Three Steps to Stress-Free Teleclass and Audio Recordings

by Barbra Sundquist, Certified Mentor Coach

http://www.BecomeACertifiedCoach.com

If you want to record:
- a client call you are recording to submit for certification
- a teleclass you are leading
- an interview you are conducting
- anything else

You need to be able to:
- Easily turn on the recording system on and off
- get the finished recording in an MP3 format so that you and others can listen to it

Step one: GET A FREE BRIDGE LINE

Go to http://www.freeaudioconferencing.com and sign up for a free bridge line (this is a fully functional bridge line with your own private PIN number)

Step two: CHOOSE RECORDING SERVICE

I’ve done a lot of research on this subject and tried out many systems. In my experience the best two services for ease of use, customer support and value for your dollar are:

1) http://www.freeaudioconferencing.com ($10 per recording). I recommend you choose this option if you only make one or two recordings a month. Please note that this service provides only recording from the telephone (not from your computer).

2) www.coach.audioacrobat.com ($19.95 month for unlimited recordings). I recommend you use if you make 2 or more recordings a month. This service has more more features than the one above. In particular, you can record from your telephone or directly into your computer.


Step three: HOW TO DO IT

Using Option #1 – freeaudioconferencing.com

1) you and your caller(s) phone into your bridge line as usual (it has to be a freeaudioconferencing.com bridge line)

2) when you are ready to begin recording, press *2 on your phone and it will ask you for a recording file number. Just name the file whatever you will remember using your touch-tone phone (example: if you punch in 4545, this will be your recorded file number for this recording).

3) When you would like the recording to end, just press *2 again. Recording also ends when you hang up.

4) To get the MP3 file, just go to the freeaudioconferencing.com website and click on the link “Download Conference Recordings” at the bottom of the homepage.

5) The company will email you your MP3 file, which you can then click on to listen to. You can also email the file to someone else, upload the file to your website, etc.

Using Option #2 – http://www.coach.audioacrobat.com

1) phone into your bridge (it can be any bridge)

2) once you have greeted your participants, you need to “patch in” the AudioAcrobat recording line. This is not difficult.

Here are the steps:
- press the “Flash” button on your phone
- when you hear the dialtone you dial the AudioAcrobat phone number and enter your PIN
- after you have entered your PIN, you will hear some phone prompts. To start the conference call recording press “3” on your phone keypad.
- as soon as you hear the prompt say “Patch this line into your conference call now” hit the “Flash” button to return to your conference call participants.
- you will hear two audible tones when the recording starts.
- to stop the recording process, simply hit the “Flash” button again or hang up.

3) Once you hang up, AudioAcrobat makes your MP3 file which will appear in the “Show My Audios” section of your account. The longer the recording, the longer it will take to show up.

A one hour conference call takes about 10 minutes to appear.

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Written vs. Audio Marketing?
by Jeremy Gossman

Are you ready for some interesting figures?

* People remember only 10% of what they read

* People remember only 20% of what they hear

* But people remember 50% of what they both read
and hear!

** And it is found that audio increases the web site
viewers attention span by 45%

** Almost 80% of web users have audio!!!!!!

These figures reflect the necessity of having audio on
your website.

There are 3 basic components to recording audio:

1.) A Recording Program
2.) A Uni-Directional Microphone
3.) A Code that will call on your audio

Today, you will learn about the recording program. In
order to record your voice or the sounds you desire,
you must have a program that can do the job....

Total Recorder and Sonic Foundry's Sound Forge Studio
6.0 are 2 programs that come highly recommended.

To Find out more about these programs check out the
links provided below:

http://www.totalrecorder.com
http://www.sonicfoundry.com/main.asp

*Please note that there are several products at the
Sonic Foundry website but for your recording purposes
the Sound Forge Studio 6.0 will do the job and comes
at a reasonable price.

#2, a uni-directional microphone.
A terrific uni-directional microphone can be found at
Radio Shack.

http://www.radioshack.com

Once you get there, you will want to do a search for
Uni-Directional Microphone.

*Or you could always go by your local Radio Shack or
electronics store.

With the use of the a program such as Total Recorder or
Sound Forge Studio 6.0 and a microphone, you can start
the recording process!

Now all that's left is step #3, a code that will call on
your audio! This can be found at:
http://www.audioplayerpro.com

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There are many types of speaker systems for different applications. There are car speakers, stereo speakers, surround speakers, and speaker products for home theater systems. The wireless speaker is becoming very popular for home speakers. It allows you to have a speaker system in every room of the house.

More and more people are using their computer as their home entertainment center, so computer speakers are a popular consumer item. By connecting your speaker system to your computer, you computer speakers can be used for listening to music and for watching movies.

Other popular speaker products include car speakers. A car speaker system often includes a subwoofer for fabulous sound on the road. Audio speakers for your car are specially designed for the unique characteristics of a car interior, and so are different from audio speakers that are used in the house.

People who want audio in all parts of the house are finding that ceiling speakers are excellent speaker products. These audio speakers are easy to install and are convenient way to have a house wide speaker system. Quality can vary greatly on ceiling audio speakers, so for music, you want a good-quality speaker system.



Audio speakers for the home should be able to reproduce the full frequency range without distortion. A good-quality speaker system can enhance your enjoyment but listening to music, so buying the best quality speaker products you can afford is a good investment.

A speaker system is made up of several different components. Most audio speakers have a woofer and a tweeter, and high-quality audio speakers will often have a midrange speaker and perhaps an extra woofer for low-frequency sounds. Computer speakers are usually small, although larger surround sound computer speakers are becoming more common.

Each speaker system has its own special sound, so it's a good idea to listen to many speaker products before choosing audio speakers that you like.

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If you have noticed, a lot of sites these days add streaming audio to their sites.

Those ubiquitous buttons that resemble little orbs with the play symbol on them? I'm sure you must have seen them.

A lot of marketers these days allow their site visitors to hear their sales pitch, or perhaps a testimonial this way.

Before the advent of Macromedia Flash 6, the only way to stream audio was using real audio player which required users to download their bulky software, not to mention a web server that supported streaming.

The advantage of streaming audio is that visitors don't have to wait for the whole sound file to download before they can listen to it. Thus with streaming audio the playback is almost instantaneous.


Using flash 6 it is very easy to create these buttons that stream the audio from your website to the users browser.

A great flash tutorial on how to make these buttons is available at

http://www.flashkit.com utorials/Audio/Flash_MX-Kenny_Be-824/index.php

Now the question is how do you record your voice and keep the file size small enough?

If you were to make a recording of your voice with the "Windows Sound Recorder" that was 60 seconds long and save it, it would be 1.26 mb .wav in size.

But you can reduce this to only 117 kb if you made it a .mp3 file instead. Here's how to do it.

Open sound Recorder by going to Start/Programs/Accessories/Entertainment for (Windows 98)

Open sound Recorder by going to Start/Programs/Accessories/Multimedia for (Windows 95)

Press the "Record button" to start the recorder.

As you're speaking into the microphone your sound recorder should have a voice pattern.

After you're done press the "Stop button".

To hear your recording press the "Play button".

Next Click "File/Save As from the menu enter your file name and then click the "Change button".

Another window opens up.

Here For "Format" click the "Drop down button" and select "MPEG Layer-3".

For "Attributes" click the "Drop down button" and select
16 kBits/s, 12,000 Hz Mono 2KB/s.

Click OK.

Click Save and you see the conversion of the file to a .mp3

All done !!

Now all you have to do is pass this mp3 as the source to the flash file and you have instant audio on your site.



About the Author

About The Author
Satyajeet Hattangadi is the Owner of Novasoft Inc.
If you want to know more about how to add audio to your website, check out our free ebook that has lots of resources and tips on recording, software, free professional voice overs and also includes a set of free flash buttons that you can use to stream audio at no cost.

http://www.novasoft-inc.com/ebook.asp

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Audio conferencing provides a way for businesses and other groups to interact, without having to travel to each other’s offices.

The savings in time and travel expenses quickly make up for the cost of audio conferencing services and equipment. Audio conferencing usually involves other types of teleconferencing technology, such as video and collaborative software.

Collaborative software is software that one user may send to other users for simultaneous viewing and modification. For example, if the group wants to work on a diagram, it can be seen and drawn upon by anybody in the conference via a special electronic whiteboard.

An audio conferencing system can be rented, bought from a vendor or reseller, or hired as part of a full audio conferencing solution. Such full-service packages include human support services like management, marketing, and tech support.


When audio conferencing services are rented, the communication is routed through the vendor’s server software. The client is charged according to the number of users or “seats” who will be participating, the length of time each seat will be participating, and any initial equipment rental or purchase costs. The vendor can charge a per-seat and per-minute fee (for example, $0.15/seat/minute). Alternatively, a client can rent the service by the week, month, or year, with a maximum allowed number of seats per conference or session. For example, a one-week service for five seats could cost $100 a week, while a one-year service for 100 people could cost a few thousand dollars. Rental audio conferencing services are best for small to medium sized businesses where the initial equipment purchase costs would far outweigh the savings on travel.

When audio conferencing services are bought, the communication is routed through the client’s server software, which is bought and licensed from the vendor. The client chooses how small or large a package he or she wants. For example, the client can buy software that allows for 100 seats, 1000 seats, or much more. The client can decide whether to include any of a number of high-tech add-ons such as whiteboard capabilities, and whether expandability is important. The client buys all the necessary equipment and software to run the system. The initial cost can be tens of thousands of dollars, so these are best suited to larger numbers of seats over the long term. However, tech support will always be a necessity, so the client should subscribe to the vendor’s expertise.

http://www.e-audioconferencing.com/

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Capturing audio from your camcorder into your computer might be a main step to consider when transferring video data.


This process might become complicated if you are transferring audio from a camcorder which does not support digital technologies and therefore this step would not be as easy to be achieved as if the camcorder would directly transfer digital audio.

When we have audio or video which origin comes from a camcorder that doesn't support digital video, we would need an extra device to capture it before being able to transfer it to the computer. This way, if we have analog audio and wish to capture it with the computer converting it into digital, we would need to go through an extra step.

There are special devices which were specifically created with the purpose of allowing its users to capture analog audio or video from their camcorders and turn them into digital compatible qualities. Once you have achieved this step, you could easily capture such digital audio or video with your computer the same way you would have done from a digital camcorder.


If you wish to capture video recorded with a camcorder into your computer, you would need to convert it into MPEG or MPG digital files in order to turn them into a digital technology compatible with those which your computer would read. Therefore, you would need a device which could achieve this objective and take this step before you are able to actually capture the files with the computer.

Many of these digital capturing devices would allow its users to capture audio as well as video and edit them together. This way, if you have captured video and wish that it has music or any other sounds; you can easily do so by capturing such audio files in different audio tracks, and then edit them in any way you might wish. These devices would allow you to learn what steps to take in order to achieve your capturing goals through their user’s manual and you could learn all the capturing possibilities it would bring through the instructions as well.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jakob Jelling is the founder of http://www.snapjunky.com

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The beauty of digital audio is its promise of pristine quality. No clicks, hiss or scratches that were the norm of vinyl and tape recordings. That’s not to say that all digital audio is noise-free. Far from it. Poor recordings can still be made in the digital medium and recordings that have been transferred from analog (vinyl records or cassettes) to digital will retain some of their noise.


Fortunately, cleaning up digital audio is a fairly easy process. There are many software packages on the market specifically designed for reducing specific types of noise in digital recordings. Not all of them are suitable for all types of noise, so it’s important to analyze the type of noise you are trying to get rid of.

Most noise reducing software has a function for removing background hiss. This works by capturing a profile of the background noise. The profile is used to create a filter that matches the characteristics of the noise. To use this function you must select a quiet section of the audio to get a sample of the noise you want to reduce. A good place to take your sample from is between songs or the first second or two before the audio actually starts. The sample does not have to be long – half a second is all you need – but it can’t be music or voice – it should represent a silent section.


This noise profile will help you to reduce exactly the right kind of noise from your audio recording. It is useful for reducing background hiss, but clicks and pops need another kind of processing.

Pops and clicks are of two flavours – digital and analog. Digital clicks can be caused by processor overload as you make a digital recording. The recording “stops” for a moment and the resulting skip creates a very short click. Digital clicks are easy to detect and most noise reduction software does this automatically.

Analog clicks and pops are caused by scratches and imperfections on vinyl and their duration is much longer than digital clicks. To remove this type of noise, a special filter is needed to automatically detect and remove the unwanted sound. Settings can be adjusted to match the size and frequency of the noise.

There are several audio packages on the market that are specifically designed to reduce noise from vinyl and cassette recordings. They allow you to capture the audio digitally by connecting a turntable or cassette deck to the sound card on your computer. Once the audio is stored on the computer, it can be processed to remove background hiss and clicks. Most presets will give you adequate results and you will be able to enjoy your old recordings in the digital domain.

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If you are chasing the latest and accurate opinion in relation to audio visual.
Sometimes when you're trying to find better information on audio visual, you'll find it's complex separating quality information from inexpert audio visual submissions and support so it's prudent to know ways of moderating the information presented to you.

Machine Dreams: Audience Response & Presentation Equipment
Featuring The Communicator, with built-in wireless microphone. This advanced audience response system increases interaction, learning, team building.



Here are several guidelines which we believe you should use when you are trying to find information about audio visual. You need to understand that the guidance we put forward is only appropriate to internet info about audio visual. We do not give you any assistance or guidance for conducting research offline.

ARS Technologies: Visual & Audience Response Equipment
Provides interactive audience response solutions using wireless response keypads during meetings, conventions, trade shows, and more.



A great hint to follow when you're presented with help and advice regarding a audio visual page is to ascertain who owns the site. This may divulge who is behind the site audio visual integrity The easiest way to reveal who owns the audio visual web site is to find the sites 'about' page.

Any reputable site providing information concerning audio visual, will almost always provide an 'about' or 'contact' page which will list the people behind the site. The details should tell you major points about the website owner's expertise. You can then decide for yourself about the site owner's knowledge and skill, to offer help regarding audio visual.


About the author:

hugh campbell is the webmaster for http://www.audio-visual-1st.info

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Are You Getting The Highest Possible Profits From Your Ebay Auctions? Here's a tip: Add audio to your auctions.

According to a recent report, adding audio to your eBay auctions could increase bids by as much as 22% over auctions without audio.

A recent trend showing up on a lot of websites is the addition of an audio clip. The clip is a personal message by the author or the website owner encouraging you to take advantage of what they offer.

The psychology behind this technique is really Marketing 101. It's called personalization. An audio clip added to your eBay auction allows you to personally tell the potential bidder about the product. Using your own voice allows you to make contact with the bidder on a personal level that written words cannot. Because, that's what your eBay auction really is...It's just a long written classified ad asking the bidder to make an offer to purchase your item.

Prior to the advent of the telephone the only reliable way to communicate long distance was by writing letters. It was not unusual back then for lovers to write each other daily or weekly. The decline of letter writing is a well documented event that coincides with the advent of the telephone.

With audio you can describe the item, tell the bidder why you are selling it or even communicate with them about your refund policy or provide your contact information. The possibilities are almost unlimited as a way to establish a rapport with the bidder.

But, the most important reason to add audio clips is that it makes it easy to convey excitement and invoke emotion, giving you a really powerful selling-edge.

How to add audio to a web site:


The simplest way is to upload a .wav or Mp3 file to a website and provide a link to the file. When the bidder clicks on the link his or her computer will automatically recognize the file and play it with the audio player on the bidders computer.

There are some drawbacks to this method. If the bidder's computer doesn't recognize the file it won't play. The overall effect is not as professional as it could be and it distracts the bidder. If you are a reasonably tech savvy type you can easily deal with the drawbacks of this approach.

For the rest of us, there are a number of software solutions and websites that will simplify the task of adding audio to our eBay auctions.

Here are two:

Audio Maker Pro - http://audiomaker.thynke.com - (The one I use and recommend)

Sound Streamer - http://soundstreamer.thynke.com - (Less expensive)

Different programs and websites range from charging a one time fee to monthly fees for the use of the program. The good news is that many will let you test them for as little as $1 for a trial basis or let you download a demo version to see how well it will work for you.

Mike Nalbone is an author, editor, publisher and webmaster who earns a living full-time on the Net. For more, exclusive eBay profit tips like this one, visit: http://auction-tips.thynke.com
About the Author

Mike Nalbone is an author, editor, publisher and webmaster who earns a living full-time on the Net. For more, exclusive eBay profit tips like this one, visit: http://auction-tips.thynke.com

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by: Hans Dekker
Although MP3 is the most popular format for encoding music, it is by no means the only one. There are two basic methods for compressing audio – lossless and lossy, and for each of these methods there are many formats.

Lossless compression means that none of the audio data is removed during compression. Lossy compression means that audio data is permanently removed from the audio file. Lossy compression results in smaller files, but there is no way to rebuild the audio data to its original format. MP3 is an example of lossy compression.

Lossy Compression Formats

There are many alternatives to MP3 when it comes to encoding audio files. Microsoft reportedly developed the WMA format to avoid the licensing costs associated with MP3. WMA files can be played with the Windows Media Player that is included with the Windows operating system as well as many other audio players. It features similar encoding rates to MP3 and similar file sizes.

AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) is the format preferred by Apple and is used for its popular iTunes and iPod products. AAC files can be smaller than MP3 files because it uses more efficient encoding technology. A 96 kpbs AAC file is similar in sound quality to a 128 kbps MP3 file.

Ogg Vorbis is another type of lossy compression and uses .OGG as the file extension. It is an open-source product and unlike MP3, there are no patent restrictions on its use.

Lossless Compression

For the audio purist who insists on the best quality sound possible, lossless compression offers CD quality sound. The tradeoff is larger files sizes – while MP3 can compress audio in the range of 80% - 90%, lossless compression typically compresses the file by half.

Popular lossless formats include FLAC, Monkey’s Audio, and SHN (Shorten). These formats are supported by many audio players and are popular for archiving CD collections as well as for trading music.

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by: Nell Taliercio
Adding streaming audio to your web site can help you enhance the message you send to your customers and can serve as a wonderful confidence-building tool. In the past, audio was used primarily as a decorative effect, but advances in technology and the increased use of the internet by consumers have made it easy for you to add streaming audio to your web site and create a personal bond with your clientele. You can also add streaming audio to your newsletter or blog for a personal touch that will keep the interest of your readers and subscribers.

Streaming audio can be used in welcome messages placed on the first page of your web site. Adding a personal welcome message to your readers and explaining some of the features they can explore on your web site is an excellent way to enhance the experience of the customer. You may also want to add streaming audio to your web site in the form of testimonials from satisfied customers. Most computer users have the capability to hear audio messages and will find it a refreshing change from monotonous text that may or may not hold their interest. Your newsletter or blog will benefit from the use of streaming audio as well. You may want to add a new helpful tip in audio form each day to your blog, or include audio product updates in your newsletter.

Adding streaming audio to your web site, newsletter, or blog is no longer a frivolous addition. It is not difficult or expensive to add audio to your web site and you will find that your customers enjoy this new feature. The audio content should be conversational and pleasant, and sound as natural as possible. You can write down the topics and points you would like to cover in your streaming audio message, but record your message as if you were speaking to friends and family. Adding streaming audio to your web site, newsletter, or blog is the perfect way to give your customers a personal message that will give them confidence in your sincerity and integrity.



About the Author: For more information about home based business go to http://www.mommysplace.net

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by: Steve Nichols
What do you do with your intranet or internet site once you’ve added words and pictures? How about adding audio as well?

Audio is friendly, direct and ideally suited to getting complex messages across in a short space of time.

It's now getting easier to add audio to the net, thanks to increasing bandwidths and innovative new ways of compressing data.

The problem has been that CD-quality audio has traditionally been the preserve of ISDN- and ADSL-equipped users. Basically, there has been too much data to fit down the pipe.

But, borrowing on the same techniques that are used to compress digital photographic images, it is now possible to compress sound to make it fit down a standard dial-up 56KBps modem line.

The trick is to compress the audio in a way that doesn’t sound offensive to the ear, but can still pass along the line at about 3 kilobytes per second, given that a dial-up modem downloads at about 4-ish kilobytes per second.

The next trick is to use streaming technology that can start to play the audio while it is still downloading. As a long as it is downloads fast enough you don’t get annoying stops and starts. You should also end up with a “buffer”. In many cases, the whole audio file will have downloaded long before the user has finished listening to it.

The volume of online streaming audio grew by 118 per cent last year, according to market researchers US-based AccuStream iMedia Research and the top ten internet radio stations received an average of 137.5m tuning hours in the same period, up from 63m in 2003.

Typical audio formats are Real’s Radio Player (as chosen by the BBC), the ubiquitous MP3 (as featured on thousands of youngster’s personal hi-fis) and Macromedia Flash.

MP3SoundStream (http://www.mp3soundstream.com/cgi-bin/cppro/go.cgi?snichols1)uses Flash and works well as 98% of computers already have the Flash plug-in and the rest can easily download it. Flash takes the MP3 file, combines it with an audio controller button and streams it for you off any server, which means low-cost and ease of use.

So once you have the technology in place, what can you record? The answer is anything. Adding audio to an intranet lets you record a weekly message from the CEO or a sales message. Or why not have a weekly news round-up?

The audio can either be recorded straight into your PC via a microphone and soundcard, or recorded on a Minidisc recorder and then digitised into the computer. Once there you can add music, voiceovers, cuts and fades with a program like Adobe Audition or Sony Soundforge. Music can be bought online for just a few pounds and you can even use free audio editing programmes, like Audacity.

What was once the preserve of the BBC and other high-end radio studios is now available on a desktop computer near you – but only if you have the skills to match.

FAQs (291 words)

Q. What is streaming audio?
A. It is audio delivered to your computer that can be listened to while it is still downloading.

Q. What’s the advantage over other audio formats?
A. You don’t get an annoying delay while the whole file downloads.

Q. What do listeners need to have on their computer?
A. A soundcard and speaker(s) or headphones, their normal browser software and a so-called plug-in – a small piece of software that converts the data into sound.

Q. This all sounds expensive – is it?
A. Not really. You can get free programs to record your sound, a computer microphone costs less than a tenner and there are free audio editing programs available on the net. You then need to convert the audio file to a streaming format, but there is an increasing amount of software available to do that too. You also need to think about a MiniDisc recorder as these have superseded cassette tape for most applications. Royalty-free background and intro music is available on CD and via the web for a small fee.

Q. What is the quality like?
A. Judge for yourself – visit www.infotechcomms.co.uk/info10.htm and listen to the demonstration programmes. The trick is to get the quality as high as you can, but still make it playable on an average modem-equipped home computer. Once everyone has broadband it will be CD-quality for all.

Q. How do I find out more?
A. There is a list of useful links at http://www.infotechcomms.co.uk/info11.htm

ENDS


About the Author

Steve Nichols (steve@infotechcomms.co.uk) runs InfoTech Communications, which specialises in online communications. He has acted as consultant and trainer for many blue-chip companies including Aviva, AWG, Shell, Standard Life, HBOS, BNFL, AstraZeneca, Diageo, Accenture and Australia New Zealand Bank.

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by: Felix Gossamer
The Ten Commandments of Using Streaming Audio On Your Website

When it comes to placing audio on your website there are Ten Commandments you absolutely must follow. Break one of these Commandments and you can watch your website drive visitors away faster than the speed of sound. Fortunately, if you follow the Ten Commandments you can get people to stay at your website longer, inquire about your product or service more often, and even buy more of what you are selling. Doesn't that sound good?

So without further ado, here are the Ten Commandments you must follow when placing audio on your website.

Commandment #1

Don't set your audio to play automatically when people arrive at your website. Your visitors all have different computers with different speakers, some have the volume turned all the way up, some are already listening to music, some don't even have speakers to begin with. If you start playing your audio automatically you risk losing potential customers. It's much easer to leave a website or hit the back button then it is to search around for how to turn off your audio. One exception to this Commandment is the use of pop-up windows. Pop-up windows can be closed by the visitor yet they still leave them at your website. The same goes for exit pop-ups, these windows can be very effective at grabbing the visitors attention, although some people may not like it, it has proven to be very successful in some uses.

Commandment #2

Sounding like a Pro! You must have professional sounding audio on your site. Anything else will make you look like an amateur. If you are showcasing your own poetry, or telling a personal story, or marketing yourself, then you should use your own voice. But, if you are trying to sell something and your voice doesn't quite cut it, then have a professional voiceover person record your audio. It will make all the difference. WebAudioReviews.com has a list of several affordable voiceover professionals.

Commandment #3

When using audio to sell or promote, keep it short! Long audio messages have their place online and rarely are they on the main page of a website. Keep your messages short, concise, to the point, and easy to follow. This can make all the difference in your audio message. Try to keep your promotional audio message around 30 to 90 seconds. Commercials are only 30 seconds and get their point across very well, follow their lead and do the same thing.

Commandment #4

Be prepared! If you or someone else is recording your audio then write out a script. Write out a complete word for word script, practice it out loud and change it as necessary. If you just "wing it" then it will sound like it. Have others listen and critique your script before you record it. Fine tune your script by removing unnecessary wording, trimming down the overall length, and wording it for maximum impact.

Commandment #5

When recording your own audio, smile! It will come across in your voice. But remember, if you don't sound like a pro even when you smile, then get one!

Commandment #6

Don't overload your site with audio. If you have too many audio buttons to choose from most people will choose none. Whereas when you only have a few audio buttons on your website it will encourage people to listen to your audio message. A single audio button done right is usually enough to get your point.

Commandment #7

Use music! Using music in addition to your voice will make your audio sound 100 times more professional and engaging. Add some easy listening intro music that fits the theme of your site, even sound effects if done right can make a tremendous difference in the way your message sounds. Remember to use music that is royalty free music or music you have created and own rights to. Placing your favorite Beatles song on your website could get you in trouble.

Commandment #8

Have a point! This may sound obvious, but many people place audio on their website just because they can and for no other reason. No one cares about how fancy your audio is if it doesn't have much of a point to it. Have a purpose and reason for using audio.

Commandment #9

Tell people to listen to your audio! Just having an audio button on your website isn't good enough. You need to tell people what they will hear, what it's about, how long it is, and where to click to listen. Don't assume people will figure it out on their own, people need to be told what to do online, and the same goes for telling them to listen to your audio. Also, by telling visitors the length of your message they won't be afraid to listen to it because they will know how long it is. Research has shown that sometimes people will not listen to an audio message in fear that it may be too long. If it is a long message then tell your visitors so they will be prepared for an hour long audio message.

Commandment #10

Test your audio! Don't just place audio on your website thinking it will increase sales. Test it out, get opinions from your visitors, friends, and family, and then do split testing. Find out if the sales are greater with your audio. If you don't split test your site with different audio messages and without audio then you will never know if it's helping or hurting your website.

To place streaming audio on your site, as well as find a wealth of information, voiceover professionals, audio hosting, recording tools, and more, visit Web Audio Reviews.

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