Get a “Great Sounding” Brand: Pro Voice Recording Tips

When you hear a recognizable voice on the radio, chances are you associate their sound (voice) with the brand of the radio station. What is the VOICE of your company voicemail system saying about your corporate brand?

Voicemail and automated phone systems have become an accepted way of doing business in the digital age. Companies often hire a professional voice to record the greetings, which are usually recorded in a single session.

If you decide to use a person on-staff to record the greetings for your company’s voicemail system, these simple tips can help to achieve more professional-sounding recordings:

Breathe Deeply: Before recording, take a deep breath: Inhale…. Exhale…. Lower those shoulders and relax. Continue to breathe from your belly, which will give your voice a more confident sound.

Smile: Smiling while recording the greetings will translate into a warmer, friendlier sound. It may feel funny to smile while recording, but it will make a big difference in the finished product.

Be Clear: Speak clearly at moderate, even pace. Ideally, the script will be written to efficiently route callers to their destination. It is often helpful to offer callers a prompt to repeat the message if necessary for longer greetings that offer several options to choose from (“press 2 for sales, 3 for customer service, etc..”).

Be Direct: When asking for a caller to leave their phone number, remind them to include the area code. You might want to ask them to speak slowly and repeat the phone number, or other critical information, twice.

Your voicemail greeting is often a first impression. A professional-sounding voice on your phone system can only add value to your corporate identity.

Lisa Osborne is a radio broadcaster and provider of voice-over services such as marketing-on hold and voicemail greetings for corporate phone systems, transit agencies and more. For more information, visit BroadcastEdge.net. Find Lisa on Twitter @Lisa_FM

Ramblings from the Twitterverse

About eight million people are now Twittering. Twitter, the popular “micro-blogging” social media, site enables Tweeters (Twitter users) to send Tweets, or small bursts of information (140 characters or less, including spaces) to their ‘followers’ (on Twitter, you follow others as you attract your own followers).

Twitter use has exploded over the past year, and every month usage seems to jump exponentially as more web users dive into the Twitter stream. Market research firm Neilson Online says Twitter grew by 1,689% from February 2008 to February 2009. Facebook still dwarfs Twitter in the number of users, but Twitter’s staggering growth is quite remarkable.

What’s to Tweet About?

Some tweeters are engaged in personal conversations, publicly (private messaging is also available in the form of DM, or direct message). While other tweeters use their Twitter ‘stream’ to deliver helpful, entertaining or informative information on a variety of topics. Positioning themselves as ambassadors or evangelists of their favorite topics, many of these tweeters are attracting dozens, hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of like-minded followers.

To find interesting Tweeples (those who tweet) to follow, browse or enter keywords on your favorite topics in a Twitter search directory such as WeFollow and Twellow.

Want to know what’s on the public’s mind right NOW?

Logging on to Twitter’s search engine enables you to take the pulse of the public at any given moment. Search.Twitter.com posts the ever-changing top trending keywords on its home page. And, you can enter any word into the search box to browse all the tweets on that topic, in real time.

Tech-savvy companies are monitoring Twitter Search to keep an eye on what’s being said about their brands. If a tweeter is complaining about a company’s product or service, it’s not unusual for the disgruntled tweeter to be contacted by a company representative (sometimes within minutes) interested in assisting with problem-solving.

It’s very important for tweeters to be aware that, even though the Twitterverse feels like a big party, what is being tweeted is archived for posterity. Even if you trash (delete) a tweet, it will still live on in the Twitter archives, available in Twitter searches. So, it’s always a good idea to think before you Tweet.

One Northern California-based tweeter learned this the hard way! After being offered a job at Cisco, the person tweeted about their dilemma of receiving a ‘fatty paycheck’ in exchange for a nightmare commute and work they would hate. See Olivier Blanchard's blog post "Losing Your Job in 140 Characters or Less."

It didn’t take long for this poor tweeter to be contacted by someone at Cisco, letting them know that they don’t appreciate employees who hate their jobs.

In shifting economic times, networking and establishing your own personal ‘brand’ is more important than ever. Twitter is packed with entrepreneurial-types, a few even becoming ‘Twitter celebrities,’ attracting hundreds of followers as they tweet about their passion or expertise. Once a large audience is amassed, could making money with Twitter be far behind?

Have questions about Twitter, or just getting started? Drop me a line with your Twitter questions.

Lisa Osborne, creator of Lisa.fm, Leading Edge Talk, is a radio broadcaster and media entrepreneur. Tweeting as @Lisa_FM, the astrology-themed @destinycards y en español @diosadeldestino.

What's 'In the Cards' for Barack Obama?

What's ahead for the Obama family now that Barack Obama is in the White House? Using an ancient system that blends astrology, numerology and the deck of 52 playing cards, Lisa Osborne, Your Goddess of Destiny, reveals what the Cards have to say about the auspicious life of the 44th U.S. President.

Barack Obama's 'Card' is 9♦ according to this ancient card science. Find out why his Presidency is part of a larger life plan.

Plus, Lisa reveals which former US President, a 7♣ card, may play a part in the Obama White House.

Listen Now online at Lisa.fm

Or, download the podcast: http://birthdaycards.podomatic.com/

Go from Gloom to Bloom for the Holidays

Life can be hectic any time of year. And things seem to get extra busy over the holidays. Getting together with loved ones and friends is a nice reminder of how much we have to be grateful for, but sometimes the extra planning, baking, shopping and other activities associated with this time of year can be overwhelming for kids and grown ups.

The Lisa.fm Christmas Channel, a holiday-themed talk radio show at www.lisa.fm, offers a variety of tips, interviews and features that can help make the holidays more enjoyable for you and the entire family. Whether it’s how to avoid overindulging at holiday parties, to planning fun activities, and really being in the NOW enough to enjoy this special time with loved ones, the Lisa.fm Christmas Channel offers entertaining solutions.

If you have children (or you are just trying to be a better parent to yourself), tune-in to ‘Gloom to Bloom,’ segment at Lisa.fm The mother/daughter team of Michiko and Grace Rolek offer simple tips for how to turnaround a stressful or tense situation, through a simple attitude adjustment, how to go from ‘Gloom to Bloom.’

Michiko is the great granddaughter of the first Zen Master to come to America, and her daughter, Grace, is an actress and voice over artist who has parts in Disney and other cartoons, including the role of the ‘shy bunny’ in the Kung Fu Panda short film, “The Secrets of the Furious Five.” The 20 minute story is included as a bonus disk in the Kung Fu Panda movie DVD.

In order to assist Grace with the stress of auditioning for parts, and working in the entertainment industry, Michiko has created a series of mindfulness techniques she calls “Zen Mommy and Me.”

Go from Gloom to Bloom

One way to turn around a stressful situation is to go from ‘Gloom to Bloom,’ using calm, deep breathing as an attitude adjustment. Michiko calls Gloom to Bloom “a mood magic tool… where we use mindfulness to non-judgmentally observe ourselves getting mad or sad, and choose to mentally shift from gloomy frustration to blooming fascination with the potential of turning an obstacle or any difficulty into a learning opportunity.”

The deep breathing allows you to center and readjust your attitude in any stressful situation. Of course, it may take a few breaths to get beyond a truly stressful situation.

“Take as many breaths as needed, breathe a little deeper and slower, you will start to calm down and be centered, and see things differently,” suggests Michiko.

“Just like Aladdin and Jasmine on their magic carpet ride, they see everything in a new way because they’re at a higher viewpoint,” adds eleven-year old Grace.

Go through the Gloom to Bloom exercise with Michiko and Grace, and tune-in to other Zen Mommy & Me segments, click on the “Lisa.fm Christmas Channel” button at http://www.lisa.fm.

Or, here’s the direct link to the podcast: http://lisafm.podomatic.com/entry/2008-12-02T10_47_38-08_00