VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Philip Banks]

The calculation involves seeing what you've done in the year to date in terms of business, the number of auditions you've done, the success rate and doing a quick comparison. The outcome is accurate but I won't be a statistical/how to work it out bore.

Here's my number and it genuinely floored me. I am wasting my time auditioning for jobs paying less than $80,000. the interesting part about this exercise for me was that I went out of my way to try to prove I wasn't wasting my time. If you're trying to prove yourself right then human nature being what it is then one tries to put a spin on things and the spin will always favour of the outcome you want.

I'm a lazy git and now I have the evidence to support the fact that my laziness is part of my business model

[Melanie Haynes]

I've become a lot more selective about the jobs I audition for as well....however, my threshold is a bit lower than yours.....

[Deirdre]

Here in the states, a constant job is weeding out the guys who only want to spend $500 on a job that would pay $50,000 in the UK.
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DBCooperVO.com
IMDB

[Philip Banks]

So I've noticed. Never mind Pause Coach or Silent Acting Animation Seminar there's a living to made by someone simply going to all the trawling audition sites, hacking into them and deleting the sh*te auditions. Do the people making such audition requests that "land of the free" is a figure of speech?

A few weeks ago I was sent an from an American source for an audition for a national UK radio commerical. Fee $500. I had to point out that if I waived my minimum session fee and the ISDN Ad agency present during the session premium the $500 would get the ad on 6 small stations.

[ballenberg]

Okay, here's the thing. I'm no statistician, no mathematician.

And I don't doubt Philip's calculations.

But I fear that for the bulk of us, who aren't making those Philip-sized earnings, the message that auditions aren't worthwhile is not a helpful one.

And those new to the business who see that message may well get the wrong idea. This business is solidly based on auditions. Then more auditions. And then some more. And in case you haven't gotten my drift: More auditions.

Every single successful NYC voice talent spends his days going from one audition to the next. And many, many others do this as well.

It seems that Philip has the good fortune to get the work he gets without auditioning.

But if readers get the idea that is the normal path, or that to audition for a gig worth less than $80,000 is not worthwhile , they'r getting the wrong message.

Philip's career, while clearly enviable, is far, far from what most will ever experience.

[Lance Blair]

What I took from what Philip wrote is the more you chase, the more you'll be chasing. The more you make yourself desirable, the more people will come to you with quality work.

Some people are destined to have to hustle, some are destined to have not have to hustle. Same is true in any business. Some guys get the plush jobs because they have the IT factor, other people have to bust it 24/7 to get to middle management. It's human nature.

Remember in school some kids got straight As effortlessly, while some had to do homework and extra tutoring all the time just to tread water - and they were all doing the same studies.

Philip's floor for auditioning usefulness is $80k. More power to him. What's important is knowing what one's own floor is. Mine is considerably far far lower than that, but I have a floor. Everyone needs to figure it out whether it's 200, 500, 1000, or 3000 bucks - based on your business model and standard of living.
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Skype: globalvoiceover
and now, http://lanceblairvo.com the blog is there now too!

[Philip Banks]

Bill's absolutely right and whilst what I wrote is was intended to be read with a wry smile, there is a serious side.

Do not fear the numbers and do not be distracted by meaningless numbers.

If you've done 100 auditions and as a result NO JOBS... You need to know.

If you notice your business is up 68% the number is meaningless if last year you earned $124.67

[Lizden]

Here we go...Math & VO again!

Seriously though, 2 of the most USEFUL bits of information I have gotten from our community here was:

- Have a weekly billing goal (Thank you Moe!)
- If you make $50,000 per year in VO you are in the top 5% of the working VO world. (Thank you Banksey!)

These two bits have helped me grow my business because they were CONCRETE numbers that I could shoot for and use as MY gauge for the growth of my business.

Although my "audition floor" as Lance put it, is also a bit lower than Banksey's it has risen a bit in the past few years, as has my income.

I check my average weekly billing number every week (Quickbooks is great for keeping track of my numbers) and it helps me focus and figure out what I need to do to keep my numbers up. That means looking at the auditions that are on the various sites I'm on and seeing what's worth it or not to audition for.
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Liz de Nesnera O.A.V. ~ Livin' The VO Dream!
English/French Bilingual VO w/ ISDN
HireLiz.com / liz@hireliz.com

[bobsouer]

My audition floor flexes a bit depending on from whom the audition comes. For example from one repeat client, I don't even both asking what the fees are when the auditions come in. Some end up being small. Others are multi-thousands of dollars. The fact that I do the auditions they send me means I get the shot at (and at least some of the time, book) those multi-thousand dollar jobs.

For Voice123.com, my audition floor used to be $500 as well as a job I was interested in doing, but this year has risen to $600 and still has to be a job I'm interested in doing. I book enough of jobs every year by using these criteria to make solidly in 5 figures, and thus it's well worth it for me to renew each year.

From my agents, I generally audition for what they send me. However, I spend a maximum of 90 minutes a day doing auditions. That's because between half and three-quarters of my income is earned from repeat clients who pretty much never ask me to audition. They're the people I spend my day keeping happy.
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Be well,
Bob Souer (just think of lemons)
The second nicest guy in voiceover.
+1-724-613-2749
Source Connect, phone patch, pony express

[todd ellis]

here's one - why is it that - even though i'm really busier than i need to be doing work i like doing within my budget range - i FEEL like i should be auditioning more? wait - i think i just figured it out ... i need to raise my rates. cull the bottom of the client list to make more room at the top. thank you all for your help. i feel much better now.
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"i know philip banks": todd ellis
who's/on/1st?

[Lizden]

We are here but to serve
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Liz de Nesnera O.A.V. ~ Livin' The VO Dream!
English/French Bilingual VO w/ ISDN
HireLiz.com / liz@hireliz.com

[Melanie Haynes]

Liz, thanks for the numbers. I hadn't seen those before, so I feel even more thankful that I'm such good company! Always nice to find out you're doing even better than you thought you were!

Bob, good rule that I like to follow, too - sort of the "dance with the one that brung ya" school of thought....Keep the repeat clients happy, treat the new clients well, and then just take care of any appealing/worthwhile auditions after that.

[Mandy Nelson]

I'm with Todd - I don't feel like I do enough auditions but that could be because I, like Philip, am lazy. Having to duct tape the children every time a script comes down the line is just a hassle so I don't audition for things like telephony. I will demo a few voices for several of my clients and often, I get paid for those. It keeps everyone happy. At least, that's how I'm spinning it.
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006 member of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Mic. Bonded by sound.

Manfillappsoc: The Mandy and Philip mutual appreciation Society. Who's in your network?

Have you seen my mic closet? ~ me to my future husband

[Philip Banks]

Several years ago I was asked by an agent to audition for a part in a BBC TV series called Crimewatch.

I was asked a number of question by the Director, Producer and Executive Producer. It was all very pleasant.

The Exec read my vibes right.

"Philip, do you actually WANT the job?"

"I wasn't sure when I came in but now I am. No, not really."

[Lee Gordon]

I'd like to cull the bottom of my list but many of those are people who have been with me for many years and helped me get my feet planted in the business. In most of those cases, I have never seen fit to raise their rates even if market conditions would now justify doing so. I guess it's my version of a "Customer Loyalty Rewards Program."
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Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice