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Bob Bergen · 12-10-2007, 07:07 PM

Well, here's my advertising marketing advice yet again. I've left this on other threads, so I'm expecting a nice residual for this rerun!! ;-)

Here's the deal when it comes to marketing to anyone. Most people don't listen to demos. Sorry, but that's the fact. When it comes to a demo, the best way to get listened to is to be with an agent who has listed your demo on their Voicebank page. When a perspective buyer is looking for something specific, your agent can direct them to your demo on Voicebank so they can hear your style/read. Very few buyers just surf Voicebank randomly looking for talent. So having an agent list you is oh so important.

So, back to ad agencies. Yes, you can market directly to advertising writers/producers. Where do you find them? The Red Books lists all things advertising. It's expensive, and you can purchase this online at Red Books - Home Page

Most agents have The Red Books and the good ones allow their clients to thumb through it for marketing purposes.

Some agents will do an email blast with their client's demos to the advertising buyers they most often deal with. This is a great way to market to the advertisers since the buyers know the agent's email blast is not spam.

But let's say you decide to do this marketing yourself, without the luxury of having an agent emailing to the buyers. The Red Books will list both mailing addresses and email addresses of ad execs. Should you spend the money sending out CDs or email an mp3 of your demo, knowing that most will be thrown away, dumped into the spam folder, or just not listened to????

I don't know.

But let's say you decide to send out 500 emails to ad execs. Let's say 499 of these execs dump your email. But possibly, one listens. And he likes your read. And he thinks you are perfect for his next big car TV ad campaign. And he hires you.

Why?? Because you took a risk. You gambled with your time and your talent. And because of your gamble, 499 people said "no," but one person said "yes" and changed your life.

So, now you have a big car campaign running on TV. It runs for one 13 week cycle, paying you oodles in residuals. And you add this spot to your demo.

You now resend to the 499 that turned you down or didn't listen from your last submission. This time, 10 listen. Maybe 4 of them know you as the new big voice flavor of the day doing that new car campaign. And of the 4, one of them thinks you are perfect for their new detergent TV campaign. They hire you.

You now have 2 national TV campaigns making you a slew of money.

Why? Because you went through the Red Books. You sent out 500 emails to ad execs. You risked rejection and spam dumping. And 499 of them didn't listen or threw you in the trash.

But one person changed your life.

Etc.

So-should you market to advertising companies?????????????????

There's no way of knowing if you should.

But it could change your life!!!!!!

12-10-2007, 07:07 PM	#5 (permalink)
Bob Bergen User Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 145	Well, here's my advertising marketing advice yet again. I've left this on other threads, so I'm expecting a nice residual for this rerun!! ;-) Here's the deal when it comes to marketing to anyone. Most people don't listen to demos. Sorry, but that's the fact. When it comes to a demo, the best way to get listened to is to be with an agent who has listed your demo on their Voicebank page. When a perspective buyer is looking for something specific, your agent can direct them to your demo on Voicebank so they can hear your style/read. Very few buyers just surf Voicebank randomly looking for talent. So having an agent list you is oh so important. So, back to ad agencies. Yes, you can market directly to advertising writers/producers. Where do you find them? The Red Books lists all things advertising. It's expensive, and you can purchase this online at Red Books - Home Page Most agents have The Red Books and the good ones allow their clients to thumb through it for marketing purposes. Some agents will do an email blast with their client's demos to the advertising buyers they most often deal with. This is a great way to market to the advertisers since the buyers know the agent's email blast is not spam. But let's say you decide to do this marketing yourself, without the luxury of having an agent emailing to the buyers. The Red Books will list both mailing addresses and email addresses of ad execs. Should you spend the money sending out CDs or email an mp3 of your demo, knowing that most will be thrown away, dumped into the spam folder, or just not listened to???? I don't know. But let's say you decide to send out 500 emails to ad execs. Let's say 499 of these execs dump your email. But possibly, one listens. And he likes your read. And he thinks you are perfect for his next big car TV ad campaign. And he hires you. Why?? Because you took a risk. You gambled with your time and your talent. And because of your gamble, 499 people said "no," but one person said "yes" and changed your life. So, now you have a big car campaign running on TV. It runs for one 13 week cycle, paying you oodles in residuals. And you add this spot to your demo. You now resend to the 499 that turned you down or didn't listen from your last submission. This time, 10 listen. Maybe 4 of them know you as the new big voice flavor of the day doing that new car campaign. And of the 4, one of them thinks you are perfect for their new detergent TV campaign. They hire you. You now have 2 national TV campaigns making you a slew of money. Why? Because you went through the Red Books. You sent out 500 emails to ad execs. You risked rejection and spam dumping. And 499 of them didn't listen or threw you in the trash. But one person changed your life. Etc. So-should you market to advertising companies????????????????? There's no way of knowing if you should. But it could change your life!!!!!!