Cheap way to validate ideas

Gary Johnston · **Voice Talent** Joined: 19 Aug 2006 Posts: 57

I've noticed a number of jobs lately that have gone through a real metamorphisis and have been re-submitted. It gives me the impression that some are using this service as a no-cost way to validate their ideas for spots. They get all of us to send in free demos, play it for the client, and decide the idea sucks so they come up with a new one - and then get more free custom demos.

Is anyone else seeing or feeling this? Of course, the fact that I still have not booked a single job here (after more than 300 submissions) may have something to do with my feelings.

Robert Jadah · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 2627

Gary:
Being happily cynical to begin with, I too have long thought that many shady things happen in the light of voice-over bazaars.
In addition to what you observe, I've lately seen a posting here disappear and then re-appear at another site days later: with a greatly reduced budget. It is fairly impossible that not a single solitary one of 120 submissions here satisfied the customer.
It is more likely that they received so many acceptable ones that they calculated that the same thing would happen there, but with cut costs.
And so many short, good snippets are auditioned here in response to postings that are suspiciously unprofessional that I am certain some clients run away with bags-full of free audio. Here I'm thinking of the scads of - "Hi. I'm dewing a compooter game. I need voices of bad guys. It'll be really big but the $$$ are small right now. Gotta be like done fast."- postings.
But, hey, that's the nature of the beast. While V123 is trying to curtail abuse, this is a free-market, rough-and-tumble bazzar.
Spit happens.
We must refrain from answering to slipshod projects. We must not sell ourselves too cheaply. We must watermark. We must leave out vital pieces of text. We must be very, very careful when submitting complex, f/x'ed, polished demos.
But mostly, we must remember that we do this also because we love to. And most clients by far are good, earnest voice-seekers.
Voice On!
Robert Jadah

Chip Hinshaw · **Voice Talent** Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Posts: 65

Robert, I'm right behind you on talent being more discriminating about the jobs on V123. Unfortunately, someone is always going to be willing to take the $50 leads.

Maybe if V123 set a minimum threshold of, say, $150, a lot of those "shadier" leads would start disappearing. Hell, I personally think the minimum on any gig should be $250, but I guess my experience has been different than others I've read here.

Robert Jadah · **Voice Talent** Joined: 17 Jun 2005 Posts: 2627

Chip:
That's an ideal world, and well-reflected in your no-nonsense 'Want me or not?' site. You have established a solid way of cutting out the chaff.
But a threshold would send some 30% of V123 postings elsewhere. I think it's up to we few, we proud, we pros to refuse to participate in raggedy-ass postings.
Personally, I love to cackle while merrily Deleting half the public postings.
Voice On!
Robert Jadah

Chip Hinshaw · **Voice Talent** Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Posts: 65

Maya Kuper · **Voice Seeker** Joined: 04 Oct 2006 Posts: 97

It's true, you may be auditioning for gigs that will never happen, because the client or producer realizes that the copy sounds like crap out loud. No ad agency copywriter or producer would WANT this to happen on purpose. But sometimes it does.

Commercials are sometimes demoed, meaning they're produced with NO INTENTION of ever being aired. These demos are aimed solely at focus groups whose responses help the client determine what's right and wrong with the spot. voice talent are paid a session fee for gigs like this.

And sometimes, spots are cast, demoed, and even fully produced--and then are scrapped and never make it to the air because the client decided they didn't like it.

It's part of the job, part of the advertising process. What's to complain about?

Chip Hinshaw · **Voice Talent** Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Posts: 65

The complaint would be, I assume, that the talent does not get paid for auditions while the creatives (generally speaking) are getting paid (drawing a salary) whether or not a spot is produced (though I suppose you could argue that they then don't get paid by THEIR client - still, salary is there in most cases).

Yes, this happens with some frequency and is the "nature of the beast", but an online service like Voice123 is quite susceptible to abuse of this kind. After all, a client could request auditions/demos from agents/casting directors only so many times without "buying" before that client gets a bad name around town. We could likewise "blacklist" abusive clients here, but they can always open a new account under a new login.

Freddie Molina · Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2006, 15:26 (GMT) Post subject:

Hello everyone,

It is totally understandable to be concerned about situations like these, I know Voice123 is always trying to improve their filtering protocols when it comes to clients and the existence of the companies as well as the legitimacy of the jobs is checked, unfortunately due to the environment we work on there will always be clients trying to test the VO market.

The good part is that these cases are a small percentage and not really affecting the amount of good leads published on voice123.

What I could recommend is to report to Voice123´s customer service all situations of conflicting postings, this way it will be much easier to for them to ban or remove undesirable clients and leads.