Pay-to-play casting sites 1

I know that there is a huge ongoing debate in the voiceover community about online casting sites, commonly known as Pay to Play (P2P) sites. I am not a fan … though I have used P2P sites in the past and have made some good contacts and many repeat clients who still use me, even though I no longer have a paid for membership of any pay to play site. 

One little tip: 

Never ever share a link to you P2P profile on your own personal website.

Imagine you’re a voice seeker for a moment and you’ve just found Fred Voice Actor’s website … he has just the voice you’re looking for. You’re reading through his client list, his experience, his home studio details and yes … he is perfect! But wait! but wait, what’s this link at the bottom of the page? Oh, it’s a link to his online profile on a casting site. Out of curiosity, you click on it, and it immediately takes you away from Fred’s personal website and into a whole other world where there are lots more voices to choose from. You decide to have a quick look around … and you find lots of people who sound a bit like Fred – and some whose rates are lower as well. Then, because it’s nearly lunch time, and because you haven’t actually bookmarked the link to Fred’s own website, you just pick the first Fred soundalike and book him instead. It’s easier.

OK Got it?

When people find you on your own website – you want them to stay with you and book you to do the job, so why are you helping them to go wandering off to another website where there are literally hundreds of other voice actors for them to choose from? Don’t give them the chance!