You’ve probably heard by now of the hot new social media app Clubhouse, which is an audio-only chat-based app where you can pop into rooms and hear top influencers, and regular folks, having interesting conversations. This is just the most recent audio-focused app in a long line of technology (hello podcasts) that validates how powerful our voices actually are in creating connection, relationships, and value to your target audience.
In this episode Tiff and Christine give you a pep talk about the value of your voice, while also pointing out the actual value of using your voice to connect with your audience to build your brand.
“There really is a power to hearing people’s voice and letting it sink in.”
Tiff Tyler
Topics covered:
- (2:45) How to use your voice on apps to build your brand
- (8:01) Examples of influencers using their voice on apps
- (17:40) How the art of storytelling takes time to develop
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Links mentioned:
- Clubhouse
- Summit of Greatness
- Sarah Blondin
- Tony Hawk
- Ray Lewis Affirmations
- How to Get Your Point Across in 30 Seconds or Less
- Tiff Tyler
- Christine Baird
- Aspiring Podcast Hosts & Producers – check out the Think Like a Producer Membership Group
Subscribe to the Podcast!
Many thanks to our production team
- Worthfull Media for audio editing
- Mosaico Productions for video editing
- Amela Subašić for artwork
Transcription of this episode:
(auto-generated, please forgive typos)
Christine (00:04):
Welcome to Think Like a Producer podcast. I’m your co-host Christine Baird.
Tiff (00:09):
And I’m your co-host Tiff Tyler. Being in the podcast industry, being in the content creation industry. This is what we learned, and this is how you can get out of your own way and get started.
Christine (00:20):
You name it. We’ve probably done it. This podcast is about bringing all the wisdom to you. Tune in weekly, to learn how to think like a producer.
Christine (00:32):
We did hit record, right? Yep. Okay. Welcome to this episode of Think Like a Producer. We’re talking about something that is actually really near and dear to my heart. It’s also near and dear to Tiff’s heart, but it came up and I thought about it yesterday because I had spent some time on Clubhouse, trendy, new app, and it’s an audio only app where you could just join chat rooms and hear people’s conversations and chime in.
Christine (00:58):
And I was listening yesterday and I noticed that people on this app were talking about how much they loved just hearing each other’s voices and spending hours and hours on this app, chatting with people that they didn’t necessarily know before. Well, then just a few hours of being in these chat rooms, they had started to actually recognize each other just by their voices and they were just loving it. And they were just so excited about the idea that there was this new way to connect where you could just pop in, have a microphone, chit chat about important things. So of course is my brain is wired to do. I thought about like, yeah, that’s totally why I love podcasting so much. And why I believe in the power of actually using your own voice unfiltered and sharing your message, sharing your thoughts. Now, if you’ve listened to this show for a long, you know, we think it’s important to plan your content, have a focus and deliver things in a beautiful way.
Christine (01:55):
But we wanted to take a minute today and record an episode where we really made a plug for starting to use the power of your voice. Even if you’ve been feeling held back by perfectionism or imposter syndrome, or you’ve just been nervous to turn on the camera, to turn on the microphone. If you’ve been feeling just like, I don’t know, I don’t sound polished enough. I don’t look good enough yet. Like other people make content and they just seem to have it flow naturally out of them. They sound educated or smart, whatever it may be, right. If you’ve been in this comparison trap and you’ve been nervous to actually turn on the microphone or turn on the camera, we wanted to give you a bit of a pep-talk and just help you start to think differently about the actual power and value of your voice.
Christine (02:43):
So as much as I love the written word and I love blogs, and I love emails, we’re specifically talking today about the power of your vocal cords and the, the tone of your voice. It’s totally unique to you. You know, you don’t sound like anyone else. Um, so to set this up, let’s just have an overview Tiff, give us kind of a glance at the apps that have evolved over the last few years that allow people to use their voice, to connect with their audience and what those apps are specifically good for and kind of what we’ve learned from seeing the amazing explosive growth of these apps.
Tiff (03:19):
Of course. So obviously you’re listening to this podcast most likely. Um, and this is a platform that Christine and I are utilizing to teach to educate. We’re also on YouTube. Now. I know we’re talking about the power of voice, but I think about YouTube. Some people just turn it on and listen. Some people are just getting advice when it comes to how to, or just like behind the scenes of their favorite people. When it think of blogs and different things, people are very unscripted when it comes to those kinds of, um, those kinds of content that they’re creating. So you can think about our podcast and our YouTube platform as a way for you to express your voice and you can edit it, right. You can always kind of like take a 30 minute video and get it down to the 10, most concise minutes that actually make sense are going to resonate with people.
Tiff (04:04):
Another platform that we like to use is Instagram. We go live on Instagram, biweekly on Thursdays, and it’s really important for us because one it’s conversational. It’s not so planned and scripted out. And our podcasts aren’t very, very planned and scripted out, but we know what we’re making a certain point. The idea of having IgG live, that you’re not by yourself. You could have someone on there with you, or you could be interacting with the audience that you already have on Instagram, but it’s a little less pressure. It’s a way for you to talk, to use your voice. And if you go live for 30 minutes or realize this is not something I want people to see again, I’m just going to kind of let it go. You don’t have to repost it on your platform. Some of these things that we’re talking about, we want to give you that idea that, you know, you can try without having it be permanent.
Tiff (04:47):
So you can let go of some of that perfectionism and other ways, Instagram stories. I mean, I will definitely say that, you know, if you follow me on Instagram, when I have my beat the sun in the morning, like there are some mornings that it tastes like four times to record in 60 seconds. What I’m trying to say, and some days it comes out, you know, immediately just exactly what I’m trying to say, what people, but the idea that I can delete it, the idea that we’ll be gone in 24 hours. And I can kind of just say what I need to say and think about the next thing I’m going to say later on. It’s very freeing because it’s not permanent again, right? It’s just a way to try to see what people resonate with, what storytelling ways work best with them. People love to see the sunrise, but some people don’t like to tune into the next 60 seconds of me talking.
Tiff (05:27):
That’s totally fine. Like I get so many more people watching and looking at the sunrise and listening sometimes to the messages. And, but some of the messages, depending on the way I title it, depending on the way I actually like start the video, more people will tune in. So I’m always experimenting, but the power of the voice and the message is really what I realized where people are resonating with or not resonating with the other thing that you can try as clubhouse. This is a new platform that Christine and I are playing around with right now. But a lot of people it’s not new for actually came. I don’t know when it came out, but a lot less people were on it last year. It was a bit more exclusive, more people now in the year 2021 are in there. There are a lot more rooms and people pretty much just starting conversations about whichever topics they feel are most important.
Tiff (06:11):
Christine and I are hosting rooms about podcasting because we really love podcasting, but people are talking about the music, industry, politics, all different kinds of things. Some people just say I’m bored. And that’s the title of the room that they’re having is called I’m bored. But this, I would look at clubhouse as more of a conference. Um, if you compare it to something like summit of greatness or different conferences, you’ve been to, it’s more of like having a live conversation with someone where it can’t be recorded. People aren’t like keeping it afterwards, having any replays, like you would have an Instagram live. And so there’s an opportunity for you to record and we’ll not record. So there’s an opportunity for you to speak and just let it go. Like either you can have a room and talk about particular topic and that’s, it, it disappears once you’re done with it.
Tiff (06:54):
Or you can raise your hand in a particular room and speak about a topic, but it’s just about getting yourself more comfortable speaking, expressing yourself. I know for me, when I was young, I stuttered a lot. I didn’t speak a lot. Like I just didn’t have much of a voice. And so the more I get to practice, the more I talk, it seems like things are kind of coming out a little bit easier, but I can still hear it, you know, but it’s just practice over and over again. But clubhouse has been a really cool way for Christine to kind of pop in here, different things. But like I said, there’s just no pressure that this is going to live anywhere for forever. And that’s why I bring up podcasting and YouTube in the beginning of this little kind of like platform rent, because you can always delete a YouTube video.
Tiff (07:34):
You can always remove a podcast episode that you didn’t realize you have full control of what this looks like. So when you think about the perfectionism and things that are like stopping, you just realize that like, it doesn’t have to live forever. I can try it. I can love it. I can hate it. I can take it down, but don’t let you know just the idea of like, it won’t be perfect as soon as I start or when I first tried to stop you from utilizing any of these platforms, it’s just important to record and just try it out. Another thing I say is you can always record without releasing anything as well. Um, you’ve heard me talk about this. Like, if you want to just have one camera up while you’re recording your podcast at just because you’re like, I want, I don’t want to get super into video, but I just want to keep the audio going. You can always record and not release it later. You can always record a topic of a podcast, not release it later, but it’s just the art and the practice. But these platforms I think are really cool to utilize for you to just practice and try it out. So Christine, give us an example of someone you admire because they utilize the power of their voice.
Christine (08:34):
I’m so excited to talk about when we favorite meditation teachers, this is someone who I was introduced to just in the last year a friend texted me and then, you know, maybe a month later, another friend texted me about the same person. So if you’ve ever listened to a meditation, you know, there are thousands of meditation teachers and they have, you know, all sorts of recordings all around the internet on apps, like insight, timer, YouTube, you know, wherever. So it wasn’t like anything was particularly special about this person, Sarah Blondin like, you know, she’s one in a thousand, but I actually really, really, really just loved the sound of her voice. I loved the way she constructed her meditations, the music she used underneath them. The focus, she talks a lot about worth. So it’s no surprise, but it was like, it didn’t matter that she wasn’t perfect or she hadn’t gone to like meditation, voiceover school.
Christine (09:27):
Like that for me was just exactly what I needed during that chapter. And I found myself going to her meditations again and again, she had put some on a podcast, so I would just, you know, easily open up my podcast app, listen to a meditation. And I became kind of obsessed for a little while. It’s like, wow, I’m so grateful. Sarah Blondin has put some of her meditations on these apps so I can just listen to them. And I mean, she’s a great meditation teacher. Like a lot of people know about her and follow her, but I just wanted to use that example as I’m sure in her own world, she’s probably like, Oh, who am I to like be recording meditations from my house with like my kids around, you know? But I’m so glad she did because she actually has like really lifted my spirits on multiple occasions when I’ve listened to her meditations.
Christine (10:11):
And I wouldn’t say that, you know, she’s done anything like superstardom wise as far as like audio production goes, but it doesn’t matter. She’s used her gifts and she’s shared them and I love them. And I’m so grateful. So that’s been a reason inspiration to me of remembering that you actually do have like a specific group of people that you’re going to uniquely connect with, but you won’t know who that is until you start actually using your voice and letting people hear it. And then naturally, and organically, those people, you know, will, will find you and then share it. So that’s my recent example, Sarah Blondin meditations. If you need a good meditation, click on the link in the show notes, you can go explore Sarah Blondin’s beautiful worth filled meditations. But Tiff, I really love the example you’re going to share.
Tiff (10:59):
Tony Hawk. Okay. So, um, we’ve talked about at time and time again, we’ve had an opportunity to meet some really cool people. And I think what’s made me unique in your unique to Christine, that we don’t freak out over celebrities. We do our best to treat them like humans. We talked about this, um, multiple times in past episodes of pride and talk about this more. We talk about relationships and networking and things like that. But the only person of the hundreds of celebrities I’ve met, the only person that freaked me out was Tony Hawk. And ten-year-old Tiff, just so you know, he can get like a visual mood, just pictures in your mind. She’s got like tattoo sleeve. She’s holding a skateboard. She’s like kinda emo a little bit, even though I never did any of those things. When I was a kid, barely had a skateboard for a week, but um, playing his video games, watching him on TV, watching him during X Games, all the interviews that he did there was about hearing his voice, especially cause we were monitoring the podcast as well.
Tiff (11:57):
Christine and I always did just make sure that everything’s coming through. Clearly I’m hearing his voice. I couldn’t, it was so hard for me to be present in the room out of all the interviews I’ve ever done. Because I kept thinking about seeing him on TV. I kept hearing his voice and thinking about the video games. I was so connected to him as a child, that to see him in person, you know, 10, 12 years later, maybe 15 years later, GS 15 years later, uh, was just a huge, I was just unexpected, but it speaks back to the power of voice. Like it really was something about hearing his voice, not even seeing him in person because he looks so different, right. Everyone gets older, you change a little bit. But to, to just hear his voice, hear the way he talks to us at certain tone, that’s only his is very soft.
Tiff (12:44):
It’s very like direct. But, um, it took me back to my childhood. And I think about that when I think about a lot of different, you know, when you watch old shows that are syndicated now and you just feel like you’re a kid, again, hearing Tony Hawk’s voice made me feel like a kid again. And this is sort of like our point here, right? Like you don’t know the kind of difference that you’re making. He has no idea. I didn’t get a chance to talk to him. He has no idea what he did, you know, you know, and the fact that he had in my life as a kid and like just feeling so empowered of what I could and couldn’t do, maybe not what I couldn’t do, but what I could do, like what I wanted to do, fantasizing about being a skateboarder. Um, so just took to Christine’s argument.
Tiff (13:22):
And what were the argument that we’re making here? Like just, you have no idea just when someone’s hearing your voice, the very distinct tone of your voice, the kind of microphone you’re using, the kind of area that you’re in, that, you know, they’re really hearing, it’s really becoming digestible. I think another platform I didn’t get to mention, it’s like audio books, like thinking about, um, like my mom in particular has a book. Can’t wait for us to record her. It has an audio book, but thinking about like for me, I know it’s hard for me now sometimes to actually sit and read a book. If I can hear it while I’m reading it, I’m almost a little bit more focused because everything is inattention to what the person is saying. And what’s right in front of me, there really is a power to hearing people’s voice and letting it sink in compared to like Christina said the written word, or even sometimes on video, some of these comedy things are super fun, but people are using music right.
Tiff (14:11):
To, to hit a particular place. And I know that a lot of these TikTok videos that are trending a lot of these like Instagram reels that are trending, are all playing off of music that we know, and we’re hearing the same song over and over again. It’s making a huge difference in some people’s music sales, because if their music can trend on TikTok, even if it wasn’t popular on the radio, they’re getting way more downloads and sales because it’s becoming a trend. So it’s a little bit different when it comes to the power of voice. But just thinking about that, like how music and voice and audio can be really powerful and make a difference. If someone doesn’t want to consume your content in a certain way, there is a way to change it, uh, by using the power of your voice. But overall, um, I’ll pass it back to you, Christine, just to talk more about this,
Christine (14:56):
Of course, as you were talking about Tony Hawk and take talk, and like all of these ways that we are using our voice and not using our voice, it made me remember when Ray Lewis was on the school of greatness, the show we worked on. Um, and I’ve told this story on another episode, but I remember just, you know, kind of being a little bit entranced by the way he told stories. And I didn’t really think anything of it after, but then several weeks or months later, another member of our team Bradley had just sent a note to everyone. And he was like, Hey guys, I was going through a rough time recently. And I found these affirmations that Ray Lewis recorded. And they’re just on Spotify. Like I don’t, it’s totally random, right? This retired NFL legend had recorded these daily affirmations that were really simple, but I popped over and listened because I was really curious and they were really moving and it was just the quality of Ray’s voice and the intention and feeling behind them, having heard an interview with him and kind of hearing his story.
Christine (15:59):
I was like, Oh, this person really believes what he’s saying. When these affirmations, you know, I am strong, I am capable. I am great. And, and they weren’t even fancy, like they were short. You can all find the Lincoln Lincoln in the show notes, but it reminded me as you were talking Tiff I was like, yeah, it doesn’t even matter if you are coming from a certain kind of industry. Like the power of our voice is unique and, and our voices will sound really great to some people and not so great to others because, you know, we all hear things differently. Our ears are uniquely designed, but that’s just another bit of proof that you can have sort of an unlimited future. When you use the power of your voice, you may, you may try recording an audio book and realized like I’m actually terrible at that.
Christine (16:48):
That’s not encouraging at all, but you might actually be really engaging on an Instagram story or on a conversational podcast. Maybe you flourish in conversation, but you feel really dull and uninspired when you’re solo recording or the opposite, you may actually turn, find out that when you turn on the microphone and you’re by yourself and you can just focus in the best kind of stuff comes out of you. But when you’re in a conversation, you get really nervous and tongue tied. So we just wanted to record this episode as a bit of encouragement to you, that, you know, we’re in the business of helping people kind of harness the power of their voice. But if you’ve been feeling like you’re not there yet, or you have to be perfect, it’s not true. There is a way for you to use the power of your voice. That’s unique to you. And we just really encourage you to explore several different channels and platforms and styles until you find one that really hits home and feels really good. And you’ll know it when people start responding to that content differently than they have. So that’s our note of encouragement, a plug for the power of your voice in an age where we are uber distracted by so many different pieces of content all over, you know, trust the power of your voice, speak authentically from your core. And you’ll be surprised by who is inspired
Tiff (18:10):
When we’re reminded just to the art of storytelling. Like it takes time to learn how to, to say things kind of what the beginning, middle, and end and storytelling is a whole career. I have one of my favorite books that I think we should link here is, um, uh, how to get your point across in 30 seconds or less. I love that book and it gives such a good sort of, um, tie to like, it gives a good example of the Wizard of Oz and just how simple that story is, even though it’s become like one of the most, you know, I mean, everyone knows that story. They’ve watched the movie, they’ve read the book. Uh, but just how simple you can understand the character is simple. You can understand the story, um, that the story doesn’t get in your way of what’s happening with the characters.
Tiff (18:57):
And I really liked that book. It’s a short book it’s like from the eighties, but just the art of storytelling. It’s like anything else it takes practice. So the more that you, you try, the more that you speak, the more that you just even raise your hand and clubhouse, if you know what we’re talking about, the better things will get. Like I will say, you know, you guys have watched so many bloopers, um, cause I love putting our outtakes and bloopers on these episodes because I like the idea that I am not great at this. I liked the idea that sometimes Christine only gets two edits in a 30 minute episode and I need like 20, I am working on it. I am practicing. I’m learning how to get my point across in a very like easy way for you to understand I’m learning how to express myself.
Tiff (19:40):
And so just the art of trying and practicing is very important. And so with this encouragement, just understand, you will be terrible at it in the beginning, and you’ll continue to get better than what you study in some ways you try. But all the artists that we love, all the people we grew up watching and listening to, they were not perfect. They’re human just like you. And it took time to get good at what they do. Thank you so much for watching this video. Thank you for tuning into this podcast. Be sure to subscribe to us on the amazing, uh, like seven platforms we’re on for audio, but definitely leave us a review and rating on Apple podcast. It makes a huge difference for us to get in front of you and other people like you who want to hear these kinds of messages who need this encouragement also who needs the, the technical skills that we are giving when it comes to starting your own show and podcast. Again, we are, you know, a host of think like a producer, have a beautiful Thursday, and we will talk to you on the next episode.
Christine (20:39):
Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Think Like a Producer. This has been a Worthfull Media production. Massive thanks to our team who makes the show possible. Worthfull Media for audio editing, Jorge and Veronica from Mosaico Productions for video editing and effects and Amela Subasic for our amazing artwork and graphics.
Tiff (21:02):
If you want to learn more about how to market, monetize, and grow your podcast, we have a membership group where you can get more access to us and feedback on your show. As a special bonus, you get free access to Christine’s DIY, do it yourself, podcast course when you join the group. Check the link in the show notes for more information.
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