VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[pgvs]

Moe -
Thanks for the very generous reply.

Much of what you write has been within my consideration for a while...meaning that I have heard that 2007 may have been a wondrous little bubble of magic...and would be hard to replicate...as well as that VOICE 2008 already bears a somewhat different character.

I am most interested, at this point, in the networking and meeting folks, I believe...because, as valuable as many of the seminars seem to be...I feel like I have maybe been exposed to a lot of that information already (whether or not I have put it into good practice is another story...)

We'll see what happens.

My ego is pretty well in check...for though I am no longer a "newbie" in the industry, I am still far from as "flush" as many of my more experienced colleagues here and elsewhere. I've been lucky to garner some great work here in the city...but, I have a heck of a lot left to learn.

Yes..."Moon River"...although, I have become quite partial to another "River" song lately, particularly as we wake into this recession..."Ol' Man River" - I think that should be the National Anthem of the US...becuae I think it reflects the actual life experience of more Americans than does...well anything on television -for example...

Rolling along...

PG
_________________
PETER GANIM
www.peterganim.com
voice@peterganim.com

[mcm]

Peter, I didn't go to VOICE 2007 and definitely won't be going to 08. If something else comes along that is more the product of vo-bb though, I will try not to be the Scrooge I was last year, pocketbook permitting

In the meantime, informal real-life meet-ups are wonderful. I'm hoping that we'll be having another New England (and beyond) gathering soon as well.

[Philip Banks]

What most people want to achieve can't be achieved as a direct result of attending VOICE2008 and was not achieved by attending Voice2007. Such events are something "you do" and you write-off the money.

Voice2008 is being promoted as a commercial event and anyone wanting to attend should apply commercial values to their reasons for attending or as I have stated above, just "write off" the money and treat it as a tax deductible holiday.

Be "spiney" - How much will it cost, how much will it make? Or, is it worth the gamble?

[ccpetersen]

There are tangibles and intangibles in every thing a businessperson does for his/her business. And this is, as we keep reminding ourselves, a business. It's the same for VO as it is for writers as it is for any professional.

The tangibles are there: learning something from experts -- new techniques, marketing, followup, bookkeeping or whatever it is that you need to learn to make your business healthy.

I suspect that we don't really need to quibble about the tangibles; it's the INtangibles that make or break the decision to go to any workshop/meeting/etc. Folks have pointed out the intangibles they came away with, and those are the "magic" of the meeting. It's true for any meeting. It so happens that this year there are two meetings that I will be attending that have to do with another field I've worked in for a long time; the cost of those meetings is one thing (and one is high), but the intangibles are why I go. I already know that the tangible will be rewarded: that is, I will pay XXX dollars to attend, and I will likely get many times my attendee fees back in business. So, I'm going for the intangibles -- the chance to meet new possible clients, interface with colleagues, and maybe do some new deals with existing clients.

Those are the things you have to weigh -- lay out what are the tangibles you get; the intangibles will follow because a lot of people who attend will also be looking for those intangibles once the tangibles are met.
_________________
Charter Member: Threadjackers Local 420

[LauraS]

We have a similar annual event in the UK, and producers/potential employers go too. So in theory you have a chance to make specific contacts, and to bribe them into using you by plying them with alcohol - provided you haven't done the job too well and they've completely forgotten the events of the evening!! I went to a few of those in a row and they were an absolute blast, but after a while I stopped as I felt I had been there, done that. Though when small children are more babysittable I plan to go again - if my liver can take it!

I know this event is slightly different, but I would say that if you've not been you should definitely go - the worst that can happen is that you decide it wasn't for you - and the best is that you have a fabulous time and learn a ton. And if you don't go, you'll only wonder what you missed.

Laura