Sound Bites Newsletter and Internet Marketing

COACHING- Recording and Interviews

Hello and welcome to this weeks coaching. A special welcome to all our new members.

Recording interviews with your piers or leaders in your field is one of the easiest and most fun ways to build content for your web page.

Just today I have been contacted by a couple of people to do interviews and I am more than happy to do them because it gives me exposure and also I think they are a great way to help others.

So lets have a look at what's involved in today's coaching on creating interviews.

Preparing to record your audio

In making recordings, the goal is always to get a clear, undistorted speech signal with as little noise as possible. Recording interviews requires a little more preparation but the principles are the same

Noise that will detract from or ruin signal quality for acoustic analysis can include:

Any kind of environmental noise
Speaker movement, especially if movement impacts the microphone or an object close to the microphone or phone.
Voice overlap between speakers
Noise from the computer system during transfer to computer

The best way to minimize environmental noise is to record in a sound-proofed or sound-treated room. To reduce the effects of noise in an ordinary room:

Choose a quiet location
Cover large reverberant surfaces with blankets or cloths
Unplug electrical appliances
Close doors and windows
Turn off lights and fans or air conditioning
Remove anything that ticks, buzzes, bangs, rattles, squeaks, hisses, or otherwise makes itself heard
Always make a one minute black recording to see if there are any noises you have missed.
Make sure you log off any software application like chat programs etc. There is nothing worse than almost getting to the end of your recording and your mail or chat program pipes in with a ding or what ever.

When recording speech form texts it is usually possible to satisfy all, or most of the above conditions. However, to record speech in "natural" situations, speakers often must be allowed to move around and interact with other people, with objects, or with their surroundings. This makes it substantially more difficult to get optimal recording quality.

Software you can use to record is Audacity a very good free recording and editing studio. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ Make sure you read the download instructions so you can export to MP3 files.

Tips on delivery:

Make it conversational rather than professional. What some people consider professional often resembles theatre type acting (which seems fake). Where as conversational speaking resembles movie type acting (which seems real).
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Be you. That doesn't mean you remain where you are without making improvement. But optimize what you presently possess. Most of what people consider detriments (poor voice, not funny, etc.) can be developed into advantages.

Pace Tip

Develop awareness. You should be able to feel your pace and sense when you're going too fast or too slow. Feel your breathing and your heart rate internally as you speak.
Use pauses to highlight your point and also to add a little variety.

Last but not least is vary your tone so people will stay interested. Exaggerate your voice a little and it will sound so much better. This means increase and decrease the volume a little and be a little expressive in your talk.

Microphone Techniques.

If you do a search on the web for this topic you will find thousands of pages and it can become very confusing and complicated so I am going to make this very simple for you without any confusion.

Plug it in and do some tests.

I suggest a head phone mic for a couple of reasons. Firstly if you want to read off the screen it gives you hands free to be able to scroll through your text. This means no scuffling of paper in the background. Secondly you will always be the same distance from the mic so you wont have to worry about volume variations so much.

Now the fanatic audio guys will say you can't get a good sound from them but from my experience you will get a good enough sound and if later you want to get more technical then go out and get the more expensive mic etc.

Obvious points to remember when using amplification of any kind:

Pointing the microphone towards a speaker when you are too close causes a high pitched noise called FEEDBACK.

Having the volume too high will cause FEEDBACK and DISTORTION.

Incorrect wiring & connections can cause electric shocks, equipment breakdowns, horrible humming or even pick up the radio!

The most common mistake is holding the microphone too close or too far from your mouth. This results in your vocal sounding muffled and distorted, too distant or no vocal sound at all. With a little practice this is easy to rectify and should become a part of your rehearsal routine.

To avoid distortion, ensure the mic is held no closer than 2 to 3 inches from your mouth during normal vocalization. You will have to experiment a little as the distance is dependant on the individuals natural power and ability to project.

Gradually move the microphone away as you continue to talk or sing and listen to the effect - at what point does the vocal sound start to fade? - That is your furthest point to remember. The optimum distance for clarity is between the shortest and furthest points.

There are times when you will be using more volume, hitting higher or lower notes or almost whispering. Practice using different distances and positions to see how using the mic creates different effects.

Avoid moving the microphone closer to your mouth when aiming for high or more powerful notes and practise using the microphone to enhance or lessen certain effects until it becomes second nature.

Phone Recording - Telephone Recording Adapter

Connect your telephone or headset to a recording device such as tape recorder or your PC to record telephone conversations. One of our clients uses an old modem with voice capabilities. There are heaps of them lying around.

Note: There is National and State legislation relating to the recording of, and listening to, communications in your country. Compliance with these standards should not be taken to mean that any subsequent use of this equipment complies with the relevant legislation. For further information on Privacy Guidelines refer to government website.

Tip: To record a phone interview use the same method as for a normal recording however make sure you have any call waiting or distraction completely removed so the call will not be interrupted. Unlike producing your personal audio file you usually only get one chance at a phone interview.

Here are a few pages on different recording hardware.

http://www.ahernstore.com/trx2035b.html

Of the two telephone recorders available from Radio Shack, I personally prefer 43-228 model over the 43-1237 model because the 43-228 is more likely to capture both sides of the recording at equal volume levels.

And if you really want to start getting professional and this is where I am heading for because you can attach a proper mic and get radio show quality productions and have full control over your interviews then here is the Rolls Royce.

Talk Show: Connect Innkeeper PBX between your console and your existing multi-line telephone. Your producer can screen callers from another phone while you take callers on the air by simply selecting available lines on your phone.

Interviews: Use Innkeeper PBX in your newsroom to record high quality interviews. Connect a mic and headphones to your PBX telephone while maintaining excellent separation between your voice and the caller.

Conference Room: Easily connect your PA system to the existing PBX telephone system. The echo canceller algorithm can prevent feedback and allow full duplex conversations.

http://www.jkaudio.com/innkeeper-pbx.htm

As well as the preparation suggested for interviews in general, you can prepare for and deal with telephone interviews by:

Making notes of those things you want to get across, your strengths, relevant experience and qualifications, skills you have and your evidence for them, reasons why you are interested in this job, etc, and put them by the telephone so that you can refer to them.
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Having a copy of your CV and application form to hand so that you can refer to it if necessary.
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Jotting down the questions as they are asked so that you can look at them as you answer.
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Making sure you are using a telephone which is situated where you have some privacy.
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To avoid relaxing too much, stand up and smile whilst you are talking to the interviewer!

The good thing about telephone interviews is:

You don't have to dress up for them.
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You can refer to notes whilst you talk.
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They can't see you grimacing, blushing, twitching, etc, so no need to worry about body language.

http://learning.staffs.ac.uk/careers/careersweb/jhunting/ivtelephone1.html

When your ready to step up with professional recording equipment Mike Stewart the Internet Audio Guy is the man to see. Visit his site and if he does not have what you want just ask and tell him I sent you. http://www.internetaudioguy.com

Well I hope this really gives you some food for thought. I have been doing this for a number of years now and it has always proven a better source of traffic than any other form of promotion. Once you have made an your audio for your interview save the project as two different files and then work on one. I usually name them after the name of the person I interview and call them 1 and 2. I work on the 2 file which I can then pull to bits. You can do all your editing in Audacity and remove any bad or non needed bits easily.

Once you have it in a form your happy with get someone to go through and type it out and you will have a another product you can offer with the audio as a pdf. This is a great way of adding content to your site for the search engines. There are plenty of services that will do this for you however I have found it much cheaper to use college students, single mums etc and it gives them a little extra cash.

Finally you can then add in some music, adds etc and make it almost like a mini radio show. If you are not confident to make your adds then just find some one with a good voice and write out your adds and get them to speak them. Add some background music and insert into your interview. You can also get one of the many professional voice overs to create a few professional adds for you. Hopefully you will be doing more interviews over time so you will be able to use the same adds etc over and over again.

Expect Success

Quentin Brown
MP3 Sound Stream
http://www.mp3streamingaudio.com

TIPS AND TRICKS - MSI Prompt

See Our Web Page

For our customers that own MSI Prompt you can now upgrade for free to the new professional model. Here are some of the improvements.

Updated Features Added for Professional Version

1. High Quality Mp3 Encoder Added ( LAME) with full Voice capturing feature.

2. Asks for File Overwrite Both for Mp3 and Text Editor

3. Hit Space to Pause Scrolling. Hit Space again to resume.

4. Hit Escape to hide tool bar. Hit Esc again to show.

Watch the Video

FEATURE ARTICLE - An Internet Business Can Be Your "Safety Net"!

5 of the Hottest Internet Opportunities

By Terry Dean

Most of my newsletter articles are born out of the questions that my faithful readers ask me every week. So, keep those questions coming. I keep a busy schedule with many different projects going continually, but I will do my best to answer each and every one of them.

The three questions that I get asked most often are:

1. How do I design my own web site?
2. How do I get more traffic to my site?
3. What are the best opportunities online?

Today's article deals with question number three. What are the hottest opportunities for the Internet entrepreneur? Below, I will give you five suggestions I have for you to create a successful web business, but I do want to interject one other element first.

The most successful business for you will almost always be the one that you find the most interesting and exciting. If you love what you do, you will be able to put in long hours promoting it and taking care of it. There is an old saying that if you do what you love for a living you will never have to work a day in your life.

So, instead of looking for a business based on how much you can earn up-front, choose a business based on your love for that business. The most successful and fulfilled people are individuals who are following a dream or vision of theirs. They are not just out trying to make a buck.

So, make sure you take these potential opportunities with a grain of salt. If they don't meet your interests, find something that does. You will have much more fun in your business if you do what you love.

1. Software

There is no denying that the most profitable business online has been and will continue to be selling your own software. More millionaires have been produced overnight through their own software program than anything else. The richest man in the world also made his fortune selling software.

Almost every Internet user has one thing in common. They need software for their computers (except for the minority of users who have Web TV's and similar equipment). Every Internet business person I know spends hundreds or thousands of dollars yearly on software.

Software is easy to distribute online. You can offer a free demo of your software on thousands of sites such as http://www.download.com for free. When someone purchases your software, all you have to do is send them over a password to access the full functions of their new purchase. No hard product has to be delivered through the mail in most cases.

Like I mentioned above, this has been and will continue to be the most profitable opportunity on the web. The problem with it lies in the actual creation of the software itself. Besides having an idea of what needs to be created, you also have to have the skills to create it.

There are three ways to own your own software.

#1 You Could Design it Yourself. If you don't currently have any programming knowledge, it is easy to find someone to teach you. Almost every local community college has courses on programming. By taking these and applying yourself to them, you could learn how to design software yourself.

#2 You could hire someone else to design it. Find some people who have taken these kinds of courses and offer to hire them to design the software you have an idea for. By going to a private programmer, you will be able to get it created for a much lower cost than any other way.

#3 You could find software from a private designer that you want and offer to buy reprint rights to it. This would be the quickest and easiest way to get into business with software. Find a program you want that is not promoted very well and make an offer. All they could do is accept or refuse. No problem.

The most profitable focus for the small business and private programmer would be in designing tools for small businesses on the Internet. By focusing on this market you will be able to avoid competition with the major software companies out there which have basically ignored the small business person online. So keep this in mind for your software business.

2. Subscription Sites

If you pay much attention to the Internet at all, you have probably noticed how many subscription sites are popping up. Although subscription sites used to only be promoted by the adult sites online, they are definitely going mainstream now.

Any business which has audio, video, special reports, books, software, daily updated content, and more has a potential subscription site available to them. It has already been proven that people are willing to pay for highly specialized content which they want or need.

Subscription sites have several advantages over other methods of delivering your products which we are only now beginning to realize.

Subscription Sites have a $0 hard cost for each product.
Subscription Sites can be automated online instead of having to be shipped.
Subscription Sites offer instantaneous gratification and delivery.

Each of those advantages can spell a big difference to small businesses. What if you could have your product delivered automatically to everyone who orders without having to spend a penny out of your own pocket and without having to spend a second taking care of the order. It can all be taken care of without any involvement from you whatsoever.

No matter what type of business you are in, there is probably a potential subscription site idea available.

3. Audio and Video Delivered Online

As the Internet grows and connection speeds increase, audio and video are going to become much more commonplace. We live in a TV generation and you can expect video to become standard to web sites as more and more tools become available to us in this area.

Right now, you can offer audio or video on your web site by using RealProducer or Emblaze along with a host of other tools. If you become familiar with these tools, you could begin to offer your services to convert video and audio for companies to a format they can use on their web site.

Plus, you could begin to use it on your own web site to add more content and interest to your site. Expect more and more sites to be using it as we move into the next millennium.

As a side note, an interesting web site I have found while exploring is at http://www.radiodestiny.com/ .By using their software, you can actually start up your own radio station online, for fun or profit.

4. Full Service Internet Sites

Most people do not like having to learn new technology and skills. This is the biggest hindrance to businesses coming online. As a matter of fact, only 5% of smallbusinesses
have any type of Internet presence at all. The number one reason being that it is too difficult to create a web site and get started marketing online.

People in general do not want to buy a book and figure out how to design a web site. They want it to be designed for them. They don't want to have to market their site. They want it done for them. Businesses are looking for a full service Internet business where you design their site, provide or find their hosting, and market their site online.

I currently know of several companies which offer this type of service to companies and charge $5,000 - $10,000 per customer. Just think if you sold this type of service for $3,000. You would have to sell 300 $10 books to earn the same gross profit. Would you rather deal with one customer or 300?

5. Internet Hubs In Every Area of Interest

This type of business could be created in any niche market or area of interest. You could create a theme site or Internet hub in gardening, motorcycles, dolls, puppies, etc. Anything that you have as an interest or hobby could usually be turned into a theme for your web site.

The key to this type of marketing is to become the place that everyone wants to go in your area of interest. In other words, you would want to be a portal or starting point for people searching for information or products on your subject. Create a list of links to all of the good content sites in your market. Start a discussion board for people to participate. Publish an ezine for them to subscribe to. Find written, audio, and video content to place on your site.

Then, start searching for products they are interested in. Pick up magazines and search through the ads for potential products you could sell online. Offer to Joint Venture with the owners of these products and endorse them to your visitors.

In other words, design a site that is the only one they need to visit online in your subject. Then, market it every where and send out press releases to every potential publication.

Once your traffic soars, so will your profits.

Terry Dean's Brand New Fr-e eBook, "10 Quick and Easy Ways to Increase Profits to ANY Web Site Overnight!" Reveals More Time Tested Proven Internet Marketing Secrets Than 99% of the Paid Products Available...Showing You Step-By-Step How to Increase Your Traffic, Drop Your Expenses, and Drive Your Profits Through the Roof:
http://www.bizpromo.com

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You'll Learn Profitable New Internet Marketing & Copywriting Strategies From These Amazing Speakers...:

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Ken Calhoun	Marty Foley	Dr. Mike Woo-Ming	Mystery Guest

Special Bonus

When you sign up please be sure to send me an email confirming your registration and I will give you a pick from one of my software products I have now or in the future as a special bonus. Also I will be there from Thursday to Monday night so if you would like to book some time with me I will make myself available to you.

This will be an outstanding event and you can either pick up your bonus there or wait till some of our new software is released later in the year.

JOKE OF THE WEEK - The Mouse

Who would have thought such a motley crew would have changed the world.

COPYRIGHT

MP3 Sound Stream - Sound Bites
a division of MSIncome.com

Published: Brisbane Australia
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Copyright: MSIncome.com 2005

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Quentin Brown
MSIncome.com
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