What works for your doesn’t always work for me…and vice versa.
A comment on a VO forum recently noted that when seeking freelance VO jobs, it’s all about relationship. He said that FaceBook, Twitter, and LinkedIn was a time-suck, and “if you can’t get on the phone and sell yourself and work a lead, offer solutions and say two simple words: “Thank you.” It ain’t never gonna happen.” (names omitted to protect the innocent)
Two observations:
(1) I agree. It’s all about relationship…and you HAVE to remember the thank-you’s.
(2) But…the phone calls have never worked for me, and Social Media does. Does that make my opinionated friend right, and me wrong? Nope. It’s just that he forgot the difference between people.
Building relationships happens on many levels. At some point I might just pick up a phone and suss-out a job, or seal a deal…but my PREFERRED method is to work that out on digital paths of communication — Social Media. You might find that odd, as I am a person who has made a career out of persuading viewers on TV through personal appeal — my voice and my image. But I’m also a geek, and a half-way decent writer, and the greater challenge lies for me in working the internet. Plus I hate cold-call rejection stats. Roughly 1% of those bring fruit. To me, THAT is a time-suck.
DO-IT-YOURSELF
Recently, I also was approached by another voice actor who realized she had neglected Social Media entirely as part of her marketing plan. She wanted to know if I could “just do it” for her.
My answer was that I’d be happy to walk and talk her through the technical set-up of the social media sites…and that I could consult with her on preferred methods of effectively promoting oneself on those sites. But overall, I told her, it IS about building relationship, and that would require her constant personal attention, and there would be no substitute for HER participation in that formula.
I appreciate both these instances of “finding what works”. I wish I wasn’t so bad at overcoming the objection, and handling rejection. I’d love to have been born with a creative promotions and marketing gene. I wasn’t. But I have other talents, and I have to go with what works for me.
What works for you?
CourVO
