You guys think that I should be making videos and stuff even tho I am not a native english speaker?

Hi Marian,

I've listened to many IM videos by non native English speakers and it has never put me off.

It would only put me off if I was struggling to understand them.

Maybe you should put up a quick sample and see what people think - it is hard to comment if we have not actually heard your voice

Cheers,
Suzanne

I think you should give it a shot. The KEY is planning what you say and rehearsing it a few times. Record the audio separate from the video and overlay it later. Be clear, take your time in speaking (not rushed) and read the script naturally (no umm, ahhh, and other filler words).

If you are worried about your accent then resent it up front as a reality. Say "I realize my English sounds different than that of a native speaker, so bear with me while I deliver this important message" .. something like that. If you acknowledge the "problem" up front you've disarmed its. You build rapport that way also.

Voice being too young? Just practice sounding the way you want.

I already thought of saying it upfront that I'm not a native english speaker.

I will try and put up a short audio.

It really is all about confidence. Just launch right into the video without a care or insecurity, and that will harbor trust among your viewers.

Maybe have a couple shots beforehand?

You shouldn't worry about how you sound, how you look, how you speak, etc. and let that keep you in the way of making videos. We are often harder on ourselves than others are. I'd say go for it.

However, if nobody can understand you, you may want to outsource it.

Practice doing the video and listening back to yourself A LOT. Once you've heard yourself speak on videos more than a couple of dozen times, you'll loose that "ugghh, I sound horrible" feeling. Trust me, I've been there. It gets easier the more you do it.

Audio:

Ok here it is http://www.trilulilu.ro/Rhypo/86b26b96b63083

Of course its not gonna sound exactly like that, I am going to work on it abit...but thats the general idea.

I agree give it a shot and just do a split test to see which site converts better.

I would recommend that you do NOT apologize for being a non-native English speaker. As long as you can be understood, there should be no issue... in fact, I find accents to be charming in a way. What really matters is the value of your information, which should speak for itself.

If you are still really uncomfortable, how about offering a transcript that goes along with the video? That way, people can just read along if they are having trouble understanding you. Or you could write a script and pay someone here to do the voice work/video for you.

I remember when I was making my video...I was thinking to myself no way!!! I don't sound like that do i?

Most people do not like their own voice when they hear it through video or audio. Even though I am a native English speaker I speak with an accent that not everyone can understand so I had to slow it down and swap my words.

As people said above split test between text and video. You should give it a go though as it will be a good educational experience for you.

I transcribe everything I say into a video and I put it up.

(Here's a sample: Work From Home And Make Money Online Home Based Business)

So far, I've got people who thank me for a good video.
The ones who think I suck probably are too lazy to tell me
(*grin* good, keep it that way, I like to have a healthy ego).

And I'm no native English speaker. I'm from Singapore... we're
known to have our own mutation of the English language -
we call it "Singlish".

I say, go for it.

The internet has evolved in such a way that it accepts
people from all around the world.

.... except if you have a voice that hints you're from Nigeria.
The damage done by all the scam letters make it hard for
Nigerians to succeed, in my opinion.

Asher

I say you give it a try.

I've never been that comfortable doing video in the past, but I've got used to it now.

I'd go for it man. If people are that impatient that they can't forgive a man's acsent, then they really aren't worth doing business with.

Then again, if they can't tell what you're saying then it's a different story altogether. Give it a try. I agree with StevieHawk. Be sure to split-test and you can't go wrong

Hey Marian,

What's with the login screen?

I agree with what was mentioned about having confidence..

And also not apologizing because English is not your first language..

I find that those who are confident when doing videos, however they speak are nice to watch. Just speak clearly because if it can't be understood then you beat the purpose of having the video..

To Your Success!

Raul Omar Diaz

Dunno Marian. I say if this guy can do it you should
give it a go. His accent is really pronounced.

I listened to the audio and I think your accent is charming! You were easy to understand and your voice doesn't sound overly young. I'd proceed with the video and evaluate the results.

I see you moved the audio to a site where it can be listened to without login. Thx.

As another non-native English speaker I can understand you clearly. To be honest, I have watched videos with way worse accent... but with more self-confidence than yours

Go ahead and make the videos!
(dă-i bătaie, mă băiete...)

Thank you very much for the input guys...guess I'm gonna start working on it now.

@Pension Guy, you know romanian dude? nice

Maybe you not being a native English speaker could tie into the video and actually drive more traffic. You know some Americans are suckers for accents (even though to the outside US, we have accents!)

I think your accent is cute

Your voice was just fine. I had no trouble understanding you whatsoever.

Now get to work on your opt-in page!

Your voice sounds just fine. If you've got valuable info to offer, go for it! Good Luck!

Marian,

I agree with the others that said your voice was fine.

Have a question though. Have you already looked into the Romanian speaking niches and decided that there is not enough money to be made there?

You know, if you start now, you can be the Frank Kern of Romania

You don't have to give up your English speaking projects but I wouldn't write Romania off.

Matt

Marian:

Don't get good, get started, then as you practice you'll get better than you ever thought you could.

You know, I can hardly understand a thing that Arnold Schwarzenegger says and he made it all the way to Governor of California. So go for it!

I tried the romanian market, but 95% of the people in my country only think that you can make money with e-commerce store and the rest is a scam.

And the online market in general is just so small...I can honestly say that only about 10%-20% tops of my country population does online shopping.

I did some surveys and some stuff and I only got responses like "Im only buying electronics or gifts"...and I don't wanna go into that.

Another thing is that the laws are kinda stupid...Ex: If I want affiliates, I have to sign a written contract with each one of them and they have to be a legal entity.

And thank you for all the encouragement

Maybe in the future I will, but not in the next 2-3 years for sure.

As long as you are understandable there shouldn't be a problem!

I've heard the audio and it sounds fine. I didn't have to struggle to understand what you are saying, so if you can prepare a script and stick to it there's no reason it will put a negative effect on your conversion.

Alternatively, and it's just and idea not an affiliate link, you can hire one of these Video Spokes Model and have them do a video for your site. (not my website)

Your voice sounds great. Use a lot of emphasis and energy when you speak. The pace at which you spoke in the demo is quite good. Put some energy into it, exaggerate the clarity of your words, and you'll sound awesome.

You do NOT sound that young, BTW.

Go for it, man! People love funky foreign accents. You could be like the "wild and crazy guys" that Steve Martin and Dan Akroyd portrayed back in the '70s. Play it up and be like, "Hey, I can speak your language. Can you speak mine?" Then they'll think you're smarter than they are. Can you say "credibility boost?" I knew you could!

Hi Marian,

1. I listened to your recording and your voice is fine; an obvious accent, yes, but so what - I know English guys who often can't understand the Scots, Irish & Welsh when they're speaking English! Worse, they often can't understand Brummies (from Birmingham), Geordies (from Newcastle) and Scousers (from Liverpool) ... and they're ALL English! So don't worry about it. I understood you perfectly. I wish I spoke another language as well as you.

2. If you are REALLY concerned about reducing your accent (or more sensibly just to check you aren't grossly mispronouncing words) try finding a few native English speakers on Skype who will talk with you on a regular basis (I'd be happy to) to highlight any pronunciation errors. Accents are rarely the problem - REALLY - severe mispronunciation can however be a barrier to clear communication of ideas. It didn't sound like you had that problem though.

3. Stick with standing in front of the "rabid crowd WITH MONEY" & who want (& can afford) to buy whatever it is you can offer them that they want/need - VERY sensible

4. Try & take some Romanians with you on the journey too though by offering them SOME crumbs of comfort (for free) - the more you can give them free now, the more they'll buy from you later. But you're right, make money first from those WITH money - generally they're everywhere West of you (with a few exceptions).

5. Finally, as some have said already, just practice lots with a written script so that it becomes second nature. If it doesn't sound good enough (to you) you can always re-record. Don't forget, you can always record (& re-record) the audio in bits then string them together afterwards as a voice-over. Use Windows Movie maker (or equivalent) to construct a decent audio timeline that you post-sync to any video. Keep any video shots of yourself short so that you are less likely to get tongue tied and have to re-do long sections.

BTW some of the biggest Internet marketing gurus: Ewen Chia, Richard Tan, Alok Jain (& many others) all of whom I recently heard speak in London, have quite strong accents, but they didn't have a problem being understood.

Good luck - let us know how you get on.

Best regards.

yes plenty off people like you do well doing so.

Hey there,
Be confident. If you don't have a confident voice/tone, your video may not be very effective. So, even if you're not a native English speaker, don't sound nervous and make the viewers/listeners feel you don't know what you're doing.
Remember, a video will not make the necessary impact even if a native English speaker includes a lot of uhhs and umms and pauses and sounds shaky.

Also, what you can do is (in case you're not confident about your English) you can get the text written by some who knows how to write, read it out loud till you sound confident enough and then start recording your audio/video.

Good ahead mate,
Just do it,

Hope this helps,

Sincerely,
Jay B.