Voice Acting

Which Social Networks Are Worth Your Time?

Tara Parachuk | September 1, 2017

An illuminated cloud sits in the centre of the image with lines reaching out to various elements - on the left, a symbol of a folder attaches to another symbol of a smart phone, which is connected to a link symbol. The folder is also linked to an icon of a computer monitor. On the right, the cloud connects to a stacked cylinder which is connected to icons for film, pictures, and music. From the top right, the cloud is connected to speech bubbles. Various other image-less circles are connected throughout the image.

You know you need to have an online presence… but where should you invest your time?

Is one platform better than the others for your career, or is it a case of using the right tool for the job?

In this article

  1. The Solution Should be Tailored to You  
  2. Separate the Personal from the Professional on Facebook
  3. Give a Peek Behind the Scenes with Twitter
  4. Leverage Instagram’s Video Capabilities to Put Your Voice on Display
  5. LinkedIn Is the Place to Focus on Potential Clients
  6. Basic Tips Across All Channels
  7. The Cost of Using Social Media Versus the Benefit  

The Solution Should be Tailored to You  

A lot of people wonder which social media tools are best for building a business. When it comes to voice over — which can be fairly isolating work from day to day — social media is a great way to network, build relationships, and get some exposure.

While it might seem like there’s a simple solution for social media use, it’s a little more complicated than just suggesting you should use one and not the other. One site cannot meet all of your needs; think of them like pieces of a whole. Your best bet is to use different platforms for what they’re best suited for.     

Separate the Personal from the Professional on Facebook

With over a decade under its belt, and billions of users, most people you want to know or do know are on Facebook. When using this channel for business purposes, you should create a separate professional page. This will come across as more professional, it’s more public, and it has more functionality for you.  

Facebook is best suited to connect you with special interest groups, such as those for the voice acting community. As such, this platform can be great to network with other voice actors and join groups as you see fit. It’s also a good place to encourage reviews from your clients, or from your students (if you’ve been voice coaching) to establish trust in the service you provide. Along the same line, Facebook is a great place to mention some of the top clients that you’ve worked with.

Give a Peek Behind the Scenes with Twitter

Twitter, more than the other social media sites, likes to keep things short and sweet. In that spirit, your bio should be brief and your tone can reveal a little more personality than you might display on Facebook or LinkedIn.  

The best use for Twitter is to promote what it is that you’re doing – showing snippets of your day or using a hashtag to indicate what event you’re attending. It’s also a place where people come together to learn about breaking news and events. Knowing this, you can highlight stories of interest to you because chances are, if you’re passionate about it, others in the voice acting community will be too.

Leverage Instagram’s Video Capabilities to Put Your Voice on Display

As a social media platform that’s all about visuals, understanding how voice actors can make use of Instagram isn’t always obvious, however, leveraging video capabilities will allow you to showcase your voice. You can also use it to give a behind-the-scenes glimpse at your skill set.

It’s still a good idea to keep your content concise, though Instagram captions do provide a place to elaborate. In this way, Instagram also offers yet another way to share stories that showcase your brand as a voice actor. For instance, you may share tips on how you keep your vocal health in check, the studio equipment that you can’t live without, and the vigorous training programs that you’ve embarked upon, which make you a tour de force in the studio.

You can also create a business Instagram account to include calls to action for prospective clients.

LinkedIn Is the Place to Focus on Potential Clients

When doing anything on LinkedIn, it’s best to remember this is the most professional of the social media sites covered here; your content should be focused on potential clients. It’s a good place to include links to your demos, your resume, and completed projects. It’s also important that you keep everything up to date. If you have a Voices profile, there are likely a lot of pieces of information that could be transferable (and if you don’t have one, you can sign up here)!

Overall, your focus on this site should be showcasing your professional personality.

Basic Tips Across All Channels

Be consistent with your brand and imagery. Have a good headshot and use it across all your social media. The same goes for usernames. If you can use your first and last name, that’s great. If that’s taken and you need to add “vo” to it, do so across all channels.

Include your social media information on your website, and include your website on your social media; cross-promote your social media channels with one another, to increase your brand’s visibility.  

Keep in mind that the time you put in will often reflect the returns you see. Engaging is important. Social media is about building a community, so take time to reply and comment.  

While it might be tempting, don’t list every client you’ve worked with — pick your top few favorites.  

Finally, don’t post the same thing across all platforms. Content should be tailored to each site.

The Cost of Using Social Media Versus the Benefit  

There are always new tools popping up and new means of marketing yourself in an online space. The important thing to weigh is the cost (your time) versus the benefit (more exposure and possibly more work). In that case, it makes sense to invest that time where it will yield the most results — usually with the more popular sites. It can be easy, especially from the safety of a keyboard, to voice controversial opinions, but keep in mind that once you post something, it never truly goes away. Remember to use the same imagery and brand across all the channels you use so that your brand remains consistent. It may take some time, but if you leverage these sites correctly, you can use them to grow your business.  

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Comments

  • Avatar for Demetria Bridges
    Demetria Bridges
    September 7, 2017, 6:04 pm

    Social media is a must when it comes to awareness and branding. However, even LinkedIn viewers are on a time crunch and if you’re profile isn’t wowing them within seconds, they’ll move on. I have found that word of mouth through face to face connections is worth more than its weight in gold. Ppl want to work with others they can authentically relate to. As far as social media is concerned, making authentic comments instead of just hitting the “like” button makes a greater impact. Despite the fast paced world we live in, it is relationships that matter and bring success.

    Reply
  • Avatar for Filip Zafirovski
    Filip Zafirovski
    September 8, 2017, 12:08 am

    Great points on Linkedin, Twitter and Instagram.

    However, what is your take on Pinterest?

    Kind regards,
    Filip

    Reply
  • Avatar for Elyse
    Elyse
    September 18, 2017, 6:13 pm

    Hi Filip,

    Thanks for your question! We suggest that in order to use Pintrest as a voice talent, you would need to use a different approach as it’s not a site that lends itself well to audio. Generally, visual content that links to engaging written content does best on this platform. We also don’t have enough research to indicate that this is a place that voice seekers go about finding talent.

    Reply