So much for V123 understanding our complaints about ratings

[avitoots]

I am so tired of debating this, not because I think they're GRRRREAT but because I believe it is a lost cause. You've got a bunch of geeks who believe that numerical formulas can take the place of a human being which includes all kinds of nuances that can't be converted to a numerical formula and it just ain't gonna happen no matter how they manipulate the numbers. The only way they're truly going to believe what everyone is saying is when they no longer can maintain a decent level of membership and/or the membership is of a calibre that their oh so important and valuable voice seekers wouldn't consider no matter how desperate they would be to voice a job. But I got to say that I enjoy reading all of the postings because you guys provide little humorous gems like Joe's car fire analogy.

Arlene

[JoeActor]

Originally Posted by avitoots

But I got to say that I enjoy reading all of the postings because you guys provide little humorous gems like Joe's car fire analogy.
Arlene

Hey! Someone reads my posts!
;-)

Thanks Arlene...

Off to put out my car,
Joe

[avitoots]

You are too funny.

I'm off to be a facilitator for a scavenger hunt. Maybe someone will find V123's customer service.


Arlene

[dnegrey]

I'm with Arlene about enjoying the posts. Thanks for injecting some humour into the silliness happening over at that company

Joe, I've been amazed at your intrinsic understanding of this! I've been peeking around the mic and noticing your posts.

BTW, Grant, how long have you been waiting for your refund?

[JoeActor]

Originally Posted by dnegrey

Joe, I've been amazed at your intrinsic understanding of this! I've been peeking around the mic and noticing your posts.

Thanks Dana... it's a double-edged sword. In this case, knowledge only serves to worsen my outlook.

And that's why I look away (eeeck! gruesome!),
Joe J Thomas
www.JoeActor.com

P.S. anyone else get the latest "Wow! SmartCast is loved by all!" email? They're inviting comments on the blog... as long as they are positive ones, that is...

[AlexisAdair]

That "Frank Frederick" comment read like paid shill if ever there were one. I wonder how many years' free subscription he got for that plug. Checked out his profile, his demos are good, he claims to have trademarked "The Voice", though apparently not registered the trademark. Registered trademarks/service marks for "The Voice" belong to a Christian magazine, a retirement living TV station, Billy Moore productions, and Micro-Users Software Exchange.

The quote is simply too perfect in terms of Voice123's own propaganda and exactly what they want people to believe their service provides. Frank claims you get "feedback from clients" which helps you discern what they really want. But that 1 to 5 rating system does no such thing. You have no idea whether you just didn't fit that project but were otherwise good, whether you gave a good or bad read, whether you quoted too high... You get less than no guidance from the ratings, and you can't possibly make changes to what you're doing based on them. He also claims he's getting *more* and *higher paying* leads. I haven't heard from *anyone* on the boards that they're getting either of those things. I'm certainly not. It looks like I'm getting lots of leads, but the fact is that well over half, maybe even 2/3 to 3/4, are closed before I even see them. Even if I got to answer *all* the leads I'm theoretically getting, it still isn't more than before the switch. V123 isn't getting in any more leads overall than they did before the switch, at least not beyond the average steady upward trend they've been seeing over the past couple years. So by all practical measures, I got a lot more leads before the switch than I do now. And the quality or pay level hasn't changed any either. There are just as many, if not more, lowballers as there were before the switch.

So either Frank is flat-out lying, or he has some special service level the rest of us don't have. Maybe he's getting a free trial of the "higher" subscription level Alex talked about... In exchange for shilling for the service.

And they keep hyping that "higher audition to booking ratio" thing. Honestly, do they have any *proof* of that? They haven't offered any evidence yet that it's true, and it still doesn't affect the fact that it's a completely meaningless statistic! As I've said before, there are TONS of ways in which you can improve your audition-to-booking ratio, but LOSE JOBS and LOSE MONEY. It's a statistic that is completely meaningless to a voiceover talent's bottom line.

Argghhhh. I don't get anything other than p'd off when I think about the whole mess, so for the most part I try to avoid the topic, though obviously I felt compelled to jump in on this one. That e-mail was beyond a joke, and really a bit insulting, to boot.

In case it's not already abundantly clear, for any newcomers, I STRONGLY recommend AGAINST joining V123. Ever. (Unless they completely obliterate SmartCast and go back to the old system, which ain't gonna happen.) STAY AWAY!!!

[K_Miller]

P.S. anyone else get the latest "Wow! SmartCast is loved by all!" email? They're inviting comments on the blog... as long as they are positive ones, that is...

Sounds like the cafeteria special of the day is "Jonestown Kool-aid"....

[avitoots]

I didn't get that e-mail since I don't get ANY e-mails from V123. My fault, doncha know. Having grown up and currently living in Chicago, I'll bet he has a classic Chicago/Illinois relationship with V123. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, taking care of those who support you no matter what you do, no questions asked. Based on my experiences with the administration of V123, I am always suspect of anyone who spouts like a Yellowstone geyser positively about Smart[gag-again]Cast.

Arlene

[JoeActor]

Originally Posted by avitoots

I didn't get that e-mail since I don't get ANY e-mails from V123. My fault, doncha know. Having grown up and currently living in Chicago, I'll bet he has a classic Chicago/Illinois relationship with V123. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, taking care of those who support you no matter what you do, no questions asked. Based on my experiences with the administration of V123, I am always suspect of anyone who spouts like a Yellowstone geyser positively about Smart[gag-again]Cast.
Arlene

Sorry Arlene...

Here's a link to the blog page for the e-mail notice:
How Is Voice123 SmartCast Doing?

... and the e-mail itself:

Subject: How Is Voice123 SmartCast Doing?

It is doing great [insert your name here]. The statistics speak by themselves:

The average number of auditions or proposals each project receives in the New Voice123 is 32, significantly down from 100+ in the old Voice123. Having projects with too many auditions was the most common complain we received from talents or voice producers, and voice seekers. This reduction is great news for the entire industry!

Voice seekers are now opening more than 80% of all the auditions they get, up from only 34% in the old system. This means less waste of your time and more chances of being heard if you are a premium subscriber.
The end result? Less competition between talents and voice producers on each project and a higher audition-to-booking ratio.

We will publish more stats soon!

Here is what other Voice123 users are saying:

"The old Voice123 was interesting, I would get a nibble for my services once in a while and the clients were all trying to get a deal on how little they could pay for a great voice over artist (such as myself) to create the perfect production. Then along came the new Voice123 and changed everything I was used to seeing in the way of leads for my business. Higher paying gigs, many more leads, and feedback from clients which helped me discern what a client really wanted. It is a change for the future of the online voice over marketplace."
Frank Frederick - Voice Over Talent and Coach

"The website looks a lot better than before, you guys have done a great job, we received lots of very good auditions, and the whole process was great. Thank you."
Norman Chung - Voice Seeker

Do you have a success story with the New Voice123 you would like to share? Share it by posting a comment on our blog.

Regards,

by Alex Torrenegra
Leader and Co-founder

From the title, I thought it might be a survey, but once I read the usual drivel I was thrust back into the real world. You know. The one where everything is exactly what they say it is... as long as you don't question it...

After all, "The statistics speak by themselves"

We've always been at war with Oceana,
Joe J Thomas
www.JoeActor.com

[Lee Gordon]

In fairness, the fine folks at Voice123 did add a nice new feature today in response to user complaints. From now on, once you accept a SmartCast invitation to submit an audition, you have a full hour to record and tweak your custom demo and otherwise prepare your reply and your material will still be accepted even if the seeker has reached his requested number of auditions.