← Everyday VOpreneur® with Marc Scott
Everyday VOpreneur® with Marc Scott
How to Land An A List Agent and Grow Your Business like a VOpreneur with Carrie Olsen
Loading summary
Transcript117 lines
- [00:01]
A
Are you ready to learn how to land an A list agent?
- [00:05]
B
You're a voice actor. You're an entrepreneur. You're a Veopreneur. Welcome to the Everyday veopreneur podcast, your guide through the business of voiceover.
- [00:15]
A
Growing a voiceover Business in 2024 means that not only do you have to be a great voice actor, but you have to be a great marketer. You've got to know how to find your own leads and build relationships with the people who need your services. And if marketing is something that you are struggling, I can help. Visit veopreneur.com for tons of resources. From free resources like this podcast downloads, live streams to premium resources like workshops, masterclasses and coaching. Everything you need is@veopreneur.com that's veopreneur.com the Veopreneur Podcast. Hey, it doesn't suck.
- [00:55]
B
Not as funny as Conan, not as cute as Seth Meyers, not as smart as Colbert. But he's one of us and that counts for something. Here's Mark Scott, the original Everyday veopreneur.
- [01:08]
A
Each week on the podcast I try to offer up actionable, practical advice that's going to help you to grow your voiceover business in some way. And so when I bring a guest on the show, my goal is the same. Usually I find someone with a particular expertise and focus on that to see what we can learn. Today's guest, we're going to learn more than one thing as she is someone with an entrepreneurial mindset and spiritual. An expert in E learning both on the VO side and the creation side. She happens to be signed by one of the most reputable and desired agencies in voiceover as well. Welcome to the show, Keri Olsen.
- [01:42]
C
Thanks so much for having me, Mark.
- [01:45]
A
So my wife and I had a baby in April, so we've got one month. Congratulations. Actually, by the time this episode airs, she'll be about two months old and I have felt like I have been barely able to string together even half broken days in the office since April. So I've got to know both what were you thinking and how the heck did you do it when you decided three months after giving birth I'm going to be a voice actor?
- [02:16]
C
Okay, so I'll start off by saying that, that even thinking back on that time, like I feel how crazy I went. Like that was. It was insane. Like it was a crazy thing to do. But at the same time I knew I had to go back to my corporate job and I didn't want, you know how it is like when you have kids, I didn't want to leave.
- [02:37]
A
You don't want to miss everything.
- [02:38]
C
Yeah. So as crazy as it was to be starting a new business, I was very, very motivated by this little person that was there who I actually took to work with me. From the first few months going back to work before I had my voiceover business going, I just took her with me. So, yeah, she was my motivation.
- [02:56]
A
I gotta say, there are days when I come into the studio, I'm like, I know I don't sound the same today because, you know, last night I slept one hour as opposed to the night before when I slept for five hours or whatever. And I'm like. And I mean, look, I've got it easy. And I fully admit that I've got it easy. At this point, my wife is doing most of the care, but obviously I want to go upstairs throughout the day and see the baby and hold the baby or, or whatever. But I was like, I can't even imagine what it would have been like to have been like this. This is the time. I think this would be a really good time. You know, kid goes to kindergarten, you know, they're at school during the day, maybe that's a good time. But three months, I was like, wow, you are some kind of superwoman to, to be able to pull that off. But that obviously speaks to your commitment to being able to be at home and be with your. Be with your baby. Which, I mean, I totally get that side of things. I am so grateful for the flexibility that this industry offers and, you know, just being your own boss with that, what that offers you.
- [03:55]
C
Right. But I will say I have to give my husband props because he is what made it all possible. He was super supportive, he was on board, he saw how much I loved doing voiceover and he made that possible, you know, for our family. And it's been so huge for us over the years. And also, I will just say about that time period, we also went on a nine month road trip with our baby with my new voiceover business and a travel trailer. So it was just a crazy.
- [04:21]
A
Just do all the things all at once.
- [04:22]
C
Seriously, it was a crazy time of life. Like, there was this podcast, I don't know if it's still on, but it was called like the Family Adventure podcast. And my husband was obsessed with it and I think that he, he just really took it all to heart because it was, it's this story, stories of families who decide to just live non conventional lives and they, you know, the family who started it lives on. It lived on a ship with like seven children for a period of time. And then others go on these road trips with their families. And the whole thing is kind of like, you always think, we'll do this later, we'll do this later. And there are lots of people who are motivated by, like their parents who said later never came, or, you know, by the time later came, we weren't able to. So it's really just encouraging people to do it now. And so that's kind of where we were.
- [05:10]
A
I mean, I do have a tribe booth, you know, now that you mention it, and my wife is a teacher. And so we, you know, thinking put the pieces apart. After this episode, I'm going to go up and tell my wife we're taking off for a nine month road trip. Something tells me she's not going to be totally on board with that. But Carrie said it's in the episode. I could show you the interview.
- [05:30]
C
Please. No, no, you've got to, you've got to leave me out of that.
- [05:33]
A
When. When I started researching to put together this interview, I realized that you are a Midwest girl. And there is this strip through the Midwest where some of the most talented and gifted voice actors seem to come from, which is not something that people usually expect. Right. You're thinking coast or, you know, major centers, New York, Louisiana, Chicago, et cetera. But there's this line down the Midwest where I don't know if you guys have got something special going on in the water or if it's just the soil makes better, but you're cranking out some of the best voice actors. I would love for you to speak to that a little bit. Just because of the fact that I think sometimes people let their geography dictate what they think they can or can't accomplish in this industry. And you are obviously a shining example of. Yeah, geography is completely irrelevant.
- [06:35]
C
Yeah. In a big way. And I will say that I think part of that was my ignorance coming into it. I didn't know. I'm not one of those people who dreamed about doing voiceover my whole life and was, you know, had voiceover idols and knew a whole lot about it and even knew to ask the question, is it okay that I live in Kansas City to get started? I didn't even know that was a thing. So when I jumped in, you know, I mean, the way that the industry is now, it's all done. I mean, most of it's done from home anyway. So the geography thing doesn't really play nearly as big of a rule as it used to. I still get people surprised that I live where I live. And especially now, in the last few years, we moved even further into the country. So we were in the city of Kansas City before, and we just. We got a little bit of land and so we're like, in Kansas now.
- [07:25]
A
Nice.
- [07:26]
C
But, you know, as long as you have an Internet connection, like a stable Internet connection, quiet space, nobody really cares where you are. You can have clients all over the world. And very rarely do I have people ask where I live. And if they do, sometimes they're a little shocked, but it becomes a topic of conversation. And especially with the Kansas City Chiefs winning the super bowl the last few years, there's always some conversation there. But, yeah, your location, don't let that keep you from pursuing voiceover work.
- [07:55]
A
The fact that you are signed by Atlas. Correct.
- [08:00]
C
Mm.
- [08:01]
A
I think that speaks too, because there's, you know, for a lot of folks, there's an assumption that in order to get Atlas or any of the, you know, name the top five agencies or whatever, I've got to be in New York or I've got to be in LA or I've got to be on a coast or something like that. And so the fact that you have landed that. And I've done so incredibly well with that, I hope that that's an encouragement for voice actors that are in, you know, they call them the flyover states or whatever. But it is a good reminder that the Internet changed the game. And some people still don't talk like that.
- [08:36]
C
Yeah.
- [08:36]
A
But, you know, Source Connect, one of the. It sounds probably terrible to say, but, like, Covid might have been one of the best things that happened to the voiceover industry, just in that it really did give rise to the home studio. And so places, agents, agencies, companies that. That always wanted talent to come in house to do stuff when they were forced to not do that, but then also had the opportunity to realize, wow, these voice actors are at home and their stuff sounds great. That changed the game, I think, and particularly for people who are not in some of those major centers. Did you notice that?
- [09:18]
C
100% it was definitely already happening when I got into voiceover, there were very few moments when I had to go into a studio. There were some local studios here that I would go and work with every once in a while, but the majority of my work I did from my home studios, even when I was first getting started. So before COVID my coaches were still encouraging me to get my booth set up. So that was already happening. And it was already way easier and less expensive than it used to be. But 100% with COVID I'm sure you remember the different emails that were coming in from studios helping voice actors to, you know, get their studio set up. And I think a lot of them were surprised at how set up we already were or how great our sound already was. Like, you know, we're studios so we know what's going on. But, oh, these voice actors already, they're already set up for this. And then the voice actors who weren't, it kind of lit a fire under them to say, okay, I need to be able to record on my own as well.
- [10:20]
A
I remember doing a session in Toronto and it was just before COVID like just before the lockdowns and everything. And it was the first time that I had been in this particular studio. My agent had brought me in, they wanted to record in person. And so they asked me, you know, who I was and they'd never heard of me. And you know, how long have you been doing voiceover? And you know, at this point I've been doing it like 15 years or whatever. But they're like, wow, you just were really surprised that we've never seen you before. And they're like, well, how do you, how do you do your work? And I'm like, well, I do it at home. And they're like, what do you mean you do it at home? Home? And I'm like, well, I have a, I have a studio at home. They're like, yep, I'm sorry, what? You have a studio at home? I'm like, yeah, I got a U87 and everything. And like, it just, they had no concept because Toronto, I found, was one of those cities where it still was very much voiceover was. The agents controlled everything. It all had to happen in a studio. There was one of a handful of studios in Toronto where everything went through. And so the pandemic, I think ended up being a major eye opener for them. And you know, dang, if only I had been able to buy shares in Source Connect in February of 2020. Probably be a retired, very wealthy voice actor at this point, but so talk about your journey other than a three month old when you decided to do voiceover and then apparently taking off on a, a nine month road trip. But how long was the transition or was there a transition from part time to full time or did you just kind of go, no, I'm doing this and I'm going all in?
- [11:57]
C
Well, I definitely had an all in mentality and so we had, we had my, my infant at home. And the way that I worked that out was I would sometimes I would audition in the office, like during lunch hour or go out to my car. I think I recorded a job for my car while I was still working my corporate job. And then when I decided so I booked a pretty big radio campaign. And this was the thing that kind of helped my husband and I to get over that hump of, you know, I'm doing this part time right now, very part time. What would happen if we put full time hours into this? So that was kind of the question and that was kind of the job that helped us to see, okay, with the input that we're putting in now and the output we're seeing, if we were to increase that input exponentially, what would happen to the output. And so I put in notice at my job and decided to stay on as a, as a consultant, as a kind of a backup plan just in case. So it wasn't a full on jumping off the cliff, but I did put in notice. And so that was, I mean, it was within the year, so it was less than a year that I started doing voiceover, started getting training, started booking work, and then put in notice at my job. And that didn't last. The consulting thing didn't last very long because when I started putting in full time hours to voiceover, I just wasn't as motivated to go back to my other job. So voiceover's been the thing ever since.
- [13:29]
A
I can already tell the difference with, with what you brought to the table there was. That was a total entrepreneurial mindset, which is not how a lot of voice actors think about it, particularly when they're starting out. But the fact that you recognize, like, if I can do this with this many hours, if I can put full time hours in, how much more can I do? And to sit down and actually do the math and kind of figure out that equation, realize like, oh, I can build a business on that. And most people are waiting until the money is already there before they make the transition, but it is obviously a lot harder, takes a lot longer to get the money there if you're doing it part time or whatever. So obviously that entrepreneurial mindset has been there from the very beginning. So where did that come from? Is that a product of the previous job that you worked at, or has it always been something that was there?
- [14:18]
C
Yeah, I'd say it's always been there. So even as a kid, like, I love to work and I wanted to earn my Own money. And I used to look through the classified ads for things that I could do when I was really little. So that's always been there. And then when I married my husband, he immediately quit his job and we started a business together. So that's something that we've always, we've just always had that desire to be kind of self sustaining, to have our own thing. I'm sure we've all had jobs that we didn't enjoy or bosses that we didn't love. And so, you know, you can, when you have your own business, you. Of course, there's a whole different set of obstacles and problems when you have your own business. But we wanted to explore that side of things and to have those kinds of risks as opposed to the ones where you're in a corporate job. So, you know, we're both very aware that it was risky and it was hard and we've had failed businesses, you.
- [15:20]
A
Know, but as of most entrepreneurs, I think it's a rite of passage, right?
- [15:24]
C
Yeah. And it's not, it's not fun, you know, when it happens, but it is, like you said, it's a rite of passage. It's learning. And the thing is, when you have a failed business and then you pick up and start another one, I think that's a good sign that like, this is where, like, I couldn't do anything else. And if I had to, you know, I say that if I had to go back to corporate work for whatever reason, you know, I would, I would do that for my family. But I love having my own business and it's, it's great for a family. And I love that you keep bringing it back to mindset because it isn't for everybody, because there are risks and there are things that, you know, people ask me, like, how do you, how do you budget when your income fluctuates all the time? It's like, that's not easy. And it's a very different answer than if you have a paycheck every two weeks, that's the exact same, same paycheck. And especially in the early days when your income is directly tied to the amount of work you put in. So there's a certain point when you can scale, but before that, if you don't work, you don't get paid. So you have to be okay with those types of risks. But we are, and thank God it's worked out for us.
- [16:34]
A
I remember going to the bank to get the mortgage for this house that we're in right now, and they didn't want to give me a mortgage because I was self employed and I was making four times what I was making at my last radio job. But that didn't matter because I had security of a regular paycheck at my other job and I was like, actually I didn't have security. That's why I got laid off. That's why I'm doing what I'm doing right now. And I remember having an argument with the mortgage broker and when I walked out, I had a mortgage. But they just, the way that they, the way that they view it, you know, this idea of security and a steady paycheck and all of that sort of stuff. And I mean I would never, I wouldn't change anything at this point to be able to, I can't imagine having to go back and work a regular job at this point or having to have a boss again or I don't think I could, I could handle it. If you have professional training, professional demos, a professional home studio and a great looking website, but you are still not making money in voiceover, chances are the problem is with your marketing. But that is something that we can fix. Voiceover Marketing Playbook is a step by step, easy to follow marketing course that is going to teach you how to find your own leads, build your own client base and become the consistently working voice actor that you want to be. And Playbook is coming out for the first time ever in July. Watch for it July 9th through the 12th, 2024. And as an added bonus, if you would like to get access to an exclusive unadvertised presale offer, go to voiceovermarketingplaybook.com right now and sign up to join the waitlist. You're going to get a free marketing guide called six simple marketing Tips. And you'll also be the first to know when Playbook comes on sale with that exclusive, exclusive pre sale offer. Sign up now@voiceover marketingplaybook.com that's voiceover marketingplaybook.com now back to our show. How much has that entrepreneurial mindset factored into your success as a voice actor then? Because obviously you have to have the chops to do the voiceover. You've got to have the skills, you've got to have the acting and all of that. And that's a huge part of it. But for you, how much does that entrepreneurial side factor into this?
- [18:59]
C
I mean, totally, especially just starting off. My husband talks about my early days of marketing. He has this adjective, he describes it as ferocious. And that's what I did. It Wasn't that. I mean, in the moment, I don't think that I was thinking. I'm not taking no for an answer. But I knew that the more that I worked and the more that I put into it, the more likely it was that I was going to see results. And so when I wasn't recording, I was marketing, and that was just my mindset, so that, you know, it carries over from other entrepreneurial efforts. And I think that was another really helpful thing for me was that I didn't. And I know that we both at this point have, like, marketing courses for voice actors, so I would never knock them, but I didn't have a marketing course for voice actors. I knew how to market as an entrepreneur. And so I brought that knowledge into my voiceover business. And again, just that whole ignorance and being too green to know any better.
- [19:56]
A
That was so me. Yeah, you don't know what you don't know, so you just do it.
- [20:00]
C
Right? Exactly.
- [20:02]
A
Yep.
- [20:02]
C
Yeah. And that's a lot of what I tell people now, too, because people do want a formula. They're like, well, how do I do it? And I'm, you know, yes, there are right things you can do. But so much of it, so much of it is not just experimentation, but also just looking around, like, being innovative. And I tell people all the time, like, go up and down Main street, go talk to. There are probably people in your inbox, people in your sent messages that you could go look through. Do they know that you're doing voiceover? There might be someone right in front of you that could give you a job today. But because we're not looking in that way. We're looking for this formula. What's the social media strategy that I should use? And we're ignoring things that are. That are right in front of us. I always talk about my mom. She's like my great wingman. She loves telling people that I'm a voice actor. And so, you know, like, she'll just. Word of mouth and she'll give out my card and tell. Because it's such a unique job and people, it's a good conversation starter. So, you know, utilize that discipline, I.
- [21:05]
A
Always think is one of the biggest underutilized marketing tools. Right. Because like you said, I want a formula, I want a strategy. What do I put in an email? How do I send a connection request on LinkedIn? What's the right post for social media? And there's nothing wrong with all of those strategies. Any of those strategies can work, but they will work to the level of discipline that you have. And I think that's where a lot miss is, because when I was starting out, what the heck else was I going to do? I literally had nothing else to do. So I was just contacting people every single day, as many people as humanly possible, and waiting until, you know, eventually somebody's going to hire me. Eventually I'm going to get an opportunity out of this somewhere. But. So obviously you had the entrepreneurial side of things, but you brought some skill to the table from the very beginning, because, did I read correctly that you booked your first job within three weeks? That's a national job or something like that. So you obviously brought some skill to the table right from the get go. And that is certainly booking a job like that within three weeks. Probably not the normal for most of us. So talk a little bit about that.
- [22:13]
C
I'm not even sure what to say because, again, I was green. And some of it is even uncomfortable to say because, like you said, it isn't a normal thing. And I learned that through the course of being in the voiceover world. But, I mean, one of the first things I did was I sought out training and I coached with Alison Steele. And the thing is, you know, I said that my husband and I were entrepreneurs before we had done podcasting, so I had experience behind the microphone. I, you know, I'd never. Again, I wasn't specifically interested in voiceover until I intentionally started getting coaching. But I also have this weird thing where I'm. I'm an introvert, but I've always done voices. And that's one of the things that kind of creeped my husband out after we got married, because I didn't really show him that side until afterwards. And he was like, she's like, got all of these voices in her head, like, what is. What is this? And one of also one of those things where not only was it like a thing that I didn't outwardly do because it was weird, but also, like, I didn't realize there was an outlet for it. Like, you can monetize that. So, anyway, I got training, and after my very first call with Alison, I recorded this little demo, not as a demo to send out to anyone, but just to see what I sounded like. And I had so much fun doing it. She had really good things to say, and so we worked on specific things, and it was a great outlet for me even before I was making money. I felt like this is. It's really fulfilling and it's fun to be able to be outside of a Box. Because in the corporate world, you can only show, like. I mean, for me, I felt like I wasn't bringing my whole self to work. You know, it's your dress code and meetings and etiquette and all these things. And with voiceover, I felt like, wow, this is. I can really. Not only am I free to kind of express myself, I have to, like, this is someplace where I can't be reserved. I have to really give myself fully to this. So I was just having a blast learning about it and doing it. And for whatever reason, what I was doing was being appreciated in the voiceover world. So I started booking work. And again, what I was doing was working.
- [24:35]
A
So, yeah, Now I know you've done some national campaigns in your career. Do you remember what the first campaign was? First national?
- [24:44]
C
The very first national was rei. It was a radio campaign.
- [24:48]
A
Okay. How far into your journey were you when you booked that one?
- [24:53]
C
Let's see. I mean, yeah, it was three, four months, something like that. Don't tell anybody. Mark.
- [25:03]
A
There's nothing to like. You should be so proud of that. I think it's amazing. And I think it's really inspiring, too, because. Because I think that's so. Look, you talked about mindset. You know, I talk a lot about mindset and narrative, and I think somewhere along the line, a narrative creeps in that I can't do that type of job until I'm. I've got to this point, right? I gotta be five years in before I get access to that type of opportunity. And these narratives don't come from anywhere. They're not. They're not really based on any sense of reality. But there are stories that we just start to tell ourselves. And maybe in the beginning, we tell ourselves just to make ourselves feel better about not booking a particular job or whatever, but tell yourself a story long enough and you'll. You'll make it true. And so I want people to hear, like, yeah, if you're doing the right things, you can book a national campaign three months after you start doing voiceover. Why not? Like, if you're. If you're training in the right way and bringing the right skill set to the table, then yeah, that's. That's absolutely possible. Are you competitive?
- [26:05]
C
I am extremely competitive.
- [26:07]
A
I was going to say, now, are you competitive with yourself? Because for me, like, for me, I'm always trying to one. I always got to one up myself. Whatever the last thing was that I accomplished or the last achievement that I accomplished, like, I got to constantly try to one up myself and So I feel like I'm in this never ending competition with myself to always try to do a little bit better. Whatever. Is there any of that in you?
- [26:32]
C
Yeah, I mean, I think my competitiveness is probably. So when you say that, I try to appreciate what I have accomplished. So I don't want to move straight from, oh, I did this. What's next? I want to, you know, I've gotten better at kind of celebrating wins and staying there. But I will say so. It's not an immediate like, okay, I've done this, now it's time for the next thing. But that will creep up and eventually.
- [26:58]
A
It will come eventually.
- [26:59]
C
And I think it shows up more like almost boredom, you know, like, I did this thing. Okay, what's next? Let's.
- [27:07]
A
Let's go find the next one. I'm ready to go. Yeah, bring on the. Bring on the next one. It explains a lot though, right? That's drive. That, that's drive and that's motivation, and that's one of the reasons why you've been able to accomplish what you've been able to accomplish. So in voiceover, there, there are agents and then there are agents, and you happen to be signed with one of the most sought after, dreamed about and desired agencies.
- [27:33]
C
So grateful.
- [27:35]
A
At what point in your career did that happen?
- [27:38]
C
That was like two weeks. It was before I got started.
- [27:42]
A
You know, they pre signed me.
- [27:47]
C
No, it was early. So I mean, it was the, it was within a year.
- [27:55]
A
Okay.
- [27:57]
C
So like the end of 2014 was when I was, you know, really starting to, to book. And that's when I quit my job. And then in 2015 is when I signed with, with my agent.
- [28:10]
A
You're like the Doogie Howser a voiceover or something. Like you're just doing everything, like just getting out there, right out of the gate. I love it. So everybody would love to be signed by an agency like Atlas or, you know, some of those, those at the top. What did you do? Were there specific steps that you took? Was it in, in how you connected? Was it working with certain coaches in order to try to establish a network? Was it workshops with people from outlet? Was it just because of what you were booking? Like, what, what, what are some of the steps that you, that you took that you think the, this was the catalyst or these were parts of the catalyst that got me to sign with Atlas?
- [28:49]
C
Yeah, I think it's a combination of a lot of the things that you mentioned, but I honestly think the thing they were most interested in, I think it was just having a really strong demo. I think having a really strong demo. And yes, it didn't hurt that I was booking, you know, at the time. That's always. That's always a good thing. Having strong demo that was relevant, that had a sound that they knew was relevant for. Right then they were like, we can see where this plugs in today right now. So that was huge. And then coaching with my coach and strategically reaching out, just taking her advice on how to reach out. So, you know, just being courteous and not pushy, not doing things the wrong way. It's just part of that, like being a good person, being kind and thoughtful and not being pushy and entitled. So, yeah, I was having a great. And then once they did reach out and we had a conversation for a while and they knew that my husband and I had been entrepreneurs, so kind of shared our story some and they asked for the book we'd written and I sent that to them. So just kind of being. Yeah, being. Being friendly and building a relationship. Building relationship.
- [30:06]
A
Building relationship. Not just. Not just coming out of the gate like, hey, will you sign me? Hey, can you sign me?
- [30:13]
C
Exactly.
- [30:13]
A
Just remember building that relationship, working to nurture that.
- [30:16]
C
Yeah, yeah.
- [30:17]
A
Okay. Where was this in the timeline? Like, what year do you remember when it was that you signed specifically?
- [30:24]
C
I believe it was 2015. So it's. It's been, you know, as of recording, it's been about nine years.
- [30:30]
A
Wow, okay, awesome. Talk about the agent talent relationship, because I think sometimes voice actors put the agents up on this pedestal like they're, you know, Zeus sitting up on Mount Olympus or something like that. And that can impact the dynamic as far as how we interact with them or. Or how those interactions take place. And sometimes we forget that they're there to be our partner and to work with us. So you're working with one of the most respected agents in the industry. Talk a little bit about that relationship and tips that you've got for how to make that relationship work on both sides.
- [31:12]
C
Yeah, well, I love that we're using the word relationship, because it really is. And you know, my experience with agents, you know, you've got the agency, then you have the individual agents within the agency, and, you know, you can establish relationships with each of them. And, you know, I say, if you have an opportunity to attend an event and actually see them in person, or, you know, I've gotten to visit in New York and gonna actually see them in person, that's always a great thing. But, you know, do your job and do it well. You know, they're there to help you, to support you. And you're both there ultimately to, you know, to book voiceover work and so, you know, communicate with them if there are types of work that you are interested in, types that you're not interested in. Be open, work hard, continue your training so that you are providing good quality auditions to your agents. Try to get things in on time, make their jobs easier for them.
- [32:24]
A
You bring up an interesting point. I just recorded an interview with Brad Hyland, and we talked about training. So I'm going to ask you the same question I asked Brad. When's the last time that you did some training for yourself? Whether it's working with a coach, taking a class, attending a workshop, or, you know, whatever, something like that that you've done to make sure that you're still at the top of your game.
- [32:47]
C
I'm always doing training, and that's the.
- [32:51]
A
Answer that I expected. And I think that's. I think that's something that sometimes this industry is missing. Like, getting to Atlas was not the end of the journey.
- [33:02]
C
Right.
- [33:02]
A
It's not like, oh, I'm signed, so now I'm here, now I've arrived. You got to work your butt off to stay there.
- [33:07]
C
Right.
- [33:08]
A
If you're not continually booking, Atlas isn't going to just hold you on the roster for a decade, taking up a spot. And one of the things that I see consistently is that the most successful voice actors have never stopped training. They're always working with a coach or taking a class or auditing a workshop or whatever. And so that they're always staying on top of their game.
- [33:32]
C
Yeah. And that's true for performance. It's also true for just running your business, making sure that your business operations and your sound, your technology, all of that, and even little things like making sure you're still watching commercials and you're seeing what's airing and paying attention to trends, and all of that's part of your training also.
- [33:58]
A
And it never, ever stops. Yep. So let's shift gears here, because I know prior to voiceover, you were working in the elearning space content designer. So I'm guessing that's had a twofold benefit in voiceover on the. On the talent side, obviously, helping you to understand how to deliver that content, work with those people. I'm sure it's also helped you as a coach, though, in being able to actually teach and. And actually coach. So let's start on the VO side. How helpful has that been in helping you to navigate the world of elearning? And what are some of the biggest lessons that you've drawn from that that have been able to make you successful in the E learning space as a voice actor?
- [34:41]
C
Yeah, it's had a huge impact. I kind of go back to that first. You know, I talked about marketing ferociously. That was my whole. That was my whole worldview was when I figured out that elearning was a genre of voiceover. And then I made that connection of, oh, I've done this and I know who these people are and what they want. Then I. I went crazy with it. And I was like, I'm gonna. I'm going to give elearning designers and creators exactly what they're looking for, because I know what it is. And so I made an E learning demo and started marketing specifically to elearning companies and researched them and saw what kind of content they were already creating and kind of talked about how I could fit in and plug into what they were already creating. And the impression I was trying to make, the emotion, the thing that I was trying to invoke in them was, wow, this is different. This is super helpful. I knew that they wanted their employees to retain information, so I knew that retention was a super important thing. And I also knew that a lot of the training that we were taking sounded very robotic, for lack of a better way to put it. And it doesn't need to sound that way. And so I wanted to bring a levity to elearning, a fun, you know, storytelling to elearning. And that's.
- [36:11]
A
So you're where the trend started.
- [36:13]
C
Well, I'm not claiming it, but I mean, but again, like, I didn't know. I didn't know any better. I didn't know not to do it that way. And I didn't know how to do it any differently. And I knew that that's what I knew. Stories sell. Stories are what stick. And so if you're doing a boring, quote, unquote boring training about health benefits and as the voice actor you've got in your mind, this is boring. I just have to say this because the people have to take a test at the end so that they can get their compliance training done, it's going to sound like that versus if you're thinking about the way that this information is going to benefit the people who either have health issues during the year or are going to need to utilize this. And that this is valuable stuff and I'm interested in it. I want you to be interested in it too. Then it changes the way you deliver that. It Changes the way the employees engage with it. And I've even had designers tell me, I actually, I'm enjoying editing my courses now because your voiceover is engaging and it's different from what I've had to do before where it's just kind of painstakingly going through this. All these audio files are like, I'm enjoying listening to this now. And so that's, that's what I wanted to bring.
- [37:20]
A
Anybody that has ever had to sit through employee training every, every fall. My wife, who is a teacher, has to sit through, you know, mandatory classes for all the, all the different things. And, and I can just see it in her face some days. Like, I just feel so. And I'm like, if anybody should be able to have decent elearning content, it should be the school board, for crying out loud. But it is. It's just that robotic, you know, formulaic. I remember even for myself, I mean, I was booking elearning for a decade and making really good money in it. And then I started to see it level off and then started to drop off a little bit. Went and did some coaching with a Ganguza, cut a brand new E learning demo that was night and day different from what I had been doing for the last 10 years. All of a sudden started booking and making money again. And that was the big transition. Was that it. It did become so much more friendly and conversational and, you know, kind of like you're sitting there talking to them or, or whatever. And certainly a good. It made it more fun for me too, honestly. Like, it makes it more fun to be in the booth when you're sitting there recording it and doing your own editing. Now, you mentioned that you, you, you wanted to be able to give them what they wanted. When you're talking to these instructional designers, elearning developers, you want to be able to give them what they want. So what do they want from voice actors? What are the things that they're looking for that are going to make them say, this is somebody that I want to work with. Versus Nope. No, thank you. Moving on.
- [38:43]
C
Yeah, I think that especially in the early days, they wouldn't have known necessarily to say, oh, I want something that's more engaging because it's called elearning. And we kind of have this idea of what it's supposed to sound like. And so it was almost a give them what they want before they even know that they want it. So there's an aspect of that where again, it was like, oh, this is a little different. Oh, this is Kind of fun and kind of having it perk their ears in that way. So that was one thing. But another thing that just universally elearning designers, creators want is they want someone who is communicative, someone who is easy to work with, someone who's going to get things back on time, you know, someone who's a team player so who does good, high quality work. So that is, that's a huge burden off of them when you can just kind of give them, you know, here's, here's all the things on the platter and they can just take that and plug it into their, to their system without having to worry about, you know, when is this coming in? Or there's, you know, mistakes here, which they're always going to be pickups, that's fine, but just make.
- [39:51]
A
And how fast you address them, how much of a pain in the butt you are when you're addressing them.
- [39:56]
C
Right.
- [39:56]
A
Those things speak, right? Yeah. That was one of the things that I figured out very quickly was if I told them I'm going to give you audio that you can literally just drop into your software and go and okay, that sounds good to me. And I don't want to have to deal with it, fart around with it, whatever. So then to go in a completely, potentially opposite direction of elearning is promo, which is the other big thing that you do is promo. Talk about that transition. Talk about what it's like. Have you had days where you got your E Learning hat on and then you got to go and put your promo hat on and you got to change your mindset or change your approach or are they kind of. Everything's just conversational and friendly and relatable now.
- [40:44]
C
Yeah, I mean, so it definitely goes back to when you asked if I was competitive and I talked about, I think I used the word boredom. I don't know if that's quite right. But just, yeah, just wanting to do different things. And so I had this desire, you know, when I was asking what do I want to do next? And I was like, I'm going to put some focused energy into promo and just see what happens. And it's not a, you know, promos still mostly a man's game, but I wanted to see what would happen, you know. And so I trained actually with Harry Dunne for a full year and then, you know, kind of continued my, you know, looking into just putting like really focused energy into that genre and it paid off. Yeah, I mean, there are definitely days when it's, you know, I'm doing E Learning. I'm doing commercial, doing promo, and I would say that they are different. It's not just everything is conversational. There's a different type of read that I'm doing with promo, and a lot of it has to do with, you know, projection and just intensity. But, you know, I also have a particular style of promo, and I've had coaches listen to some of my promo stuff and say, that's not typical what you're booking with Max or Disney or whatever. It's not necessarily what we would expect to hear. It's a unique thing that I'm bringing to it. So there's that element. But I definitely have a promo hat, I guess you would say, that I put on.
- [42:23]
A
So how does that work for you? If you're in the booth one of these days where you're doing an E learning course and then you've got to do a promo session in the afternoon, do you do anything? Do you, you know, step out of the booth, give yourself a chance to reset? You said, I got a promo hat that I put on. Like, do you have a. I don't know if ritual is the right word, but you know what I'm saying? Is there something that you do to prepare yourself? Going from. Okay, elearning mode was this morning. Now we're going into promo mode. And this is what I do to get myself geared up and ready for it.
- [42:50]
C
Yeah. I mean, so I still. I have notes from my promo coaching sessions. I have recordings from them, and I'll go back and listen to. To read my notes, listen to recordings, and try to get myself back into that mode. And so there are certain things that will trigger, like, okay, this is promo. Okay, Promo is this, this, and this. Okay. And then sometimes I'll go back and listen to my old spots, you know, what I've done before to kind of, again, trigger that. But, yeah, and I do that, even if it's just an elearning day or just a commercial day. Go back and review, you know, okay, this is. This is what I do for this particular client, or this is what I do for this genre.
- [43:32]
A
I think in elearning, it's really important before I do a session for a client that I've done stuff with before, I will always go back and listen to the last course that I did for them, because lots of times they're continuations. Right. It's not like you're doing the entire elearning course in one session. I might do several modules this quarter and then add several more modules next quarter and Several more the quarter after that. So I will always go back and listen just so that I can make sure, okay, I'm in the same space. This is the same vibe. You know, I got the same sort of delivery so that I'm. I'm giving them consistency. You got a background in teaching and training. You know, we, we talked about that a little bit that you've done the. Worked in the. The elearning space. So I'm certainly guessing that that's lended itself to the coaching side of things. So other than that obvious, having the background and having the skill set, what made you decide to start doing coaching?
- [44:27]
C
I won't say it was an accident, but when I. When I. So we've told the story of how I got started. And so, like, with so many voice actors, people started asking me how I did it. And so you can only answer that question so many times before you create something and then start offering that to people. And that's what happened. And my husband was still working in personal finance space, and there's a connection there between, you know, working from home and personal finances. And so there are a lot of people in his space that were interested in. I made an ebook about how I got started in voiceover, and so that we started promoting that. And that's where it started, really. And so it was more people asking me and then people continuing to ask and then creating things to help them, you know, to help answer that question. And again, coming from elearning, I already made online courses. And so it just became a natural thing to create.
- [45:24]
A
Not much of a stretch there.
- [45:25]
C
Yeah, to create content.
- [45:27]
A
The market dictates, right? I find with the best coaches that the market dictated. Like, I know for me, I got to a point where I'm like, same thing. You get asked the same questions so many times. And so I started by writing a blog, and I was like, okay, well, when people ask me questions, I'll use that to populate a blog. And I'm thinking, I'm going to use this blog for SEO. Like, it's never dawning on me that I'm gonna. That I'm gonna coach. But then there comes a point where people are still asking you the same questions over and over again. And you start thinking, well, you know, if I created this one thing that I could then offer, and then every time somebody asked me that one question, I can be like, here, check this resource out, or whatever. And. And the market dictates that, that they want to hear from you. They want to know what you. What you have to say, or they want you to share their expertise. And I mean, you certainly bring a unique perspective coming from coming from the side where you've probably worked with hired voice actors or worked with voice actors in the E learning space, having that background to teach. But you've got a pretty good story too. I mean, come on, who doesn't want to hear that and try to glean from that what they can to apply to their own business as they look to grow. So talk a little bit about what you offer your coaching clients and are there specific subjects that you work in or certain things that you do or don't do or you got a niche that you're in? Talk a little bit about that.
- [46:44]
C
Yeah, so the main thing that I offer and surprise, surprise, it's an online course. But I wanted to have content that I always say like that cuts the fluff. And especially now, like, you know, you can Google how to get started in voiceover, you can YouTube how to get started in voiceover and you'll find all kinds of things. And some of it is probably going to be helpful, some of it's going to be accurate. But I've definitely had people come to me and say, I've already spent such and such amount of money on this thing. And I'm like, you don't need that at all. Or I youtubed this and I got this information. So I've been doing this. I'm like, you don't need to do that at all. And so I wanted information that was that cut the fluff, that went straight to like this. These are the things that you need to know and that were very action oriented and step by step. Because the other thing that I really appreciate, and this comes from my teaching and training before I get into voiceover, was there's head knowledge and then there's application. And I wanted to help people to actually take steps forward and not just learn a whole bunch of things and then sit on it and be like, well, I know all the things to do voiceover, but I'm not actually advancing. And really a person can only be their own motivator. Like they have to decide to do it. But I wanted to create content that was sort of had movement to it and that helped them to, to take those steps forward. So I have a membership program called the Voiceover Success Intensive and that is it's online modules. But then we have four touch points a month where there's like an accountability group that we call office hours and sometimes there's training that happens in that, then we have study group and, and then we have two workout groups where you come and actually read scripts. And that's a peer led thing. So you come with other members and read scripts. Because if you're not actually reading, you know, if you're not actually doing it, then you know, what are you doing? You know, you've got to actually be practicing and implementing. And then I have an online course called Get Traction in Voiceover and that's for people who are a little bit further along in voiceover. So you know the basics, but you want to know how do I book? Like, what do I do? And if you're already booking, then it's kind of to help you build more of a machine so that you can have inputs that you're putting in and you're not guessing like, is this going to be helpful for me? But you have a predictable order of things that you do and you know that those things are going to produce work. And so that's that course. And I liked what you said earlier about, you know, we were talking about the strategies that you can use and what I always like to say that the strategy that's going to work for you is the one that you're doing, the one that you're consistent in. So if you choose to do email marketing and you send out a few and you're like, oh, it didn't work and you stop, it's because you stopped. You know, obviously you need to have some, you need to have good etiquette around that and know the right people to reach out to that kind of thing. But if you're, if you do have those things and you're consistent with it, that's, that's the best place to be. If email is something you're comfortable with and you know, just be consistent, give yourself hours just like you were at work and have a strategy and a system and also pace yourself because you're not going to sit down the first day and write and you research, write and send all of these great emails. So you've got to break that down and be realistic with yourself and celebrate the wins along the way. And I'm sorry, I'm going off. You were asking about.
- [50:15]
A
Course. No, it's good stuff though. Like I have said for years, I am not the most gifted voice actor, but I will out hustle you. And that was how I built my business, was because I just shut up and did the thing right. Like I, I sat there every day and sent the emails when I. Even on the days when I didn't feel like sending the emails. Like it wasn't excuses, it was shut up and send the emails. And send enough emails and, and you're gonna book, make enough touch points, build enough relationships, get enough people in your, in your database, you know, law of averages, obviously you have to be able to do the job. You have to be able to be a voice actor. But if you are the most gifted and talented voice actor in the industry with the most fancy high end studio and the, you know, a whole suite of award winning demos, but nobody knows those demos exist, I'm going to make more money than you because I'm going to go hustle. Like I'm going to, I'm going to go do the thing. I love what you said too about cutting out all the fluff. I'm so much about that. I don't, I don't. You don't need fluff and rah rah. I need strategies and tactics. And I remember somebody came to me once and they were like, I can buy this course. I'm looking at your course and I'm looking at somebody else's course and the other person's course had like a hundred hours of content. I was like, for the love of God, what are you going to do with 100 hours of content? I'm like, tell me straight, are you actually going to sit down and watch 100 hours of content? They're like, whoa. No, I'm like, it sounds impressive, but I promise you that you probably don't need about 92 hours of that stuff. Yeah, get rid of the fluff and rah rah, get me to the strategies and tactics and then get me on my way so that I can actually start to do the thing. So I love that, that you recognize that. And I'm guessing that's your, your elearning background too. That helps you to know how to put together a good class and how to teach it well.
- [52:06]
C
Yeah. And just respecting people's time because like you said, it is, it's impressive, right? It's like, oh, 100 hours. But that just because I know that's a good selling point doesn't mean that I should create 100 hours worth of things that, you know, someone is actually looking through, like to try to, to try to book work. You know, like there's a lot to learn but you could simplify it and say like to book a job you need to be able to record it. You know, you need to have some skills, you need to be able to deliver it. You need to Have a client. And so, I mean, it's a pretty simple process. Now. There's, obviously, there's a lot around that, but so much of it too, you learn experientially. And I know that was my experience too, was I would book a job and a new thing would come up and I would learn what needed, you know, what I needed from that experience. So if you have 100 hours worth of content that you've watched, what are the chances that an hour 67 something's going to come up that references that thing from hour 67 and you actually remember it and are able to implement it Right. Then if nothing else, maybe you could go back and reference it. But I don't think you're going to keep 100 hours worth of things in your brain and be able to apply them.
- [53:17]
A
99% of people aren't even going to make it to hour 67, let's be honest. So you are very clearly entrepreneurial, which is been obvious throughout this. And I, and I love that. And I do think it's a big part of why you've been able to accomplish the things that you've accomplished. So from that entrepreneurial mindset, what is one of the best pieces of advice either that you have been given from an entrepreneurial standpoint or that you give maybe through your coaching or when you're working with students, but that piece of advice, that's going to help voice actors to think about this more like a business owner or like a veopreneur.
- [54:04]
C
Yeah. I mean, I think that keeps coming back to my mind is having. Having proper expectations and having thick skin and some of that. I mean, that definitely plays together because if you have the expectation that this is going to be easy and that it's not going to hurt you, at some point, you know, there's going to be something that's uncomfortable or something.
- [54:31]
A
I got a reality check for you.
- [54:33]
C
Yes. Yes. You know, there's going to be an experience that you have that you don't love. And if that is, if that is going to keep you, you know, be the thing that makes you say I quit, then it's, you know, just, you can save yourself the time, you know, because that thing is going to happen. And so, yeah, having having thick skin, recognizing that you are not your work, so you have value as a person. So if someone doesn't appreciate, I mean, you know, you could send the best email, the best research to email. And this is a fear that a lot of people have and you just get a terrible reply and it's gonna, I mean, it can ruin your day. It can ruin more than your day.
- [55:13]
A
Sure.
- [55:14]
C
So, so be aware of that. Like know that that's, that's a possibility.
- [55:18]
A
But you, it's almost inevitable if you send enough emails, like, it's going to happen for sure. And you can't let that one email derail you from sending any more. Which I think that's the other side of it. Right. So many let that one, they get that one bad email and they're like, I'm never sending another email ever again. So the thick skin is very solid advice.
- [55:41]
C
Yeah. And I think one way to kind of, to help with that is to, you know, I always think of, you know, when you're, when you're about to send an email and you're scared of that reply, think of how you're helping people. You know, like genuinely have your marketing be trying to serve people. And I think that's a mental thing that some people have to get past because marketing just feels dirty to them.
- [56:08]
A
Yep.
- [56:09]
C
But, but it's not like when you're giving, when you're offering something that someone needs, then it's, it's a helpful thing. And I've had, I'm so grateful because I've had replies to emails, cold emails, where someone replied and said, oh, this is so help. I was literally just making a voiceover roster for our next project. You saved me some time. Thank you. And that's what I always try to think of when I'm, when I'm marketing instead of, you know, being afraid that that one bad email is going to come back.
- [56:36]
A
If you're targeting the right people, then you are a solution provider. You gotta just make sure that you're targeting the right people. Now, I know that you have put together something that you want to offer to the Veopreneur community that's listening to the episode. So tell us about that and how we can get access to it.
- [56:54]
C
Sure. So I have a free mini course on doing outreach specifically for elearning. And you can get that by going to keriolsonvo.com Veopreneur okay.
- [57:06]
A
We'll put that in the show notes so that you'll be able to find that as well. But go and sign up and grab that elearning course because, hey, if you're going to learn how to do it, you might as well learn from somebody who's been on the other side of the curtain, so to speak, so you know exactly what they're looking for and how we need to talk to These people. Well, Carrie, this has been, this has been awesome. Your energy is contagious. I love that. But I love that. I love talking to somebody that's got that entrepreneurial mindset and gets that, that is such a big part of this business. Yes. Take the acting classes. Yes. Learn how to do voiceover. Yes. Get great equipment, get great demos, do all that sort of stuff. But man, if you come at this from a mindset of an entrepreneur and recognize that you're, you're starting a business and running a business, I just think you're going to go so much further. And so I love the fact that that's, you've clearly, that's where you've come from and it is obviously working for you. So thank you for sharing your time and for your wisdom and for all of the little nuggets that you dropped on this across a very wide range of topics today. I appreciate it.
- [58:07]
C
Oh, thank you, Mark. This has been awesome. It's been really motivating for me. And yeah, I mean, I love your emphasis on entrepreneurship and that you bring that angle to the voiceover business. So thank you for everything you do and thanks for having me.
- [58:21]
A
I hope you're feeling inspired after this episode and I really hope that you're feeling encouraged. Carrie's story is a powerful story because she is proof that with the right training, the right mindset and the right skillset, you can go out and start booking top notch work very quickly in this industry. And I think that's a myth that needed to be busted. So I really do hope you found that encouraging. If you picked up a nugget from this episode that really did motivate you, would you do me a favor? Would you share? Share it in your Instagram stories and make sure that you tag me, arc Scott and tag Carrie Harry Olsonvo and I'll make sure that those are in the show notes. We would love to hear what nuggets you picked up from this interview and if you could do me one other quick favor. Wherever you're enjoying the podcast, could you please take a minute to leave a five star review? I would truly appreciate it. Thanks so much for listening and I'll catch you on the next one.
- [59:16]
B
The Everyday Veopreneur podcast available everywhere. Find podcasts are given away for free.
- [59:22]
C
Mostly.
- [59:23]
D
We think you have a great website. Right? Well, make sure you host it at some place that doesn't suck. Hey, it's Brad Newman, fellow VEO pro for 28 years and owner of upper levelhosting.com People ask why us and that's simple. We make it easy, respect your time, save you money, and just make all the magic happen. You don't need to know all the tech stuff when it comes to hosting your website with we got you ask around. Tens of thousands of client interactions later and six years of amazing customer service and not a single negative complaint ever. Upper levelhosting.com end scene.
- [59:56]
B
And that's a wrap. Thanks for hanging in. Thanks for hanging out.
- [60:00]
C
Want more?
- [60:00]
B
Veopreneur Goodness. Jump online@veopreneur.com.