As a person with a passion for marketing and promotion, I constantly analyze all forms of advertising – broadcast commercials, billboards, magazines and even direct mail pieces -- to see what I can apply to my voice-over business. It’s especially beneficial to examine how competitors choose to hawk similar commodities in a full marketplace.

In this case, both jewelers both specialize in diamond wedding sets and are continuous radio advertisers. Both enterprises utilize the company owners as the voice talent in their ads. Both establishments sell upscale jewelry, and Jeweler B also sells Swiss watches. They are true to their brand in their advertising.

Beyond these similarities, though, they run very different types of ads. First, they appear to be targeting different market segments. Jeweler A seems intended for those who appreciate and are willing to pay for elegance, while Jeweler B seems to be directed at the price-conscious crowd.

Jeweler A has a distinctive nasal voice. He always talks about new or featured product lines, gift ideas, his money-back guarantee, etc. Sometimes he relates a story based in a testimonial. He quietly talks about the benefits and pleasures of shopping with him and consistently gives you reasons why you may want to do so.

The ads for Jeweler B often feature the 2 men who own and run the business. Sometimes they mention advantages of shopping with them, like the number of graduate gemologists on staff and their longevity in the market. They make jokes like they want to appear that they didn’t think about the spot in advance. I suppose they want to convey the ultra-casual atmosphere of their stores where the sales people wear jeans and t-shirts. 

In other ads, Jeweler B airs fake game shows where one of the contestants is someone poorly imitating Jeweler A. The nasal voice is always accentuated, and the imitator is always made to sound stupid and bumbling.

When listening to the ads from Jeweler A, you would never think that another jewelry store even exists. You certainly wouldn’t think that the owner is worried about competition in a saturated market. 

Since Jeweler B often mocks Jeweler A in their ads, it’s obvious that they are keenly aware and perhaps even afraid of their competition. In fact, many of their ads border on personal attacks although they are presumably meant to be humorous. On a personal level, I do not want to deal with anyone who makes themselves sound or feel better at the expense of other people.

Every marketing book will tell you to focus on the benefits for the target market in your communications with them. Jeweler A consistently highlights in his ads those things important to his target market, where Jeweler B concentrates on them only half of the time. 

The lesson for voice-over artists is that we also need to continuously highlight the benefits of working with us.

These benefits are also known as your competitive advantages. I have a few thoughts on that topic as well, but that sounds like another article for another day. :)

In the meantime, spend your spare moments improving your own skills rather than worrying about, or worse, maligning those of your competitors. Polishing your skills will enable you to sparkle like a brilliant diamond in your marketing efforts and will make your life as a voice talent all the more useful.

Morley Safer reported on the work habits of the generation known as “the millenials” – those born between 1980 and 1995. The following direct quotes are points raised in the story:

• They were raised by doting parents who told them they are special.

• They have climbed Mount Everest. They've been down to Machu Picchu to help excavate it. But they've never punched a time clock. They have no idea what it's like to actually be in an office at nine o'clock, with people handing them work.

• Zaslow says that the coddling virus continues to eat away even when junior goes off to college. "I heard from several professors who said, a student will come up after class and say, 'I don't like my grade, and my mom wants to talk to you, here's the phone,'" he says. "And the students think it's like a service. 'I deserve an A because I'm paying for it. What are you giving me a C for?'"

• And dear old mom isn’t just your landlord; she is your agent as well. "Career services departments are complaining about the parents who are coming to update their child's resume. And in fact, you go to employers, and they're starting to express concern now with the parents who will phone HR, saying, 'But my little Susie or little Johnny didn't get the performance evaluation that I think they deserve,'" Crane says.

I’m sure every generation thinks that it is the one with hard-working folks, and everyone younger is lazy. I also believe that 60 Minutes targets an older crowd. Many of the statements are generalizations that don’t apply to an entire group of people. Still, I found one kernel of truth in the report: some parents are entirely too immersed in their adult childrens’ lives.

I receive a steady stream of e-mails and calls from people who want to start a career in voice-over. I frankly was shocked when I received the first message from a mother who asked for advice for her son, who was in college. It was the first such message, but it wasn’t the last.

My first thought when receiving inquiries from parents is:

Why doesn’t Johnny or Susie contact me on their own, or, better still, read a book about voice-over?

A couple of recent situations made me think of this phrase. I believe that you can achieve any goal you set for yourself ASSUMING that you are willing to do the work necessary to achieve it. I also know that no one can do your work for you, and no shortcuts exist on your journey.

I have previously commented and voice-over coach and actor Peter Rofe noted in an article this week:

There are a lot of people who want to get into voice-over work

 because they have the misconception

that it's a get-rich-quick scheme, that they can stay at home,

record their voice in their pajamas, unshaven in a T-shirt ...

and make lots and lots of money.

 Now in some cases, that's true, but usually for well-established voice artists.

I frequently receive calls and e-mails from people who want to get started in voice-over, study with me, request demo critiques, ask my opinion on teachers and classes, etc. A few weeks ago, I saw a message on a forum where I’m a regular contributor. Like so many other people who contact me personally, this person wanted to get into voice-overs because she has always been told that she had a nice voice. A forum member directed her to search for my posts, read what I had written and perhaps send a private message to me if she still had questions.

At 12:24pm, she responded that she would take those actions.

At 12.30pm, I received a private message from this same person. She wrote that she posted the question in the forum, and someone suggested that she contact me.