All the world is fascinated with Facebook Company pages and I get that….Facebook is a popular service but it just feels to me Facebook and it’s company page has the long term business impact of neighborhood kids hosting a lemonade stand and neighbors dropping by to buy a cup which they may or may not drink (the O’Connell children will be hosting a lemonade stand today, BTW).

Facebook isn’t the best social media place to do my business.

But clearly, LinkedIn has not only every VO talent in the world (oy!) but advertising decision makers, producers, casting companies and business people who seem to me more likely to consider using my services.

So my question is this: do you have your LinkedIn Company Page set up?

And of course, you’re welcome to follow my LinkedIn page.

Tags: commentary, facebook, linkedin, marketing, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover advice by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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The Voice Over Cafe made its way to Charlotte, NC, for FaffCamp and recorded its latest episode there….what a blast.

Female Voice-Over Talent Trish Basanyi and Male Voice-Over Talent Terry Daniel have been hosting and producing the Voice-Over Cafe for a while and it was a special treat for me to be invited on to this live recording session as there was a room full of interesting people with whom they could have spoken. Terry and Trish are supported in their production by the lovely and talented Sean Caldwell, Tom Dheere and Peter Bishop – each a bad ass voice-over talent in their own right and all loyal Faffers to the core.

The episode stars Amy Snively and features Bob Souer, Liz deNesnera, Dan Friedman, (movie star) Melissa Exelberth, Connie Terwilliger and Cliff Zellman.

You can listen here. And I hope you will.

Tags: commentary, community, Faff Camp, faffcamp, faffcon, podcast, podcasting, voice over podcast, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover advice, voiceover meet-ups by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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Dave Courvoisier has 1,823,234 subscribers to his blog so the chances that you, gentle reader, have NOT seen this post is slim but I’m going to tell you about it anyway in case your RSS feed crapped out.

At FaffCamp, Cliff Zellman unveiled his new demo production company, Done By Six Productions (disclaimer – I’m one of the directors because the federal government mandated that, for equality purposes, he hire an Irishman…it was a nasty lawsuit and he lost). I could describe it further but I’d rather you read Dave’s blog post and watch the video interview featuring Cliff.

Tags: commentary, voiceover, voiceover advice by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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I missed the very first FaffCon.

My magnificent third child was coming into the world and Mrs. audio’connell somehow felt it was more important that I not spend a weekend in Portland, OR lest my dear boy make an early entrance while I was three time zones away. My suggestion that she just hold her legs together during the trip was not accepted with grace. Need I reiterate, it was only a suggestion?!

Oh, that was also the time I found out I’m a bleeder.

So I remember that whole weekend thinking ‘I wonder what they’re doing now at FaffCon? I wonder who’s speaking? I wonder what they’re talking about?’ I was bummed even though I didn’t yet have (or fully understand) the FaffCon experience.

I made a promise to myself I would make it to the next FaffCon. After attending FaffCon 2 in Atlanta, I promised (save for something of immense importance) I would not miss another Faff-event.

As I sit here going through notes and business cards and memories, I am thinking of some of the posts of those who couldn’t go…who wanted to go but for all the right reasons (whatever they were) didn’t go. And as I began to type of my profound joy from everything and everyone at the FaffCamp event, I stopped. I really did.

I am profoundly grateful not only to everyone I spent time with, learned from and especially worked with on FaffCamp…but those feelings and opinions extend to each and everyone of the past FaffCon attendees as well. I wanted EACH of them to be at FaffCamp for their own professional and personal development but also for my own selfish reasons of wanting to be around and learn from greatness.

Yet, remembering my feelings about missing the 1st FaffCon, I don’t want to boast about the many things I took away from the event lest it make my fellow Faffers who attended in spirit feel badly, feel jealous or feel sad. That is NOT the spirit of FaffCon.

Each of you in abstentia need to know, as a matter of record, you were missed. That is not stuff and nonsense…I speak sincerely and from the heart.

Though nor do I (by way of this post) want to take away the euphoria of the other FaffCampians who ARE posting their joy and pictures and thanks….they can and they should because it’s all for the right reasons. They want to share their joy and I am enjoying it.

There are over 100 people to thank and I tried to tell them all yesterday (especially the sponsors). If we spoke, if I shook your hand, if you watched me present —if you shared any of your time with me at the event, thank you.

I thank our foundress Amy, my brother from another mother Dan, the ever- supportive and lead improviser Natalie and our dearest angel Lauren for leading this event to its very successful liftoff, execution and completion. “Tireless dedication” is an over used phrase in most descriptions…except this one.

And so I’ll end it there. If I name anyone else, I’ll stupidly forget someone unforgettable.

Call me if you want to hear my FaffCamp experience one-on one…I’ll gladly share my phenomenal experience.

Because, really, for those of you who understand a Faff-event, no description is really necessary and for those who haven’t, no description will suffice.

I hope…I mean really hope, I see you all in San Antonio. Thanks for being my friends.

Tags: Faff Camp, faffcamp, faffcon, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover advice, voiceover meet-ups by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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I cannot remember how long ago I purchased the above watch (from the same company who provided the picture I believe) but I knew at the time it was a handsome looking time piece and I wanted to have it.

Here’s a quick list of what the Citizen Stars and Stripes Navisail – White Face / Stainless Band does:

-Yacht Timer with Autostart Chrono
-Auto-Repeat Yacht Race Timer
-Time and Calendar in 21 World Time Zones
-Retractable Hands for Display Visibility
-Help Display of Button Functions
-One-Touch Interchangeable Analog/Digital Times
-Two World-Time Alarms
-1/100 Second Chronograph with 24-Hour Digital Display and 60-Minute Analog Display
-Screw-Back Case
-Push Button Safety Clasp on Bracelet Models
-100 Meter Water-Resistant

I know how to operate about 3 of those features and the safety clasp still gives me trouble occasionally.

No, I am not trying to sell you a watch.

I would like to admit that it takes me about 15-20 minutes after every time change (daylight savings time etc) to AGAIN figure out how to adjust the time on that thing. You have to push some stems and pull some stems and then you have to say some magic words. I think a human sacrifice may be involved.

The point being I REALLY only need it to tell time. I like to wear it when I travel between time zones because it switches easily but that’s about it.

We do this in our business too I think…make things more complicated than they need to be.

Our marketing can be effective…and simple.

Our bookkeeping can be organized and simple.

Our audio chains can be sonic and simple.

But we add gadgets and tricks and columns in search of a better way, a more communicative way and sometimes (and this always confuses me) a simpler way (we add things/steps to make them simpler).

When we buy new products…can we stop for a second to see if the bells and whistles are REALLY necessary?

Can we remember to narrow down the new item’s reason for being to the one simple task we need it for?

I don’t know about you, but I have to try and get better at this.

But…my watch IS nicer than your watch!

(j/k)

Tags: commentary, voiceover advice by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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Strange – how many of you were drawn to that blog headline.

But it’s a fact of life – virtual conferences have been around a while now.

It was a business that a friend of mine delved into and she seemed to enjoy it. I myself have never attended or I guess a better term is participated in a virtual conference.

It’s an intriguing idea so leave it to voice-over’s own Rupert Murdoch (aka John Florian) make the idea a reality for the voice-over community.

If you’re a plan ahead kinda gal or guy, you’ve got some time. Voice Over Virtual will take place September 18-19, 2013.

For all the details, you can check out Voice-Over Xtra’s blog post here

Tags: blogs, commentary, voice over training, voiceover, voiceover advice, voiceover blog by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
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