6 Reasons Why Your Advertising Plan Needs Voice Over
As you develop a successful marketing and advertising plan, your creative strategy may include multimedia channels such as audio and video segments. Many companies continue to use radio and television as their primary sources of advertising, but now there are even more options with web-based advertising such as podcasting, webinars, and video commercials broadcast across the internet.
Any of these media or any combination thereof allow you valuable lines of communication, but you should never neglect to develop an effective, professionally done audio element to supplant visual or textual marketing. In addition to utilizing music and other contextual sonic elements, you may want to consider things like narration or a catchy slogan to accent your message.
In nearly every marketing situation, there is something to be said for hiring voice over talent to speak directly to potential customers. Below, I have list just six of the myriad of reason to hire a professional voice actor or actress for your campaign.
1. Voice overs make your brand more memorable. Associating a unique, likable voice with your marketing is a great way to give your brand a more recognizable, human element. Since potential customers are exposed to so much faceless advertising each day, unique touches like the perfect voice can set you apart.
2. To polish the appearance of your marketing. Marketing is always concerned with portraying a product or service and the organization that provides it in the best possible light. A good voice over can do a lot to increase both the professionalism and relatability of your ad campaign, making your product or service palatable to wider audience.
3. To set you apart from others in your field. In the competitive markets of today, a new brand must innovate in order to reach the right audience, and you as a marketer must come up with memorable strategies to increase the brand’s visibility– a high-quality voice over is a great start.
4. Voice overs help to create a high-impact message. While print and web-based media are some of the most sought-after advertising mediums available, voice overs can complement and enhance your marketing strategy. Podcasting, audio presentations, and even online commercials all require some form of narration; you can deliver your slogan or marketing message with voice overs strategically designed for high impact.
5. Voice over talent can increase website traffic. As more people turn to podcasts, webinars, and even television for entertainment and business, you can boost traffic to your website with strategically-placed messages. Audio files on websites are becoming easier to implement, and people can simply tune in as soon as they visit your page.
6. Voice overs can cost less than other forms of advertising. Both radio and podcasts can cost much less than other advertising mediums such as television and online video production. If you’re working with a tight marketing budget, you can invest in quality voice overs to create the biggest impact with your marketing dollars.
By: Terry Daniel
About the Author:
Textual Harassment – Think Twice Before Sending That Next Text Message
Employers have new potential issues to face in the form of harassment via text message.
Forty-six states have laws on the books that explicitly include electronic forms of communication (texting and email) within stalking or harassment laws. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 20 to 40 percent of all stalking cases involve electronic communications.
So what does this mean for employers? You now have employees who are suing, alleging “textual” harassment by a manager, supervisor or other employee. In California, sending just one text whose message is considered threatening or obscene is enough to qualify as harassment.
The current cases paint a stark reality of today’s workplace.
In one case, a female manager sent pictures of her private parts to a subordinate. Harassment charges were brought by the subordinate and the case in now in litigation. In another case, two coworkers started a string of colorful texts that ended with the male employee suggesting that they meet at a hotel. These messages were copied to a third employee who thought that the rendezvous had taken place and shared the news with other employees. This case is also currently in the court system.
What can an employer do about this? Well, it becomes very difficult to manage the situation if the texting takes place during the employee’s off time and doesn’t use company equipment. Furthermore, “texters” don’t always use complete words or sentences and thus the possibility of understanding exactly what was meant can be a challenge. Lastly, most employers don’t have policies that specifically address text messaging and they certainly haven’t included texting as part of their sexual harassment classes.
Textual harassment can also be construed as texting someone past their desire for contact with another person. The language in the texts themselves might be harmless, but the number of actual texts is obsessive. There is no case law or legal precedent to establish how many texts are too many, but some states say there must be an actual “intent” to harass based on the volume or content of the messages.
In the case of textual harassment, it would be a ideal for the employer to write an addition to their current company policies and have it signed by all employees. This would put all the employees on notice that textual harassment exists and may cause them to hesitate before sending a text to another employee.
It also might be necessary to document the use of texts on company cell phones to see if there are excessive texts to another employee’s phone. Remember, there is no privacy right as it pertains to a company-owned phone.
At the end of the day, your interest in addressing this issue will boil down to you assessing your legal risks and how much of a problem you think you might have. You could always send a text on the subject.
By: Jerry Ballard
About the Author:
The Language of Colors For Offset Printing
There is an element in offset printing that can communicate beyond its textual content. This is the use of very specific color hues to achieve a better print material for advertising. Color expression is a powerful tool. It does more than raise the aesthetic value of your marketing tool. It stirs emotions and for certain cultures, it can even stand for something relevant in terms of beliefs and religions.
When it comes to emotions, colors can awaken and arouse, or on the opposite end, dampen feelings. Hence, their strong influences have been tapped repeatedly to drive persuasive messages and to create greater impact.
Color basics
There are literally thousands of colors. You may be more familiar with the color wheel that showcases primary (red, blue and yellow), and secondary (orange, green and yellow) colors. You can play with the intensity of colors simply by making them darker or lighter to produce different shades and tints. You create a shade by adding black to a color while tints are made by adding white.
But from the hues in the color wheel, a wider color gamut can emerge by mixing two or more colors at various concentrations. To get a better idea, you can view the Pantone Matching System (PMS) swatch book of your printer. This is a color guide released annually by the Pantone Company which presents a comprehensive visual of the array of ink colors used for making full color prints.
Pantone inks are used as fifth or sixth color when the usual cyan, magenta, yellow and key color black (CMYK) image space is not enough to produce a very specific shade or tint. This addition, called spot color process, is done in offset printing and cannot be done in digital printing.
Color range
The PMS color guide is conveniently organized for quick browsing. Each color and hue is coded so the ink colors can be easily recognized through this coding system.
Another benefit of using this swatch book is that the colors are printed on coated and uncoated paper so you can immediately see the effect of the presence and absence of varnish on the color. Through this, precision in printing can be obtained.
Color Association
Certain color provoke specific thoughts and feelings, providing an even more effective advertising approach, or if improperly used, could prevent the message from surfacing. A few examples of associations are the following: red and love, blue and peace, yellow and happiness, purple and royalty, green and nature, orange and vibrancy, black and elegance, and white and purity. These are just some of the basic relationships between color and certain concepts.
By having a more definite shade, you can further improve the impact of your ad message. For instance, dark blue shades refer to masculinity, and deep red can connote blood. You can ask your printer for their PMS copies and make sure that you inform them that you need Pantone inks before hand since they still to acquire these inks.
When you manipulate the colors present in your offset printing product, you can automatically do more with your designs, as well as the push for better message impact and comprehension.
By: Zoe Phoenix
About the Author:
Free Sermons
Many Christian organizations develop sermons that can be ordered or downloaded at their websites free of cost. Many of them are textual, while some are audio versions with very good sound quality. Some organizations offer free CDs for which all that the seeker has to do is to enter the websites and contact them by email or simply request the material using the relevant link.
Websites such as http://www.goodnewsbaptist.org, http://www.PreachIt.org, http://www.FreeBibleSoftware.com, http://www.sermons.net, http://www.PreachingToday.com, http://www.abideinchrist.com, http://www.sermondepository.com, and others offer free sermon downloads in their websites. http://www.church-redeemer.org also offers excellent sermons on its web page. One textual sermon on parent-children relationships in its web page contains some especially beautiful quotes, such as the following:
In Ephesians 6:4, Apostle Paul says “”Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”"
In Deuteronomy 6:6-9, in his instructions to Israelites, Moses says, “”These commands that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”"
Websites such as http://www.freebiblesoftware.com offer free CDs containing sermons. http://www.freebiblesoftware.com distributes free CDs developed by popular preachers such as Jerry Bridges, J. I. Packer, D. James Kennedy, and R. C. Sproul.
There are hundreds of free resources available on the World Wide Web to help people in their sermon search. A good search engine is the best solution for a sermon search.
By: Marcus Peterson
About the Author:
Making an MLM Marketing Video
Making an MLM marketing video can be one of the greatest traffic generating tools in your advertising toolbox. Video marketing is powerful, because it allows the prospect to become acquainted with you much more effectively than with textual advertising methods. A video allows you to convey such things as passion, conviction and confidence to your viewers. These qualities can create an immediate attraction to the person being featured in the video. When you join those qualities with the sheer numbers of viewers that are visiting sites like Youtube, you have one explosive marketing strategy at your disposal. The best part of a video marketing strategy is the cost. Video marketing can be done with no investment other than your time. Using a few basic steps you can quickly deploy your own video marketing strategy.
Begin by choosing the topic of your video. For MLM, the most effective videos are those that focus on business building techniques and practices. These videos are generally generic in nature, focusing more on the personal branding of the presenter, as opposed to a product or opportunity. Videos focused on product pitches and opportunity presentations tend to be viewed as “spam” and typically produce less overall traffic. A quick Google search of business building concepts should generate numerous ideas for your video.
Once your topic is selected, prepare a script for your video. The best videos are those that are less than 2 minutes in length. Anything longer than 2 minutes and the viewer is likely to get bored and move on. Your script should give enough information to be valuable, while at the same time creating a desire in the viewer to learn more about the topic of the video. Avoid technical dissertations, instead focus more on practical applications of the content. Stories and examples work well in accomplishing this objective. Once your script is completed, try to commit it to memory, so that you are not reading in front of the camera. If you need assistance, create a bullet point outline that can be easily followed.
It is now time to create your MLM marketing video. Begin by choosing your filming location. Try choosing an environment with limited background noise or visual distractions. You should also choose an environment that reflects your own personality and style. It is important to be authentic. Don’t adopt a “fake it till you make it approach.” Remember that your main objective is creating a buzz around you and the information that you are providing.
When making your video, wear something that lends itself to your message and is natural for you. Your choice of clothing can be as much of a visual distraction as the environment in which you are filming. Be authentic in your attire. If you are a blue jeans and t-shirt type of individual, don’t wear a business suit in your video. Introduce people to the real you through your videos. Also remember that you are on camera, so show excitement and enthusiasm for what you are doing. If you display a lack of confidence or energy, people will not be drawn to you.
After your video is recorded, you will want to complete your final editing. As part of your editing process, you will want to include an opening title that introduces the topic of the video. You will also want to have a closing credit that encourages your viewers to learn more by visiting your website. You may also want to add pictures and music to your video. If utilizing pictures and video, be sure that you only use pictures and video that are not under copyright protection.
Once your video is produced, upload it to a number of video hosting websites such as YouTube, Metacafe and Viddler. I would recommend that you consider utilizing tools such as Tubemogul and Traffic Geyser to help you with further video promotion. In the description of your video, include a link to your website, so that viewers may visit you to learn more.
Now that your first MLM marketing video is complete, simply go out and repeat the process on an ongoing basis.
By: Carl Willis
About the Author: