Branding, Business Coaching + Management for Voice Actors
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Happy Pride Month from CSM!
Happy Pride Month!
At CSM, our commitment to creativity, diversity, and inclusivity stands at the heart of everything we do. We love helping talent discover and celebrate their authentic brand, and supporting their journey towards success. We believe that everybody’s unique story is at the heart of their brand, and we are proud to highlight the great work from some of our LGBTQ+ talent this June.
Spring Cleaning: Refresh Your VO Brand, Grow Your Business
The season of closet clean outs and furniture rearranging is upon us, and it’s time to do the same for your business. Open a window, blast some feel-good favorite tunes, and let’s get to spring cleaning. As entrepreneurs, it’s essential to assess areas of growth and fine-tune your business plan throughout the year.
Branding is an integral part of growing your voiceover business. If you don’t have a personal brand that excites you, it’s time to think about developing one. If you already have a brand you love, you still have work to do to make sure you are utilizing your branding to its full potential.
Spotlight: Q&A with Jack Malcom Sanders
Jack Malcom Sanders is just getting started.
Just three years ago, he was playing semi-professional soccer and attending university in Paris. Now, he’s a full-time voiceover actor taking the industry by storm.
Jack is a true artist, and his passion for acting has propelled his career to exciting heights. His shift in focus from athletics back to acting came after years of people telling him he should get into voiceover (and when you hear him speak, you’ll know why!)
He discusses his brand, Right About Now VO, making the move to LA to pursue VO, what inspires him, and his career goals in the following Q&A.
Goals Checkpoint: CSM’s Tips for Staying Motivated
It’s hard to believe that there’s only one month left of Q1. January was all about goal setting for 2024, February was a great time to solidify routines, and March is the perfect opportunity to assess your progress. However, we know that it can be easy to let your enthusiasm die down after the initial flurry of resolutions that the start of a new year brings.
Here are some of our top tips for keeping your eye on the prize and staying inspired as we wrap up Q1:
VO Charm School
As a talent manager, it is my great joy to connect with so many industry playmakers on behalf of talent. In conversations with agents, casting directors, and other industry professionals, one point always comes up: kindness matters.
In a time when communication is overwhelmingly digital, every e-mail interaction is an opportunity for a human connection. Each audition submission is the chance to build a relationship. Being straightforward is important — but a little charm goes a long way!
So, I thought — what better way to kick off 2024 than with a little VO Charm School?
Expressing gratitude goes a long, long way! Casting directors, agents, and anyone you’re hoping to get a job from are oftentimes going out of their way to get you booked. So, a thank you for their hard work will never go unappreciated. Here are some best practices when it comes to cultivating positive relationships through your demeanor online (and in person!):
Spotlight: Q&A with Stefan Johnson
If Stefan Johnson could give one piece of advice to his younger self, it would be: start now.
“I would tell anyone to start now. You’ve got an idea, you wanna do something, start now. I am lucky to have experienced success and reached a comfortable point — but if I would have really started at 18, after that initial interest formed for me, I can’t even dream where I would be right now.”
That “initial interest” came from Stefan stepping behind the microphone in high school with the morning announcements. He further discovered voiceover while at broadcasting school at the Ohio Media Center, but at the time was more focused on performing with his pop-punk band in Cleveland.
“We were gonna be rock stars. And then, long story short, life happens!”
He ended up at a great job, but realized he wasn’t doing anything he truly loved. Then, the voiceover industry started to call his name again. He decided to run with it, and in addition to training, coaching, building his studio and marketing himself, he also began building his social media presence.
Stefan’s brand, Voiceover Evolved, represents his versatility and constant growth within the world of voiceover. He needed something fresh and exciting to reflect his success and continue building momentum. The process of building his brand was a wonderful collaboration.
Stefan discusses his journey to millions of followers on social media, the incredible opportunities he’s seized as a result, and what drives him now in the following Q&A.
2024 is the Time for Your Brand to Shine
As we stand at the brink of a new year, the time is ripe for reflection, renewal, and the opportunity to revitalize your voiceover brand. In an era dominated by digital first-impressions, your personal brand isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s a must have. Having a brand that works for you is a total VO powerplay. So, chop chop, lollipop! It’s time to amplify your brand identity and take control for a prosperous 2024.
When thinking about building your brand, there are some important questions to consider:
1. What will make your brand represent YOU?
In a world of countless voices, how do you stand out? Your brand personality, much like your voice, should resonate authentically with you. Identify those quirks, nuances, and qualities that make your voiceover style distinctive. Remember, in this industry, standing out is not just encouraged; it’s a necessity.
Spotlight: Q&A with Natasha Marchewka
Natasha Marchewka is only human, however she’s anything but ordinary.
Natasha got her start studying Radio and Television Arts at University. She began working in radio in Toronto, and when she became a mom, decided to pursue voice over and build her own business. She started her business at home in Ottawa, Canada when her first child was six months old. As she moved from Canada to the Caribbean, and eventually settled in California, she continued to grow her business as she raised her two children.
Natasha’s brand, Only Human VO has given her the freedom to be imperfect. We are all only human, and that authenticity informs the work she does. It is a beautiful thing to celebrate. Her brand messaging has allowed her to revel in that truth and acquaint her audience of her values from their first impression. Building her brand was a delight from start to finish.
Spotlight: Q&A with Kenita Hill
Defining Moments VO. Evoking the right emotions to give you the right results.
Kenita Hill’s brand gives audiences an insight into her powerful voice that brings a touch of gravitas to each project. The CSM team greatly enjoyed working with Kenita to identify her brand story. As you’ll read below, Kenita’s experience working in healthcare informs her work as a voice actor. She uses her voice to amplify causes that are important to her. Developing her brand and designing her website with CSM allowed her to showcase those unique qualities to a wider audience.
Spotlight: Q&A with Rivka Rothstein
Welcome to the Spotlight series! Each month, we’ll help you get to know some of our incredible talent. For the first edition, we are excited to sit down with Rivka Rothstein, who has a multitude of insights to share.
Magnetic depth, global spirit, formidable panache. The heart of Rivka’s brand was clear from the first conversations the CSM team had with her. As you’ll read below, Rivka’s adventurous personality draws her to nature and exploration. Her experience living abroad and passion for travel informs how she works and lives as a voice over actor. Developing her brand and designing her website with CSM allowed her to showcase those unique experiences to a wider audience.
Measuring Success: How to Track Metrics and Set Goals for Your Brand
For Voiceover Achievers who work tirelessly on their craft, career, and brand, it’s important to measure progress. After all, when you put a lot of time and effort into something, you want to be able to look back on how far you’ve come, and also articulate that success.
The best way to do that? Tracking metrics and setting goals. For your VO brand, that means measuring certain stats related to your work, and determining targets you want to hit in your career. Don’t worry – you don’t have to be an analytics pro or a business guru to do this. We’ll help you get started with an outline of which metrics are best for VO professionals to track, and how to set goals that work for you.
Stay at the Top of Your Game: Five of the Best Professional Development Resources for Voiceover Talent
As a working professional, it’s important to keep up with all the latest trends and developments in your field – and voiceover is no exception. VO talent should look for ways to stay current on industry news, keep their skills sharp and start building new ones, and expand their knowledge of the craft, regardless of where they’re at in their career.
Don’t be overwhelmed, Voiceover Achievers! Fortunately, there are a ton of professional development resources out there for you to take advantage of. We’ve compiled a list of five of our favorite types of professional development resources, and just a few suggestions of the many good ones out there within each category, to get you started. Check it out below:
“The Superbowl of Voiceover”: Recapping VO Atlanta 2023, and Looking Ahead to 2024 with J. Michael Collins
“The Superbowl of Voiceover” – VO Atlanta is a place for voiceover professionals to connect with other talent, learn about the many different facets of the industry, and even take their career to the next level.
The 2023 conference took place March 23-26 and marked the 10th anniversary of the event. It also marked the first year that CSM’s very own J. Michael Collins and his wife, Anna Collins, served as the event’s owners. JMC and Anna both felt they had a “sacred responsibility” to make sure the event “continues to be a rewarding and growth-enhancing experience for talent.”
The Voiceover Achiever’s Guide to Audio Branding, with the help of Jodi Krangle
As voiceover industry professionals, we all know how important sound is to a brand. Consistent audio branding gives companies a distinct advantage in their marketing and advertising efforts.
While we all know this to be true, not everyone does – so how do we explain it? In other words, how can you demonstrate to potential clients why they should hire you, what you can offer them, how you can take their sonic branding to the next level?
Lucky for us, CSM voiceover talent, Jodi Krangle, answers this question every week on her podcast “Audio Branding: The Hidden Gem of Marketing.” Jodi explores how audio impacts people in different ways and in different parts of their lives. She shows why sound is something companies should pay attention to and leverage as a tool, and subsequently, why they should prioritize hiring voice talent.
Voiceover lessons learned in 2022, to help in 2023
Hey there, Voiceover Achievers – can you believe December is almost over? The holidays will soon be behind us, but we have 2023 to look forward to and conquer! New Year’s is the perfect time to reflect on the past 12 months and set yourself up for success, personally and professionally, in the coming 365 days.
With that in mind, how can you best prepare for a thriving voiceover career in 2023? The best way is to stay on top of industry trends. If that sounds overwhelming and you don’t know where to start, relax – we’ve got you covered. Here are four voiceover industry trends that are here to stay in 2023:
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