My Beginning with Good Live Production

A professional speaker and trainer, Floyd Wickman first came to the music-recording studio where I worked to record an audio program. By the time we got to the end of the first tape (out of eight), Floyd expressed how difficult it was to sound even remotely enthusiastic, and how much he would prefer to be taped in front of an audience. I asked him why he had not made those production arrangements initially, and he told me that he could not find a company that knew the business and could do a quality live recording. After we finished those eight cassettes, something extraordinary happened — Floyd asked me to come to a meeting facility the following week and record him live, in front of an audience. I took the time off from the studio, rented the equipment from a local audio/visual company, and that day Primeau Productions moved in a new direction.

For Floyd, taping in the studio was more difficult than doing a live recording. He, as well as many others that followed him, evolved their careers through live productions. Bill Gove said, “If you are a professional speaker, you need to be good at what you do.” The operative word here is good. Professional speakers and authors can easily create audio product by going into the studio to read or perform. But unless you’re the Mark Victor Hansen or Tony Robbins type, it’s hard to create the kind of enthusiasm you need without an audience.

Interested in learning more about professional media services like audio/video? Contact me at 800-647-4281.  

This information is taken from my book The Art of Production, which you can purchase from Amazon or you can purchase an e-book version from SmashWords.

DTE Energy Cuts 300 Jobs by Installing Automatic Meters

The week before Christmas, we get an unexpected knock on the door. It's DTE, here to change our electricity meter. So, we had to power down 6 computers and accommodate their very busy schedule according to the not so friendly DTE employee.

About two minutes later, they left without a word and we went on with our day. Keep in mind, we produce video and when shutting down and powering up computers, we lost about 15 to 20 minutes.  Multiply that by hourly pay lost and it’s a fair sum of money.  Oh well, on with the show.  I did not think anything of it and it soon left my consciousness, until today.

We got a customer service follow up call asking for feedback.  I told them it would have been nice to receive a call in advance letting us know about the meter swap.  Then it occurred to me to ask what an automatic meter was. “It allows us to read your meter without having to send somebody to your home,” replied the lady from Minnesota.

I asked how many jobs DTE cut as a result of this automatic meter swap. Her voice changed from business to concerned, she said “I am from Minnesota and here they cut 300 jobs!” Then I had to really express my opinion and ask what was wrong with the old equipment that required changing.  She said nothing was wrong, but rather it was a technology update.

As a business owner of a video production company in Detroit Michigan, I know all about technology updates and the cost they have to businesses. What happened to the concept of ‘don’t fix it if it ain’t broke’?

Of course she was only the messenger. I asked her to write down my comments and she kept asking me to hold every time she had to type.  Don't you think DTE would record the darn phone calls so they had a better handle on how their customer service teams were operating?

Now I am all about saving money, but let’s multiply how many DTE customers are in our square mile and tally the amount of money DTE generates each month. In a down economy, you would think one of the largest utility companies in Detroit would not want to jeopardize Michigan jobs and lay off 300 Minnesota workers! What’s next? The post office switching to electronic mail delivery to avoid employing mail carriers?

Large companies like DTE need to be supporting the city rather than taking it down by layoffs. Changes like this are not about solving a problem of not  making enough money, but rather about how they can earn even more.  I would have been quite happy keeping my old meter and watching the reader walk through our fenceless property once a month knowing that DTE Energy was supporting Detroit Michigan jobs instead of installing automatic machines that could take jobs away. So what does a small business owner do to voice his opinion? Write about it in a blog post and hope that everyone who reads it will use social media to voice their opinion.

Primeau Productions: Your 2012 Video Shepherd

Even though our headquarters is outside Detroit Michigan, a city that is experiencing one of the worse recessions ever in the history books, Primeau Productions is growing and thriving.  Video Shepherd is one of our new products we are launching in 2012 that will help save you time and money.

We are very passionate about video and have 30+ years of video production experience that began in Detroit Michigan and has now expanded around the world. We want to help you make the right video decisions that will help grow your business by getting more Internet visibility using digital video.

The idea for the term ‘video shepherd’ came from our client Jean Houston-Shore.  She asked me during a phone conversation if Primeau Productions would be her 'video shepherd'. I loved the idea and have put her request into a subscription-based service offering.

What is a ‘Video Shepherd’ in Detroit Michigan going to do to help you in Australia or another city in the United States? Distance does not matter with video because digital video is universal and formatted the same regardless of geography.

Back in the days of analogue video, there were geographical considerations video production companies had when formatting the final video product.  Europe was PAL formatted; the USA used the NTSC format and other countries like France and parts of Australia used SECAM.

Today almost all video is viewed on the Internet.  This Internet-based digital video can be very confusing.  In fact, on average we receive 10-20 phone calls and 20-40 emails each week from existing clients asking us video related questions.  Questions like:

Why does my video look small on YouTube? Why are there ads at the end of my video on YouTube for my competitors? Can I use video from a DVD in my marketing video? The company I hired to record my presentation in Miami wants to send my video electronically, how do I download it?

How do I index my video for better search engine optimization? Are titles important when posting my video on Yahoo?

Primeau Productions can save you a lot of time and money. The proper use of video will help you get more business from the Internet.   

Monthly cost $25

Here is what is included:

- Help from us to help you understand digital and Internet video

-A 15% discount on all video production services like professional video editing, video recording, standard definition to HD conversion, YouTube clip creation, recording Internet video webinars, Skype interviews and other web cam video activity as well as any other professional video activity that you need.

-Video storage and back up advice for various networks like Vimeo, Viddler and YouTube

-Periodic "easy to understand and read" email tips on how to effectively use digital video to get more business

-Instructions on how to add more video to your website 

-Instructions on how to correctly format, encode and distribute Internet video

-Opportunity to email our tech support as often as you like to ask video related questions

Call 800-647-4281 to sign up.  You may cancel at any time because in this ever changing world, you may discover that video is not for you. You may also discover that video may be the key to recession-proofing your business. 

Primeau Productions Video Production in Mexico: A True Miracle

To keep up with our growth, Primeau Productions, LLC retained the services of Hannah Zachert, Kevin Cramer and Tim Meehan in 2011. Hannah is an excellent addition to the Primeau team with her expertise in graphic design and writing.  Kevin Cramer is a great addition with his video editing skills and organization.  Tim Meehan has a synergy that has kindled in Primeau Productions in so many ways.

When were stuck while trying to negotiate and complete our video production for the Napoleon Hill Foundation "The Master Key to Success" 13 part video series in Spanish, Tim Meehan led Primeau Productions in a direction.  Primeau Productions goal is to help get Napoleon Hill’s message out through these videos to one of the largest and fastest growing market sectors in the world.

Meehan helped convince Primeau Productions that the project of translating these videos was worth the time and financial investment during a trip to Chicago last June when I presented at Notre Dame University for the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce event in Chicago on Internet marketing.

Taking the lead, Meehan found a translator in Myra Mexico, Judith, who is a teacher and speaks fluent English and Spanish.  Judith did a wonderful job translating our summer intern Madeline Meehan’s transcripts of video 1-10 and Rachel Witucky’s transcripts 11-13 that were created from the English Master Key videos.

The DVD master has been authored and we are ready to go to press.  Notre Dame University has placed the first order of DVDs.  Don Green,  Chairman of the Board of the Napoleon Hill Foundation, has requested another 300-400 sets.

Primeau Productions does have a contract with the Napoleon Hill Foundation for licensing the video and distributing it in Spanish form globally.

Meehan suggested a trip to Mexico to record the voice of Napoleon Hill to assure all translations were perfect.  We decided to stay in Puerto Adventures at Blue Caribbean Resorts, who is a client and friend of Primeau Productions.  The gated community of Puerto Adventures is a beautiful destination about 45 minutes south of Can Cun Mexico.  Blue Caribbean Resorts provided a beautiful 4 bedroom 2 and a half bath condo on the Caribbean for us at no charge. Blue Caribbean is one of the most beautiful resorts I have ever been to and had the privilege to work with.

Puerto Adventures

Our trip to Mexico to record also has parallel karma. After serendipitously finding Judith and having all 13 video scripts translated to Spanish, Meehan posted an ad on Local Gringo (Mexico’s equivalent to Craig’s List) to find a Spanish voice talent.  We planned on having to fly in someone from Mexico City, Merida Mexico or Cancun Mexico.

We received one reply to Meehan’s ad from a woman who knew somebody who had done voice work in the past. She referred us  to David Nunez and introduced Meehan to David via email.

The really amazing part of the story is that David happened to live right in Puerto Adventures, a 5 minute walk down the beach from where Tim and I stayed at Blue Caribbean Resorts.  While finishing up the Napoleon Hill Spanish recordings during our weeklong visit, we got to know David Nunez. David has two master’s degrees, one from Harvard and the other from the University of Texas at Austin.  He is a marine biologist.

David chooses a life in Puerto Adventures, leaving the American fast track behind.  Today David is a Biology teacher at a Puerto Adventures private school. David Nunez also founded a nonprofit organization to help repopulate the bay in Puerto Adventured with bottom feeding sea creatures that have been absent for many years due to over fishing.  We accomplished our goal of recording a perfect Spanish voice of napoleon Hill and met one of the most interesting and resourceful people who has become a friend and ally of Primeau Productions.  Thank you to Blue Caribbean Resorts and David Nunez for helping Primeau productions deliver Napoleon Hill’s message to the Spanish speaking population.

Blue Caribbean Resorts

New Elvis Presley song "Living to Love You" Follow up: Just the Facts

Click here to read the follow-up article about the newly discovered song that Ed Primeau did voice identification on to confirm it was sung by Elvis Presely.

New Elvis Song Discovered

Nearly thirty four years after The King’s death, a new song has been discovered and confirmed forensically to be the king himself, Elvis Presley. Ed Primeau was contacted by Mike Chesney of WWMT TV 3 the CBS affiliate in Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids Michigan to use his voice identification expertise to confirm the song is genuine.

Ed Primeau is president of Primeau Productions LLC,. based out of Rochester Hills, Michigan, as well as a well-respected audio and video forensic expert.

The TV crew arrived about 10 am last Tuesday and gave Ed the three versions of the song “Living to Love You” which was written by a deceased Grand Rapids resident and performed by Elvis Presley.  The crew filmed Ed’s forensic investigation and then interviewed him about his conclusion. 

Ed’s theory is that while in the Detroit area in 1976, Elvis had an interest in this song whose lyrics made their way to the King prior to his visit.  According to Primeau, “Elvis liked the song and recorded a demo, which is what we have in these recordings.”

The three versions are vocals and piano only and do not sound like an Elvis song, which may be a huge reason why the song was not recorded and released.  Primeau referred the film crew to Gary Graff, an icon rock journalist and Billbord magazine columnist who is a friend of Primeau’s and local Metro Detroit Area resident.  He also confirmed the song to be Elvis himself.  Graff also commented on Primea's forensic credentials and conclusion in the video interview.

There are three criteria for conducting voice identification, critical listening skills, electronic measurement and visual inspection of the sound wave.  “Living to Love You” was compared to two other Elvis songs recorded around the same time that served as an exemplar of Elvis Presley’s voice.  The vocal tone, vibrato and style of singing is an identical match to Elvis Presley.

Traditionally, a voice identification test includes the forensic expert making an exemplar of the person in questions voice to compare with the recording in question. Since Elvis is dead, Primeau used the two songs the TV crew provided and he agreed on them as exemplars.

Primeau noted the vibrato resonance and style matched Elvis Presley’s.  Primeau went further and downloaded a sample of an Elvis impersonator from the Internet and compared that voice to the recordings in question.  Using digital spectrograph technology, Primeau compared the two known Elvis songs, the three takes of “Living to Love You”, the impersonator and a Neil Diamond song.  The spectrographic readings confirmed Primeau’s opinion and displayed the obvious results for the TV crew.

The significance of this new song by Elvis Presley is that it will stimulate fan interest in existing Elvis material and fetch a generous amount of money at auction, should that ever happen. It has been a long time since the king released any material and his estate Graceland is yet to comment on the discovery. 

How to LEGALLY Survive in a Down Economy

How to LEGALLY Survive in a Down Economy:
Personal Economic Restructuring
I was listening to AM talk radio while driving to a client the other morning. The news was about nothing but crimes committed out of desperation. For example, a car drove into an ATM at a gas station and shot the operator in the arm at 4am. I started to think about what I would do if I lost my job, my home and my dignity and was motivated to write about my thoughts.
I know this might make some people angry, but if it even helps one person, I am glad. I want to inspire you to begin your own economic restructuring instead of being immobilized by anxiety.
Economic restructuring is happening all over America. Corporate America has succeeded and failed with restructuring. I believe personal economic restructuring is a must for any person or household in order to survive in these very turbulent times.

To make money, we each need to have a job. The higher our education and motivation, the more pay we can earn. If you have lost your job to forces beyond your control, getting mad or committing crimes is not the answer. The real answer is to be optimistic and find another job. Anything is better than nothing at first, even working at Walmart or McDonalds. Why? Because it gets you out of the house and gets you interacting with people. Temporary jobs also help you combat depression. Human interaction is vital when you get depressed.

My first thought is do not borrow money. Borrowing money only sets you back further because even when you get back on track financially you have the debt to pay back. Plus, borrowing money is only a temporary solution; it will not solve the real problem of finding a job.

Everyone does something better than anyone else, so consider starting a business. I have been self employed since 1984 and cannot imagine any other way to make money. What do you do better than anyone else? Ideas include babysitting and selling art or crafts. (I have seen some amazing artwork from street vendors in New York and even purchased some.)

Join a multi-level marketing (MLM) company to start your own business. Home based businesses are on the rise. Not only do they put money in your pocket, they also help you socialize with your friends and family. Hint: don’t sell stuff you do not like. Three MLM’s I buy from include Sensi, Partilite and Shaklee. Somebody is earning commissions from my purchases.
One new MLM I believe is going to be huge is Thirty One. They sell purses. Not only do they have ladies’ purses and bags, they also have a men’s line.

Another way to make money is to have a garage or estate sale and sell some of you items. Don’t stop there—what items do your friends and neighbors have that you can sell at your sale to earn a commission from? Post your sale on Craig’s List for a stronger turnout.

You could also have a bottle and can drive and collect returnables. In Michigan, we get ten cents for a can or bottle. One hundred cans earn you ten bucks, enough to buy a pack of cigarettes or lunch for three at a fast food restaurant. Collect as many cans and bottles as you can. If you are comfortable, go door to door and announce that you are raising money by conducting a can and bottle drive asking if they would like to contribute.

When times get really hard, get dressed up so you look presentable and visit a local hotel that has room service. Walk the halls and look for room service trays that are in the hall on the floor. I would not stop and eat right there. Bring a bag and put the leftover food in the bag and take home for later consumption. In a city like Las Vegas, there is much food wasted on a daily basis that never finds its way to hungry Americans.

I hope one thing in this unusual blog post sparked an idea or some motivation in you to try something to move you out of worry or depression. The likelihood that somebody is going to call you to offer to help is not so good. You have to do your economic restructuring on your own.