VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Dave Waters · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2011 9:46 am Post subject: P2P Tactics

We talk a lot about one the pros and cons, successes and failures of the various p2p sites. Many of us have settled on a single site because it most suits our business plan and the way we operate.

So...what makes it work for you?

For those of you who use the p2p's, would you mind sharing what tactics you use that are most successful?

Voices.com:
For instance, how do you decide for which jobs to audition? In this free-for-all environment, what makes you decide to jump in and what makes you walk?
How do you approach budget ranges?

Voice123:
Ah, the SmartCast. Have you cracked the code, yet?

Much as we would like to work with our established clients exclusively, the p2p's do offer opportunities which, of course, means money.

Which brings to mind the old saying, "why do bank robbers rob banks?" Or, should they now be referred to as bank(s) robber-ists? Couldn't resist.

If we are spending 25-30% of our time on p2p's, how can we be most efficient?
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Deirdre · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2011 10:09 am Post subject:

Dave—

As you might imagine, this set of subjects has been discussed many times here!
That said, I hope your query will probably engender some new input.

If you want to get a load of the other discussions about the Pay-to-Plays, go to Google and type in a search string like this:

Voice123 site:vo-bb.com

You'll see all the threads mentioning "Voice123".
The Google search is a million times better than the built-in phpBB search on this board.

Now, pile on, y'all. It's good to keep abreast of what is happening currently with these sites.

—Deebs
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Bruce · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2011 5:04 pm Post subject:

Also search our site using V123 .... some here don't like to type out the full name of the site that shall not be named.

B
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Stormtrooper 7 · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2011 6:17 pm Post subject:

Hi Everyone.
I haven't been around much for quite a while. Been into other things lately. But I sure have enjoyed playing a little catch up lately!! I saw this thread and thought I would toss in my thoughts about it.

As far as the P2P sites, I have never used Voices. I have only used... "the one that must not be named..." but then again... V123. (We mustn't fear...) Wink

As far as figuring it out... well, not sure anything strategically will work there. This much I do know. Smartcast did actually help me figure out what I seemed to have a better shot at doing. I let it lapse a bit last year because I was buried in another project and didn't have time to really work at it until later in the fall. But I finally re-upped. So here is what I have done:

Not auditioned much. Yes. I know. Crazy. But. I do seem to get better leads if I wait for what I think I have a chance at, and am usually invited first. In the past whatever the time frame is... 6 months or something, I have only submitted 30 auds. For the ones that were opened and "rated" whether it was for Finalist, Maybe or Considering, I have been consistently in the top 10 of the ratings and on the Finalists I have always been 1. (I have gotten one rating of "Won't..." but then again 27 out of the 30 got it just like I did.... On the bright side... I was 12th worst... Laugh

)

So... Do I get hired you may ask? Not that much. I am still waiting on one to get back to me from Dec at the moment. But the thing is you may get something else later from a lead you had auditioned for earlier. This has happened to me more than once, usually in the form of a private invite or a direct email. So you never know.

I don't obsess over the stats and ratings. But as I said earlier, the system there did help me figure out what to stay away from. That made a difference. It's all in what you are looking for. I haven't been as successful with it as some are, but I do get work there in one form or another.
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cyclometh · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2011 7:19 pm Post subject:

I think the big question is: Can you reasonably make enough money with it to offset the cost and still make a profit?
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Scott Pollak · Posted: Wed Jan 19, 2011 7:31 pm Post subject:

CC Heim · Backstage Pass Joined: 27 Sep 2010 Posts: 401

Is it just me, or are jobs on voices.com getting hit with REALLY HIGH numbers of auditions lately? I remember up till a month or so ago (new years????) that I'd see many jobs with 40-50 auditions. Now, I've seen several with numbers up past 100, and one recently with 200+ auditions.

When I'm busy and I see later that I've received an audition notice, I don't even bother. I can't see the point of submitting once there are more than 50 auditions already there.

For what it's worth, I've checked my submissions, and generally any time my audition is more than 20 deep it doesn't get opened by the voice seeker.

ho hummmmmmmm

imaginator · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 1:12 pm Post subject:

...lately, when i see more than 20 submissions, i don't bother on voices.com. trouble is, even when i check one immediately after i see the email comes in, a lot of 'em already have that many responses showing.

thinking about bailing this year.
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asnively · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 1:24 pm Post subject:

I don't bother with the VO dogpile there at all anymore. I much prefer V123.
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Chuck Davis · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 1:25 pm Post subject:

That's why I left Voices.com. It's amazing how fast some folks can post an audition. Combine that with the quality of jobs getting worse...ROI (including the investment in time/effort) made it not worth it.

I doubt I'll renew at VO Planet this year too. Seems like they're grasping at straws these days.

I have yet to join 123 as a paying member. That's on my to do list.
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cyclometh · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 1:43 pm Post subject:

I'm doing an investment in my VO business this month, including a professionally produced demo reel and a membership in V123. We'll see how effectively I can make these investments pay for themselves.

I was considering various options for a P2P investment but generally I've settled on V123.
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Corey "Vox Man" Snow
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JCDunn · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 2:31 pm Post subject:

With Voices.com, I made more than enough $$$ to pay for the membership within the first month of using the service. I'm still with them.

I got frustrated with Voices123 and the SmartCast bot and bailed after my free month was over. I rarely made it to the top bucket to be considered for work, however I was hired for a pretty good paying gig based on my demo.

If P2P interests you, I recommend taking advantage of any free offers that come your way to test drive them. Your milage may vary.
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Darren Altman · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 2:36 pm Post subject:

VO Planet: Rubbish site. Jokers.
Voices.com: An absolutely cattle market with far too many people auditioning for the same jobs.
V123: Not perfect by a long shot, but that's the only site I'm on now and have joy with.
Bodalgo: Getting like voices.com, with lots of people auditioning and the job closing early.

As an aside, after I won a job on Bodalgo, the voice-seeker that chose me, linked me to the page that the voice-seekers look at. When you see your audition letter hidden among 30 other letters, it becomes a harsh reality check! Reading other v/o's covering letters was interesting too!
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Lee Gordon · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 3:40 pm Post subject:

I subscribe to Voices.com. Voice123, and Bodalgo. I have found that I have gotten more than more than a return on my investment in terms of the money spent for memberships.
However, I'm not so sure I've gotten anywhere near a return on the investment of time.
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JCDunn · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 3:59 pm Post subject: