickly It was it was it was that that kept my business going It wasn't it wasn't me running out and getting new clients that did not for at least the first year of the pandemic I did not I stopped all direct reaching out to people Yeah, yeah, I mean businesses were everything was changing like you might be said the messaging was changing What what needed to be voiced but then again so much stuff had to go online and A lot of voices were needed for that So I think it also dragged an awful lot of people into the business Yes, it did You know, it's like well, I I don't have my IT job anymore. I'm working remotely. Maybe I could do voiceover weren't they in for a big surprise Now I know you as someone who makes No bounds about what you do right you you probably have a great elevator pitch Which is always fun to do when you're actually in an elevator pitches. Oh, okay. Good I've actually gotten to do one in an elevator, which did you really I did it was that actually was at a Wovo con and so, you know, we're all wearing our badges and he's like, what do you do? I'm like, I'm in an elevator. I get to do my elevator pitch. All right. Oh, that's awesome. High five All right You do what it takes to get your voice in front of people and I have a feeling You know and you've probably gotten even better since the last time we talked about it How what is it your process about thinking about how you you market yourself? How do you get yours your voice in front of people? Well, I would say it has changed and I've learned lessons over the years and recently I think I was telling you earlier that I Have gone back to what I started doing and that is Reaching out directly individually to people and I Made the brilliant hire of a virtual assistant. She actually was Adam Varner's assistant and When she became available, I begged her to come and we've been working together for a couple of years And she helps me do these direct reach out. So all we'll research together We will prospect and research and find someone that we want to reach out to and then we decide how we're going to do that whether I'm gonna do that or she's gonna do that and any time she does it it then Comes back to me. So she'll say something like Can I have Kelly send you her demos and then I am starting the relationship after that After the awkward cold contact Then I get to start the relationship with a warm contact, you know, thank you so much for You know letting me send my demos and I loved your work on such-and-such and so just going back to a very personalized rather than a You know Spaghetti, let's just throw it all out there do everything we can And that works. I have done that before but I am finding a lot more success going back to the way I started So it's a lot a lot of hands-on type of stuff that Absolutely, absolutely The only difference is that now I've brought in Diane which just it It I should say it makes the process a little bit more sophisticated How so what makes it like Diane created a CRM customer relationship management So she got me into that and where we can take notes on things. It's more sophisticated in that My husband taught me I do what I do well so I can pay other people to do what they do well and I really stink at cold calls. I sound just as awkward and weird as I feel Um But Diane is great at it and she loves doing it So she will do cold calls and then I will do cold emails She will also do cold emails So just more sophisticated in that way that we're each doing what each of us are good at doing But the basic premise is still the same starting those one-on-one Personal relationships and fostering those continuing to grow those it is a marathon. It is not a spirit I am still all these years later. I am still reaping the benefits of those seeds planted years ago Yeah, I think the basis of any business as my father taught me is I don't have customers. I only have friends. I Love that. Yeah, he was really good at creating these relationships and you know But so if there was ever a problem that was like, hey, what's going on? Hey, you know that sort of thing and and that's you know, and you create these relationships So you know their children's names and you know where they're going on vacation and those sorts of things and and and those are important things to be able to discuss when you open up a conversation and it's like, you know And why are you sending me this really crappy script? You know Well, I may have but you know, at least they know that you know, you can be sarcastic Yes, but it's it's about creating that type of relationship And you know and who wouldn't want to have a relationship with someone like you? Well, and I look at it as who wouldn't want to have a relationship with someone like our clients So I don't know about you guys, but when I started I was talking to people friends of mine that had their own businesses and were really good at what they did and every single one of them my husband included all talked about forms and you know keeping everything professional and That's just not me. I am so much more I just how could you not want to be friends with these incredibly creative funny fun? people and so I threw their advice out the window and And and I love I mean, I am such a hugger I loved doing live sessions in Atlanta and I would bring in baked goods and we'd chat and catch up and I Can tell you guys so I have done the Yamaha boats off and on for years and Recently we did the the 20 I guess 2023 or 2022 whatever they are we did the newest ones and You guys may know Jason Shablik He was engineering that and we got on and I've gotten to know them really well I would say that you know, we've become friends these folks and when we started I said hey you guys I moved out to a lake maybe we need to start talking trade and Immediately I get a text that said something like Kelly only you would have the But what turned out is the gal I work with her boss who I also know and I know his fiance Said as a matter of fact he bought a place On that same lake so immediately after the session I reached out with an email and I said okay Here's our address. Where are you guys? We just moved here and they are literally across a cove from us and so they've taken us out on boat rides My husband is totally sold on a Yamaha boat. We just you know, they just have to make some And we've had them over for Georgia games. I mean, it's just it's just great You got to be friends with the people you work with Absolutely, you know kind of tough when you know you're you're in one place and they're you know a thousand miles away But you know, but if you can it's still possible Absolutely, you know, and I think one of the town one of the things that you know we were talking about the pandemic and Georgina actually talked about this the other day, but One of the great things I think about the pandemic is that Now we're on camera. So it really gives us so many people use zoom. That's what they're used to Now that the pandemic has come and a lot of people aren't going back They continue to use zoom so by using zoom I get to see them They get to see me and I think that fosters more of a connection. It feels more like those live sessions Obviously, I can't bring baked goods and I can't really hug them But it's a close second. Hmm. They can give them a verbal hug. Yeah We're just getting the load doesn't bother you'd have to peer up here on camera. No now that's something you just You've embraced it. It's part of Yeah, I don't normally wear makeup. I put on makeup for you guys And because it's late and I don't want to look as tired as I probably am But I I usually don't wear makeup I have taken down what I wear I would always when I would go into Atlanta. I would always try to dress professional or professionally casual business casual now It's pretty much a fun t-shirt that usually is a conversation starter Mm-hmm, and and yeah, I mean I've had sessions where they want to record my face Because they're gonna do some kind of animation to it or something like that. So yeah, I just I Like it. I embrace it. It's the closest thing to doing a live session and I miss those I'll bet if you're just joining us. You've missed a whole lot already, but there's still more to come we're talking with Kelly botrick who is a Voice actor and a master of promoting herself to the people that hire us Which is something we all need to know and understand If you have a question for about marketing for your business Throw it in the chat room. Jeff Holman is in there taking all that stuff down He will really those questions to us And we will ask Kelly these questions and that's how the show works Anyway, Kelly again, it's great to see you and you guys the last time you were with us was Sort of at the tail end of your campaign to get Jeep To get you as your boy. Yeah, how did that go as I recall you didn't quite have the success you wanted But you sure made the effort Yeah, so that was So I guess the best way to describe it is it was a gut-wrenching success So Personally It was it was very hard to let that go When I finally, you know was convinced that it nothing was going to happen from it So I kind of went. I mean I just went into a dark place. I was so sad Because I had put so much of my heart into it But it was the best I had ever done year-wise my my income increased by almost 40% Because that effort had garnered so much attention and that doesn't include I think there was over a hundred thousand dollars in what's called earned media and the PR world which is free coverage in Publications that people who hire voice talent use ad week campaign us production hub All kinds of assets yeah, and so it would have been ridiculous To start something and not have that side plan in there So, you know when you talk about personal branding and I've always loved that brand So aligning my brand with their brand I still to this day get questions about Jeep People still talk about that campaign We are tonight. Yeah, I mean never forget that so it just it goes and it went against Everything we had been taught as voice talent. It went against everything. We've been taught I will say I did ask my and this is gonna sound like funny But my step cousin-in-law who used to do PR for Ford she and I have always been very close since I was a teenager and She asked a bunch of her PR people in Detroit Why she thought they didn't use me and All of them unanimously said that they thought that Jeep I mean at the time it was I think it was Chrysler. Yeah Chrysler. Yeah, now they're Stalantis, but that the legal department wouldn't touch me with a 10-foot pole That legally they just and this was if you recall this was right at the cusp of content creation like right before Content creation and content creators Became a thing but you were already doing it. I was already doing it and so That you know it Cross lines where they I don't think they knew how to handle it Because I was creating all this content and I won four telly awards based on that content so, you know It was it was fun and it's funny now because my daughter who is a lot older now She is an influencer I guess of sorts and that's what she's majoring in in college and She has inspired me and talked me into doing like officially content creation so I have pimped out my dog and We do dog food dog treats dog collars and get paid for it not just you know free stuff I mean, right you got a pay me And it was great and one of those clients actually reached out the other day and asked about voiceover So, you know whether I do voiceover for me just what do you know? What were some of the things that you created for Jeep I mean despite the fact that they weren't ultimately successful at that but Yeah, I I was working with Zach Miller blesses soul And he would help me produce so much of this stuff, but we did the Jeep hair weak hair series, which I loved and My favorite was getting to interview fellow voice actor Brian Howard who created the African-American voice actor database He also was basis for one of my basis for one of my favorite bands cracker back in the 80s So to have him in my Jeep now his dreadlocks didn't Make Jeep hair my hair on the other hand went all over the place and I was so nervous to meet him I didn't turn the microphones on so that we just had the GoPro noise But it's still that is still one of my favorites that we did was Jeep hair. We care and I loved Doing the Jeep dog tales where I reached out on social media and found people who had Dogs and Jeeps and they would tell me these wonderful stories about their dogs And so and they'd send me pictures and then I would narrate over that So you were essentially doing advertising for Jeep anyway, I was creating content for them Unpaid, you know, it cost me a lot of money to do that, but no one had ever done anything like that before and I felt uniquely qualified to do it because I came from that side of the business before I went into voiceover I've always done marketing and advertising and PR. So it just seemed like a natural fit. I'm glad I did it but it took it took a long time to not Not take it personally not kind of have that gut punch feeling I had an agent call and asked if I was congratulated me on being the voice of the Jeep Compass ad which was the first one in years to use a female voice and It sounded a lot like me, but it wasn't oh, I cried so hard. Oh my gosh. I'll admit it right now I mean I bald it was it was hard and it was hard to to maintain the high ground and Not, you know act all heard about it and just kind of be like, yeah, no problem because I still love the brand I drive a Jeep My husband still drives a Jeep. My daughter still drives a Jeep. So I mean, you know I gotta think there was people in the company who were like we gotta get this we got to have her We got there was probably Internally, I bet there was a battle between people who wanted you and Then those that were like we can't hire her I'm sure I'm sure there was like are you kidding me the brandy you established all that you did with them and the It was such an obvious fit and but there was it was probably like this kind of a battle going on up and down between top and bottom You know what I mean cuz they didn't think they didn't understand content creation because content creation wasn't a thing They where it is. I mean they at the top didn't understand the people at the bottom I hope the bottom up. I'm sure they did I made a really sure they looked at that as a lost opportunity One of the guys and he wasn't at the bottom. He was mid-level But one of the guys with the first email I sent out before I even went public sent me an email back that said holy crap, who are you and how did you do this and He and I are still really good friends. He comes to my family reunion in Michigan or before the pandemic He would come every year Family he's not even family, but I mean he just and he's come to see us and go to Georgia games and stuff Great guy, but all of that came about because of Jeep and he just he was blown away That I was able to coordinate it like that. Yeah, so it made sense It was hard, but in the long run it was worth it. Oh, yeah I mean for almost a 40% increase in my bottom line. Yeah, that's worth it. Yeah, that was that would say that Heartbreak with that. Yeah, well, I would hate to see you sad. Anyway, we're talking with Kelly buttrick We're talking about marketing for your voiceover business again If you've got a question throw it in the chat room whether you're watching on Facebook live or whether you're watching on YouTube live or Whether you're hearing signals from space or whatever throw the stuff into the chat room And we will get to that question in just a little bit Maybe you found a recording that's attached to a satellite and you're from the future on another planet Welcome. Thanks for listening to our record. That's right Of course, it'll it'll take 10,000 years for it to come back and then and then the response will be what was that Those guys are so cool and so fun. I wish we had guys like that in our time period And send more Chuck Berry Anyway, okay, if you've got a question throw it in the chat room, you know There's so many new people to them since you and I started in this. Yeah low before dinosaurs roamed the earth There's so many more people in here and and Perhaps they don't understand what they need to do to market themselves yet as we know it's the key to Getting work. Yeah, what would you suggest to someone who is a total neophyte or a newb or a newbie or whatever It is that we call these people that are trying and we respect them all Yeah, absolutely, despite the fact that some of them are recovering Pediatrists and chiropractors and IT people and stuff nothing against that. They want to get into this business Fabulous, but they have to understand that one of the most important pieces is is you got to go out and find the work yourself What would you suggest to somebody did really when they're like? They got nothing and they want to get people to hire them. What would you suggest? Uh First of all, I would suggest to that you be original Because I will say since the pandemic I have experienced more I don't want to call it theft because that's kind of a dramatic but Imitation which is the sincerest form of flattery. Yeah, but when I am going through my LinkedIn feed And I saw another voice talent with my exact bio word for word You know, that's yucky and icky and not cool and when I would post Especially again later on in the pandemic when I would post and tag my clients Which is something I used to really like to do to you know, shout them out All of a sudden a bunch of voice talent would all be in there You know trying to connect with them or sending them emails and so be original Um Don't don't take from other people. You are you're you are a unique wonderful person Speaking of that as being a unique wonderful person It is really important that everyone you know knows what you do and that is the first thing I did as a voice over talent is even people you don't think have any clue I'm telling you I have gotten jobs from my dad's fishing buddy that he was kind of put with on a tournament, you know Um, I have gotten jobs from old boyfriends from high school who saw that I did it on Facebook I have got I mean it's just uncles brothers cousins, you know friends friends of friends neighbors Let everybody know what you do but do it in a non cheesy non Braggie way what we do is so unique and interesting really all you have to do is say I'm a voice over talent and just shut up Because they're going to ask what is that? You know, well, you can answer then it doesn't seem like you're dominating the conversation by I'm a voice talent I do this set in the other if you just say I'm a voice talent and shut up Then they're interested and they will and and then tell them what you do But then keep asking them questions about themselves and be genuinely interested Don't be fake about it. Be genuinely interested find some way. This is why I don't like elevator pitches I I believe in elevator outlines So you kind of have these Three or four maybe five points in your head at all times And as you're asking this person these questions you can find ways from those three to five points To tie one of those in with something they do Um for example, and I've told this story before There was a guy who Said that he listened to uh Pandora. He was in Athens and he listened to Pandora on the way into Atlanta So that was perfect. I could say oh, well, then you've heard my daughter and you've heard me Because I've done this that in the other that's That's voice over and so it tied in but if people are just interested in what we do so just Say it and shut up and answer questions and really just kind of try to find a way to make it relatable For them Right and that's usually the first question they ask after you said well, I'm in voice over there. What have I heard you on? Right. What do you what do you tell them? What do I tell them? Oh, but when they say do a voice I used to uh network in person with um, I shouldn't say aspiring. He was a new voice talent, but he was really good at characters and so I would just Let them do that and I would tell them this is my voice I actually specialize in sounding real and while that doesn't seem complicated It is not easy to make someone else's words Sound like your own or make quantitative immunoglobulin sound like something we just chat about Or oh my gosh, zero percent financing. Really? I mean, let's try to make that sound conversational But we've all done it or at least we've tried Yep Once again, we're talking with kelly buttrick throw your questions in the chat room And we will get to them in just a couple of minutes, but right now we are going to take a break and we'll be right back with her And lots more stuff here on voice over body shop. So don't go away This is the latin lover narrator from jane the virgin anthony mendez And you're enjoying dan and george on the voice of our body shop Well, hello there I bet you weren't expecting to hear some big voiced announcer guy on your new orientation training for snapchat This is virgin radio. Well, okay. We're not that innocent. There's genes for wearing and there's genes for working Dickies because I ain't here to look pretty. She's a champion of progressive values A leader for california and a voice for america. It's smart. It's a phone. It's a smart phone But it's so much more. It's a the files are ready. Don't forget to pick up the eggs. What time is hockey practice? Check out this song. It's the end of the road It's your favorite when hope is lost the i8 from bmw Who said saving the planet couldn't be stylish? Hey, it's j michael collins. I bet you think i'm gonna try and sell you a demo now, huh? I think they speak for themselves, but I will give you my email. It's j michael at jmc voiceover dot com Now if they will stop waxing this mustache for a minute, we'll get back to the show Inflated prices not at voiceover essentials dot com Despite the nationwide inflation rate of over eight percent Voiceover essentials refuses to raise prices. In fact, they refuse to even say the i word They're inventory is large on all their products and they purchase them before the current economic conditions It's simply wrong to increase profit as many retailers are doing right now So harlin and company promised not to raise their prices during difficult times for everyone They'll stay the course steady and sure flat and firm solid instead. Okay enough. You get the point Unfortunately, they're under the same inflationary pressures as everyone else and they'll need to restock in the not so distant future No doubt they'll be sticker shock for them and you So right now is the time to order that portabouth pro or vo1 a voiceover microphone and their vo 2.0 headphones fight inflation at voiceover essentials dot com Hey there, it's david h laurance the 17th What's it like for you when you check your email and there is a voiceover audition waiting for you to dive in and You go great. This is awesome. And then that fear starts to creep in. Am I good enough? Do I know what i'm doing? Am I going to give them what they want? Listen I've been there and so has my friend michael costroff who is now one of my voiceover clients very excited about that He's applied his audition psych 101 process and method to voiceover And it's awesome. He's got three free Uh lessons right now that are available at audition psych 101.com slash join That's audition psych 101.com slash join go watch these right now by the time you watch this Maybe they're all out who knows but it's worth every moment to help you get your mind right On the psychology of auditioning audition psych 101.com Slash join This is bill radner and you're enjoying voiceover body shop with dan lennard and george widham v obs dot tv And we're back with hey, how you doing good? I mean a surprise you there well, i'm coming out and sue told me about that but i um I was I was responding to some of the comments since I couldn't I couldn't do it on there So just that you guys know that during the commercials i'm going through and i'm seeing some good questions Good. Well, why don't we ask you some of those questions? Okay. Oh good. Good. Let's go to those george Yeah, the first one you have the cue is from uh drew barbo who's asking through youtube When doing cold emails, do you send a demo with it and follow up? Would you send the full length demo or just a short version of it? Good question drew um and that goes to something we were talking about uh earlier just the difference between then and now um And I would say it really depends on who you're sending it to If you are sending it to Someone at an ad agency I would send a link to your demo on your website First of all that gets them to your website. There's all kinds of other great stuff there um But if you're sending it say to a production company trying to get on their roster You know that their digital media can handle it Uh, I would send And all my demos are varying lengths. So I'm not quite sure when you talk about different lengths I wouldn't send a demo over 90 seconds at most um as an mp3 Many times I'll use the phrase I'm sorry you guys my voice is going I'll use the phrase something to the effect of um Thank you for listening to my demo or agreeing to listen to my demo or allowing me to send my demo If you'd like to hear more demos samples of my work Testimonials, etc. Please click here and on a mac again something else that My mentor told me about if you hit control k you highlight the word you hit control k it actually Puts that link over the word here um And so they can just click it and then it's there and that way you're giving them two options But if they are not a production company I tend not to actually send My demo because I don't know if they're they're going to hear it on a phone or Something like that. I I would just I usually just do it for um in-house production companies at ad agencies production companies obviously talent agencies Those folks are used to getting demos and can handle it Yeah, and and one of one of our listeners Let me get the name here just to show you that I can do this in yarn Ig Muthanka Bay Oh, I love that name. Oh my gosh in young In yarn Ig Muthanka Bay In yarn In yarn in yarn in yarn. Yes, and I'm sorry in yarn. Okay, Ig Muthanka Bay It is so cool. Your your name is just fun to say Yeah, and it's a Moroccan flag. So I'm taking it. He's from Morocco Anyway, he says a lot of people are very hesitant to open files fearing it may be a virus as you were saying but you know in yas right on point and so it's just that's why you kind of got a See, you know, some people are afraid of following links That's true I mean, I mean if it says something like hey, I just saw you're you're in this picture and there's a link Maybe, you know, but if it's a are you in this movie? Yes, I get that one. Did you see who died? Yeah, and now it's all in texts we've got rid of spam calls now. We're getting spam texts. It's awful awful I know, you know my my old bank in Buffalo is they're like sending me stuff like you're we're checking on your account Well, I'm not gonna find anything there. So Anyway, uh, you get the question from terry briscoe George, yeah, terry asked kelly. Thanks for being here and I know that you are known for bold self promotion But what is your most successful way to attract new clients new climbing friends? Yes Ah, I love that terry you were so I like it a big hug for terry um I think the best way to attract new clients. Let me think about that Uh, the way I'm doing it Again is is reaching out with cold emails Uh having diane Reach it did did we talk we talked about this? Yes, we did the official one. Okay. Yeah having diane do the cold call and then Once you've made that initial contact Then I go and friend them on social media absolutely connect with them on linkedin And then I start to Grow that relationship. So terry what I'm talking about In in doing it in a genuine way grow that relationship grow that friendship Things like when they post an article I will repost it and say a comment like have you guys read the such and such so and so I had no idea Or sending them a dm maybe with an article that made you think about them Hey, george, I read this article about these new headphones. Have you heard about these? How cool is that? Usually, you know try to leave a question at the end of it if I dm somebody so that you can start a conversation Have you tried these yet? Um So that you you're starting a conversation by asking that question you're showing a genuine interest in them And it takes forever terry it. This is not a sprint. This is a marathon but It is these relationships that you form now That are going to carry you through the slow times Um, you know, especially with the the big influx of so many people coming into our industry It is really nice to see that my existing clients Keep coming back because they know Me they know I care about them. They know I care about their projects They don't they don't have to guess if somebody's home studio is really a home studio They know and all of that is through Relationship building. Um, I hope that answers your question terry and I I know it's not easy Um, but just finding ways to one on one Not sending out a blast like uh, we talked about earlier not sending out a ton of the same postcard Or, uh, you know general email just one on one Keep talking with them and there are ways there are inexpensive ways to stay top of mind with these people um I have a newsletter That I actually asked liz denesnara if she was okay with me sending out because it's very much like hers I thought her idea was brilliant And she does a happy tuesday from liz and she posts a picture Usually of the same lake, but because it's outdoors and in nature It's different every time and it's not salesy. It's not talking about voiceover So I called her several years ago and started something called think outside thursdays And I have grown it recently into think outside encounters And they are all about the outdoors all about different, uh ways you can get out there encourages people to get outside The benefits of being outdoors it talks, you know, sometimes I'll pull a poem or a quote I'll talk about the picture I've taken because I love taking pictures outside. I'm not great I always say, you know took this with my iphone while I was running past But it's just a it's a fun way to stay top of mind, which again the blasts are okay for staying top of mind But the relationship building Really needs to be targeted consistent And show that you genuinely care about this person Makes a lot of sense Do you use linkedin a lot don't you? Yes Tell us a little bit about how you use linkedin because I I know it's We have a mutual friend that talks about this a whole lot A lot of people are like, you know, they make a connection on linkedin and then they're like, hi I'm a voice actor, right? You want to hire me? No, no, no, no. How do you do that? What's the proper way of doing that? Don't do that. Um, first of all, I highly recommend our mutual friend Tracy Linley, um and her linkedin edge Because I took that when she first she let me kind of try it out Prototype it or whatever And I learned so many things and I took what I learned from Tracy and my own Marketing PR brain and have kind of meshed those things together. So the way I do it Um, it really kind of depends on what time of day it is If it is in the evening and I've had a glass of wine Sometimes I just reach out and I don't make it personal at all. I just connect If I if I see somebody who has a ton of common Common names I'll hit connect which goes against everything I just said about making it personal But it's amazing how many people if you share enough We'll just go ahead and connect with you the the people I connect with After the cold email It's usually something to the effect of like if it's a Georgia alumni I'll say because I graduated from the University of Georgia. I'll start it off. Go dogs Um, you know go dogs. I I'm assuming you had, you know, dr. Hollander's class too Always nice to connect with a fellow grady grad Finding something you have in common um A lot of times with videographers or photographers They have a picture of something that's really cool And so I'll say wow that picture was amazing. Can you please tell me how you how you got something like that? That's just Awesome, and I'm not a photographer. I just use my iphone But even the time of day everything about this picture just speaks to me. How did you do that? again asking a question so that it leads back to Leads back to a discussion and a conversation All righty, uh John O'Rourke asks can you give us a tour of your booth? I mean, it's gonna be simply at turning around Yeah, John, so my booth is a studio bricks booth And if I take this camera down, unfortunately, it will um It's a pain to get it back up and you guys will have to watch me like lick the sucker thing and stick it on It's not pretty you might want to fix that. Yeah, so this Is uh a studio bricks triple wall pro And I worked with gear mo jung bower back in the early days before you know became such a thing To custom design it and I based my design on a whisper room that shan called well once had So right here where I've got this camera is a window and my Monitor is behind the window. So it keeps the heat out um There is a 300 pound glass door that right now is open That I had to use my car jack to get in. Yeah, it usually takes an honor guard to pull that thing Yeah, I hired um a local not local from charlotte. So not far away Engineer and he has come to help me put it together We've decided now that we're both too old to drag each piece down from the garage to the basement level We're gonna hire somebody young and strong Out here is a windowless area It's a it's a finished room in my basement And then way over there in the corner is a little window where I have a desk though I don't spend much time there. Um Johnna to be honest with you because I have spent years in this four by five padded room all day I 90 percent of the time that I'm not in here. I am on my laptop out on my porch I just I have to I have to get out Um, but yeah, this does that oh and I have a stand-up Um, and it was cheaper than a stand-up desk you guys I got this thing on amazon here man. Probably it's messy But see this Right. Yep. So that is a it's a rolling cart. It's a rolling laptop cart and there's shelves and stuff underneath it Um, and so that's a great thing to have because it just takes up a tiny little bit in my In my booth and it allows me to stand So that was a great purchase Yeah, I'm a big fan of that kind of a thing for your laptop or anything in your booth Yeah, really it rather than a permanently mounted shelf that's not exactly the size or the height that you really wanted it to be Yep, these adjustable stands make way more sense. Oh, they're so good and they and they're on wheels So like when I vacuum the booth out, uh, because sometimes my dogs are in here with me Um, I just vacuum it out and all of my gear Johnna is outside and the cables are running in through the bottom And the front, but it's all outside. There's just there's no noise Everything is yeah right here and there's not a lot of heat Uh, even better. Yeah, that's really important Uh, especially now. Um, yeah, Jim McNicholas asked trying to expand my client list Where would you suggest I start? I think this is kind of a rehash of maybe A couple things we've covered. Yeah, but I don't know if you have a new angle. Yeah for getting new clients expanding Okay, so expanding where you are, um Hmm So i'm trying to think of some of the things that I did that were new Uh, I mean if you have an established connection with a certain Like industry Is it easier to move horizontally through the same industry and establish new connections in the same industry? Yeah, definitely. Um You know as far as linkedin goes it's just you know looking at your your first connections Um, and if you're following their feed then you will see people comment on their stuff and You can always reach out to that person and say something to the effect of Your comment was so on point Or i'd be interested in knowing a little bit more about why you felt This logo of the three he presented was best Um, you know just something to ask a question on linkedin And again making sure everybody you know knows what you do in a non cheesy way and The basic principles of marketing have never changed It's it's how we present that that has changed Everything about marketing should be about increasing your no like and trust factor everything you post Needs to be and not all about you, but it needs to make you knowable approachable likable people work with people they like um So no like and trust and trust is Things like this like a appearing on vobs. This gives me credibility As as a as a voice actor who gets to come on to this really cool podcast About you know the whole industry So that's a kind you know just everything needs to be focused on no like and trust whatever it is you do Yeah, I hope that answers. Oh, I did certainly did we got time for one more question here And this is a really good one from steven blair Do you source through a google search first? Who do you target and how do you establish a relationship with? Oh like where do I get my oh prospect? Yeah. Yeah. Oh, okay. No, um, I have not done a google search at all When I first started again the differences. There was no No, there was I'm not that old But I am old enough to have used the digiphone is dn database and I started in alabama And worked my way down through the states because you could tell on the database Which ones were individuals and which ones were studios and because having is dn at that point was so expensive And rare for a voice talent to have it really narrowed Uh the competition And that I built so many relationships that way but you can go to um So say the uh, I used to go network again before the pandemic at uh, there was a group of production people And they would get together once a month and a group of us Voice talent were all very close in the atlanta area. We would go and network and meet with people in person Um, you can also go to websites. Uh that are focused on marketing advertising production You can join groups on social media that are focused on that and you can absolutely Do that if you do a google search, it's kind of like when people google search voice talent It's it's really kind of you know, you're taking you're taking a risk Right, um, because everybody puts their best foot forward And you could waste so much time doing a google search and then trying to vet this client Whether they're worth your time and effort Just start with a known quantity Look at where your ideal client hangs out and go hang out there Even if it's just online be there search that area. That's that's what you want Absolutely gold. Yes, you know, this is this is the kind of stuff that I wanted our audience to hear from you because Marketing is is it's a mystery to most people and you've got a you've got a very set way of doing it in a very logical way It's so nice to hear you say that because sometimes I feel like oh my god, what am I doing now? Well, well that well a lot of marketing is like taking stuff thrown it against the wall and then seeing what sticks So you gotta I've done a lot of that. I've done a lot of that over the years Yes, well it is great having you on here. It's great to see you again Hopefully we will see each other soon at some conference here or there or whatever. Yes. I really hope so I want to hug y'all again. Oh, I you know, I do So where can people get a hold of you virtually? Virtually, um, and it's funny. Somebody actually already did from the the promo A guy reached out and asked me about prospecting using um paid uh I guess paid it was an ai Connection something or another and I felt bad because I had no idea. I was like, uh, yeah I'm old school. Um But you can reach me through my website, which is brand spanking new Finally, if it tells you anything the folder with all the stuff in it was called website refresh 2019 So It's taken a long time But uh, it is kb voiceovers dot com And if you're interested in the think outside newsletter again, I'm I'm not pitching myself on it I just I really think everybody should take some time and get outdoors Uh, not coaster bike racing coaster break rates soon. Just saying well, okay. Um, that's not for everybody Um, a little scary, but if you want to get on the think outside newsletter, it's there. Um And if if I can help you, you know, just shoot me an email kb at kb voiceovers dot com Please do not take offense if it takes me a long time to get back with you. I'm so sorry You're a busy lady Well, it's just you know, I mean, there's just there's a lot going on in my life right now So I I will do the best I can I promise I will get back to you. It just may take me a while Alrighty Kelly. Thanks again for being with us. We'll hit one. Thanks all of you who came and yeah Ask great turnout. Thank you guys. Thank you. All right. No problem. All right. Kelly by trick Big hug. Alrighty. Well, we're gonna take a break and George and I'll wrap things up for this week And then we will do tech talk. So if you got your tech questions ready, throw them in the chat room now too We'll be right back to say goodbye right here on voiceover body shop You're still watching vlbs In these modern times Every business needs a website when you need a website for your voice acting business There's only one place to go like the name says voice actor websites dot com Their experience in this niche webmaster market gives them the ability to quickly and easily get you from concept To live online in a much shorter time when you contact voice actor websites dot com Their team of experts and designers really get to know you and what your needs are They work with you to highlight what you do Then they create an easily navigable website for your potential clients to get the big picture of who you are And how your voice is the one for them plus voice actor websites dot com has other great resources Like their practice script library and other resources to help your voiceover career flourish Don't try it yourself go with the pros voice actor websites dot com where your via website Shouldn't be a pain in the you know what Hey, it's my turn. It's your turn. Okay. You got it. It's my turn to talk about source elements the creators of source connect um Boy, what can I say that has not already been said i've been improvising commercials for this company for five plus years And i'm telling you they're still dominating especially now having had the the pandemic Come and i wanted to say go Well, it hasn't that's the sad story. It hasn't gone Um, most are still more comfortable working remotely. It's pretty clear Um, and you need the right tools to do it and this is still the thing people In production really love using because it saves Time and at the end of the day your job as a voice actor is to provide your talent But also fit into the machinery that they have constructed You have to be this cog that meshes and turns smoothly and doesn't make noise, right? Except when they pay you to and that's your voice acting So the source connect allows that to happen allows your voice to go right into the production Fit in be previewed be reviewed Listen to by the client and even signed off on a final edit Before the end of the session and that's the kind of thing the efficiency that source connect allows This is why uh, the big paying jobs the best working voiceover happens there And if you're gunning for that you've got an agent or you're considering going that level It's time to get signed up go over to source dash elements calm Get a 15 day free trial Check out the new website. They've been putting together. It's got better content more content to learn from it's easier to find things Than ever at source dash elements.com. Thanks. Let's get back to the wrap up the show Hi, this is bill farmer and you are watching voiceover body shop. It's great Turn my car. Got it. Been a long time since I've had a button had a actually Usually the only one in here so you don't have to mute. That's right. Absolutely boy great having kelly on I miss her a whole lot. It's been way too long and she's such an exuberant great example of how you're supposed to do this business So we want to thank her again for for joining us Uh, let's see here next week on this show or if you'd like hang out live right now And just stay with us if you're watching the show We're gonna do tech talk tech talk number 83 is coming up next week Uh, who are our donors of the week people like jonathan grant christopher apperson sarah borges Phillips appear tom pinto shelly avaleno george wittem your dad my dad brine page patty gibbons rob rider greg thomas a doctor voice ant land productions shanna painton baird martha con don griffith tray moseley danna bird sall and sandra man willer Yeah, you can donate to the show maintain the amazing Technical excellence that you witness every week here on this show So just go to our website and there's a little button there underneath this it says donate now or is it above us? I can never remember Anyway, uh, what's the next george the tech webinar coming up universal apollo. Yes, I really am It's it's the audio interface that we love to hate on But a lot of you use it and a lot of people are still interested in adopting this tech So i'm teaching a webinar august 2nd at 3 p.m And you can sign up over at george the dot tech slash Webinars and uh be there alive so you can answer so I can answer your questions That's the main reason to be there alive For that interactivity if you can't be there alive, you can actually rent it later after the fact Yeah, and knowing universal apollo there will be lots of questions Why does it do this? Why then why doesn't it? It's so hard to do. Why doesn't it do that? Anyway, uh, we need to thank our sponsors harlan hogan's voice over essentials voice over extra source elements geo heroes dot com voice actor websites dot com And world voices dot org the industry association of freelance voice talent joined today Our thanks again to jeff holman for doing yeoman duty in the chat room And on facebook on youtube and all the other places he hangs out Sumer lino, thank you so much for a great job as our technical director and of course lee pennie just for being lee pennie Uh Well, we're gonna rack it up for tech talk Do not go away if you got a tech question through at the chat room and we'll be right back But that's gonna do it for this week. Have a great week everybody. I'm dan lennard And i'm george woodland and this is voice over body shop or vo B s No, tech talks next next it's coming up next