Voice-Over Talents Dan Hurst, Matt Wiewel, Andy Barnett and Peter K. O’Connell in Kansas City, Kansas

Well Toto, here’s another state you can cross off your bucket list! Welcome to Kansas City, Kansas – home to some of the best BBQ and voice-over talents around.

Tonight I got to visit with my long time pal, fellow Faffer and Voice-Over Swami Dan Hurst and he brought along another fellow Faffer and recent full-time voice-over talent THE Andy Barnett as well as “There’s a Matt for That” and Faffer to-be (if he has his way) Matt Wiewel.

It was over three hours of stories so no, I won’t try and play that all back for you. But a massively great and well-behaved time was had by all and I am so appreciative that Dan, Andy and Matt took time out of their evening to hang out with me. Thanks guys!

Tags: commentary, faffcon, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover meet-ups by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
5 Comments »

Because I have kids now, I don’t attend nearly as many networking events as I once did. But there is real short-term and long-term benefits to attending business-focused networking events, no matter what the count.

I also once played putt-putt with my son, his friend and his friend’s father, which resulted in new business from the other Dad. So networking isn’t always related to business focused events.

People have told me that networking events are easy for me, because of my personality. While I think there is something to that (shy people don’t initiate conversations very often) I also think there are some basic tenets to business networking that I have learned over the past two centuries (see what I did there?) that can work for anyone – even voice-over talents.

Listen – If you want to offer the best non-verbal cue to another person that you are focused on what they are talking about, that you are engaged in the conversation, be an attentive listener. Another what of saying this is: don’t talk too much. Listening is the most important sales tool ever. Ever. Period. OK? Good

Don’t Sell – Networking events are not a sales call. Have a conversation – ask THEM questions about THEM. If they ask what you do, have a few thoughtful, impactful sentences to say about your business and some examples how it helps business (maybe like theirs – maybe apply a story you just heard them tell you about an aspect of their business) and leave it there. If you’ve done it right, THEM will ask YOU some follow up questions. You’ll be having a conversation.

Share – Be open to giving you insights on business issues (not politics, not religion) – keeping it all conversational. But don’t come cross as a know it all. And don’t try to impress…that just comes across as phony.

Be Real – and speaking of phony, don’t be. You probably aren’t and wouldn’t be but but when folks get in business situations, they can get nervous and try too hard, if you know what I mean. So as a rule of thumb, remember this “friends prefer to do business with friends.” So in business networking, be friendly.

Tags: commentary, networking, voiceover meet-ups by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
1 Comment »

During one of my Voice-Over Workshops for a voice talent last week, we reviewed some of her marketing challenges and internal struggles. She is a talented voice talent and a generally gracious human being — all wonderful traits that I aspire to.

But her marketing kryptonite is tooting her own horn – marketing herself (which is her brand) out to the marketplace. She finds it awkward, braggadocios and lacking humility (my words not hers). Like I said, she’s a gracious person.

Let me repeat a secret I have shared here before…horn tooting or self-marketing IS awkward, braggadocios and lacking humility – no matter how subtle you try to be (be warned, a subtlety overdone can completely water down a marketing message).

I have grown a bit more accustomed to it now, but when I started out in my voice-over business, I felt REALLY weird about marketing my brand: me! Using “I” in sentences, talking about MY work, me writing a press release about me. Yuck.

How self-absorbed, how egotistical, how arrogant! Just who the hell do I think I am?!!!

I feel your awkward pain frightened horn tooters but now I’ll share with you the epiphany that allows me to toot my horn with less (not none) awkwardness.

Who the hell do I think I am?

I am a small business owner who has kids to feed and a mortgage to pay…and that money does NOT come in unless I am out there telling people what I do and how I do it and how what I do will help their business. And I AM the company. Whatever the tag line, no matter the iconography, at the end of the day I, as the professional voice-over talent, am the brand. I am selling myself – just not on a street corner…yet.

So I toot (and if you’re 5 years old, you are now giggling uncontrollably at my unintended fart joke—that’s cool, fart jokes ARE funny).

But since I am doing the promotional work (writing, choosing media outlets, targeting the messaging etc), I can control the message that gets put out there, I control the tools and images I use to promote myself. Some people feel more comfortable using a 3rd party to do this…hey, whatever gets the job done for you.

It is a necessary evil in a free-lancers life – this self-promotion.

So here’s is my little imaginary trick for dealing with this unsettling process of self-promotion you must do: pretend as you going through your marketing tasks that you are marketing for another company. Not another person, another company. In your head replace your name with Acme Voice-Over Company. This psychological game with yourself might give you the distance and perspective to get the horn-tooting starting and keep it going.

Listen, you are not egotistical, you are not self-absorbed.

You ARE a freelancer. You ARE small business owner or now what people are calling a Micro Business (soooo teeny tiny like me).

And you have my personal blessing to grab your horn and toot. It’s not only OK…it’s a requirement!

P.S. I did ANOTHER Voice-Over Workshop on Saturday and wouldn’t you know…another frightened horn tooter. It looks like we may have to hold a telethon! But again, now all’s well for him too. So all you frightened horn tooters…you are not alone.

Tags: advertising, marketing, voice over workshop, voice talent, voiceover, voiceover advice by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
3 Comments »

TORONTO, ON, April 7, 2014 – – It was probably only a matter of time before Kraft Foods Group, Inc., whose founder James Lewis Kraft started his cheese business in Buffalo, NY back in 1903, included a Buffalo, NY-born voice-over talent in one of the national commercials.

In Kraft Foods most recent and imaginative national television commercial for Canada’s Kraft Dinner (known as Kraft Macaroni & Cheese in the United States), international voice-over talent Peter K. O’Connell provided two voices (“Jockey” and “Pony”) for the countrywide TV spot.

WATCH THE COMMERCIAL

According to one report by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Canadians buy more Kraft Dinner than anyone else in the world, estimated at one point to be about 75 million boxes annually. Other publications note that Kraft Dinner is considered “Canada’s National Dish”.

About Kraft Foods Group
Kraft Foods Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: KRFT) is one of North America’s largest consumer packaged food and beverage companies, with annual revenues of more than $18 billion. With the spirit of a startup and the soul of a powerhouse, Kraft has an unrivaled portfolio of products in the beverages, cheese, refrigerated meals and grocery categories. The company’s iconic brands include Kraft, Capri Sun, JELL-O, Kool-Aid, Lunchables, Maxwell House, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Planters and Velveeta. Kraft’s 22,500 employees in the U.S. and Canada have a passion for making the foods and beverages people love. Kraft is a member of the Standard & Poor’s 500 and the NASDAQ-100 indices.

About Peter K. O’Connell
America’s Friendly, Neighborhood Voice-Over Talent, Peter K. O’Connell, has worked with a wide variety of companies from around the world in addition to this most recent production for Kraft Foods. Some of Peter’s clients include PBS Television Network, Shell Oil, Pitney Bowes, Bacardi Rum, Highlights HIGH FIVE Magazine, Deloitte Canada, Zaycon Foods, U.S. Army, Starz Cable Television Network, BlueCross BlueShield, SunSetter Awnings, Time Warner Cable, Esker, First Financial Bank, N.A., Harlequin Enterprises, The Buffalo News, and Darien Lake Theme Park.

Described as a natural born storyteller, Peter K. O’Connell’s voice-over productions have been heard globally in radio and TV commercials, medical narrations, television infomercials, political commercial voice-overs, TV network promos, e-learning narration projects (computer-based training, internet-based training and web-based training), PSA’s, message on-hold as well as other video and media productions. Peter owns audio’connell Voice-Over Talent, a division of O’Connell Communications, LLC.

– 30 –

NOTES TO EDITORS

Company Media Releases ON LINE:
http://www.audioconnell.com/media

Company Name Pronunciation:
au·dio·o’·con·nell (awe-de-oh-oh-kah-nel) or au·di-o’·con·nell (awe-de-oh-kah-nel)

Company Name Spelling:
Use lower case letters- audio’connell or audio’connell Voice-Over Talent

Company Web:
http://www.audioconnell.com

Company Blog:
http://www.voxmarketising.com

O’Connell Voice-Over Resume:
See resume here

Tags: media releases by peter k. o'connell, your friendly, neighborhood voice-over talent
1 Comment »