The Cradle of Prayer is intent on sharing the traditional Anglican service beyond the walls of All Saints Anglican Church in Mills River, North Carolina. To achieve the goal of being a 21st century online resource for hope, comfort, and compassion, they turned to Evoca, a leading global audio web services provider. Evoca is making podcasting of prayers, scripture readings, and music very easy for members of religious groups.

Cradle of Prayer offers free MP3 listening and downloads of prayers and soothing classic hymns and songs. Evoca supports playback of daily services and weekly collections. Listeners can email single recordings or entire albums to others. Other religious and spiritual organizations podcast sermons and prayer chains using Evoca. While the Cradle of Prayer sends their website visitors directly to the Cradle of Prayer Evoca account, here are two examples of the players that any Evoca subscriber can embed in their web pages:

• A standard single recording player with a viral share button for posting by visitors to their own web pages, blogs, Facebook, and more, using Evoca’s auto-generated embed code:

</p> <div style=”width:290;” id=”flashPlayerHTML-Mini”> <div id=”playerHeader”></div> <div class=”evocaFlashPlayer” id=”playerCode”> <span class=”mceItemObject” classid=”clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000″ codebase=”http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,24,0″ width=”290″ height=”24″><br /> <span name=”movie” value=”http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/wpaudioplayer.swf” class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span name=”quality” value=”high”class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span name=”allowScriptAccess” value=”always”class=”mceItemParam”></span> </param> <span name=”wmode” value=”transparent” class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span name=”flashVars” value=”initialvolume=80&titles=The Magnificat – Mary’s Song&rid=204590&soundFile=https://s3.amazonaws.com/evocacom/5/2/6/0/7/1260308724893.mp3&host=http://www.evoca.com/&listenURL=http://www.evoca.com/lc.jsp?rid=204590&file=https://s3.amazonaws.com/evocacom/5/2/6/0/7/1260308724893.mp3″ class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span class=”mceItemEmbed” src=”http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/wpaudioplayer.swf” mce_src=”http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/wpaudioplayer.swf” width=”290″ height=”24″ allowfullscreen=”true” allowscriptaccess=”always” wmode=”transparent” flashvars=”initialvolume=80&titles=The Magnificat – Mary’s Song&rid=204590&soundFile=https://s3.amazonaws.com/evocacom/5/2/6/0/7/1260308724893.mp3&host=http://www.evoca.com/&listenURL=http://www.evoca.com/lc.jsp?rid=204590&file=https://s3.amazonaws.com/evocacom/5/2/6/0/7/1260308724893.mp3″></span> </param></span> </div> <div id=”playerFooter”></div> </div> <p>

• A customized playlist player displaying images for each recording and including a viral share button. It was created using the Evoca player wizard that generated its embed code:

<div style=”width:400;” id=”flashPlayerHtml_cradle”> <div id=”playerHeader_cradle”> </div> <div class=”evocaFlashPlayer” id=”div_cradle”> <span class=”mceItemObject” classid=”clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000″ codebase=”http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,24,0″ width=”400″ height=”140″> <span name=”movie” value=”http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/ev-pl-4x.swf” class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span name=”quality” value=”high”class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span name=”flashVars” value=”&file=http://www.evoca.com/CradleofPrayer/4thecradleofprayerlisteningroom.playlist?maxResults=20&playlist=right&playlistsize=280&v=4&plugins=http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/ee-plugin.swf&skin=http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/jw-default-skin-no-thumbs.swf&backcolor=0xCCFFFF&frontcolor=0×000000&lightcolor=0×000000&screencolor=0×000000&logo=&defaultImage=http://www.evoca.com/ImageRetriever?oid=A&stretching=uniform&displayclick=play&autostart=false&repeat=false&shuffle=true&volume=80&maxResults=20″ class=”mceItemParam”></span> <span class=”mceItemEmbed” src=”http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/ev-pl-4x.swf” mce_src=”http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/ev-pl-4x.swf” width=”400″ height=”140″ allowfullscreen=”true” allowscriptaccess=”always” flashvars=”&file=http://www.evoca.com/CradleofPrayer/4thecradleofprayerlisteningroom.playlist?maxResults=20&playlist=right&playlistsize=280&v=4&plugins=http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/ee-plugin.swf&skin=http://www.evoca.com/evocaPlayer/jw-default-skin-no-thumbs.swf&backcolor=0xCCFFFF&frontcolor=0×000000&lightcolor=0×000000&screencolor=0×000000&logo=&defaultImage=http://www.evoca.com/ImageRetriever?oid=A&stretching=uniform&displayclick=play&autostart=false&repeat=false&shuffle=true&volume=80&maxResults=20″ ></span> </span> </div> <div id=”playerFooter_cradle”> </div> </div>

Stacy Stephens, a co-founder and soprano, opens each service as cantor with a seasonal verse of a hymn, followed by the reading of the prayers and Psalms by co-founder Reverend Paul Blankinship. Anyone can also subscribe to the site to get new recording updates via RSS feeds.

“Evoca makes it easy for listeners of all ages to benefit from our services, which include scripture readings and music. After recording, our cantor simply uploads to our Evoca account, “ said Cathy Rodgers, webmaster of Cradle of Prayer and principal of 7 Waves Marketing. “We then offer our listeners a link to the recordings from our website to listen or download. We have people of all ages who come to our site every day.”

“Cradle of Prayer is an excellent example of how anyone can offer audio listening and downloads right from their Evoca account,” added Murem Sharpe, Evoca CEO. “This fits with Evoca’s mission to make it easy for subscribers — from beginners to experts — to share valuable audio content online.”

About Evoca
Evoca is a leading global voice-to-web services provider that enables businesses, organizations and individuals to easily record interviews, testimonials, opinions, stories, and language lessons using any phone, Skype™, and any computer mic. Evoca subscribers post viral audio widgets on their websites that can share recordings on Facebook, Twitter, websites, and blogs. Evoca Express is available online as a free trial, Pro, Local, or Toll-free subscription. Large organizations, other web services, and telecommunications partners also can license Evoca Enterprise, its multi-media, enterprise-grade platform delivered through a flexible interface.

For more information, visit www.evoca.com or contact Evoca at +1.212.372.7670, toll-free U.S./Canada +1-866-940-9988, businessdevelopment@evoca.com, use our online contact form, or record your message using our Skype call recorder contact: evoca-bizdev-call-recorder. Any Evoca Express subscriber can receive the Evoca Express webinar training schedule by emailing: customerservice@evoca.com.

By now you know we are big fans of TJ Walker, expert on media and presentation training and CEO of Media Training Worldwide and blogger at TJWalker.com.

Many Evoca subscribers embed audio recordings within their PowerPoint presentations, either as a link to the web page with an embedded Flash player (provided by Evoca – standard or customized by you) or from their Evoca Express account. Evoca streams the audio playback from our servers. Player widgets can be for a single recording or playlist.

So we are always on the lookout for good advice about using technology in presentations, especially to incorporate voice recordings that bring PowerPoint slides to life. For example, you can let your own customers or supporters record a testimonial  to enliven a success story or case study. Real people’s voices bring credibility to your assertion that your product or service is the best in the market.

With his permission to publish, here are TJ’s:

Ten rules to follow when you are using technology in a presentation

1.    Assume the worst.
2.    Practice using the technology, that includes the laptop, microphone, projector, speaker, microphone, laser and anything that you are going to use in front of people you should practice in advance.
3.    Practice in the same environment as you will be giving your final presentation, i.e., if you are presenting to 400 people in a conference hall using a big projector, then practice in that hall or one similar. Don’t simply practice on your laptop in a hotel room because it’s easy to do anything with your laptop in a hotel room and this will give you a false sense of confidence.
4.    When microphones [and speakers] break and computers freeze, don’t panic and don’t complain. If there is a tech person around, calmly mention that your microphone is no longer working and ask for help. If you computer freezes, calmly restart it without drawing attention to your problems.
5.    Have a plan B. If your PowerPoint stops working, just be ready to talk to people using nothing more than your paper notes.
6.   Test all technology either right before you speak (if possible) or during the largest break of the day (breakfast, lunch or dinner) preceding your presentation so that you can make sure you know how everything works.
7.    If you get lots of feedback from a microphone, just stop talking and step back. This solves most problems right away.
8.   Never, ever try to learn any piece of technology in front of people. Every laptop keyboard is slightly different; every remote control is different. It’s really tough to learn anything new when you have the tension associated with being in front of people and they are staring at you.
9.    If you are going to use PowerPoint with video clips [and/or audio clips] and use a microphone, give yourself an extra hour to rehearse in the room where you will be presenting—because there are a million things that can go wrong.
10.    Never forget, the presentation is about the ideas you have to help, inform, inspire and educate you audience, the presentation is not about your technology.

About Evoca

Evoca (http://www.evoca.com/) is a leading global Voice-to-Web services provider, enabling businesses, organizations and individuals to easily create, post, and share fresh, engaging voice recordings using any phone, Skype™, and its browser microphone. Evoca Express is available as a free 30-day trial, Pro, Local, or Toll-free subscriptions. It provides voice recording and online digital content distribution services through its highly scalable “Software-as-a-Service” media platform, providing worldwide public phone numbers, as well as dedicated local and toll-free telephone numbers available in over 45 countries and more than 5,000 cities around the globe.

Evoca’s Twitter audio update feature, TweeVoca, enables posting of audio recordings to this popular micro-blogging site. Evoca subscribers can also share recordings on Facebook, MySpace, websites, and blogs by posting digital media players streamed by Evoca. Large organizations and partners can license, Evoca Enterprise, its multi-media platform delivered through a flexible interface (RESTful HTTP API – applications programming interface).

For more information, visit www.evoca.com or contact Evoca at +1.212.372.7670, toll-free U.S./Canada +1-866-940-9988, businessdevelopment@evoca.com, use our online contact form http://www.evoca.com/contact.php, or record your message using our Skype call recorder contact: evoca-bizdev-call-recorder. Any Evoca Express subscriber can receive the Evoca Express webinar training schedule by emailing: customerservice@evoca.com.

TJ Walker, friend of Evoca and one of the one of the leading authorities on media and presentation training in the world, shares his insights about the power of using stories in your presentations. His message: dialog makes your message genuine. Even if you’re not a born public speaker or joke-teller, the humor and emotion of a true story can put a smile on the faces of your audience members or an “uh huh” of understanding and connection.

Here is TJ’s sound advice, excerpted from his recent blog article:

Most of us use dialogue quite naturally when we are telling our friends and families interesting stores about what happened in our day. Many great humorous stories are told in a dialogue format. But the first thing most business presenters do is to strip the dialogue out of presentations because they think it is somehow not “professional” or “businesslike.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Of course it is possible to say things that are unprofessional during a presentation, but that is a function of what you are saying, not because you said it in an interesting manner.

When you tell a story using dialogue, several positive things occur all at once:

1. By introducing another character, you make your story more interesting.
2. Speaking in dialogue takes you away from the position of a God-like narrator from above and puts you down on the ground in a non-abstract position for your audience.
3. When you say the words that someone else said to you, you change the tone of your voice. This makes you less monotonous to listen to.
4. When you insert dialog, you naturally pause in-between characters. This pausing makes you sound more conversational and more interesting.
5. With dialog, you might even slightly mimic the other person’s tone of voice, thus providing more sound variety for your audience.
6. By using dialog, you are by definition, making your presentation more conversational, less abstract, and therefore easier to follow for your audience.
7. By using dialog, you are necessarily slowing down the delivery of new facts to your audience, thus giving them a chance to catch up and absorb your most important points.

Of course it is possible to give a good presentation without using stores with dialog, but you are making it much harder on yourself if you try. All great speakers sprinkle dialogue throughout their presentations, no matter how complex, difficult or technical the subject matter. All lousy, boring speakers studiously avoid the use of dialogue.

Thank you, TJ for your permission to share your words of wisdom!

Here are a few more ideas from the Evoca team:

• Practice your presentations — stories and all — using Evoca Express. You can use your phone, Browser Mic, or Skype to record and then email the recording to a trusted friend or mentor to give you feedback before you step into the lights. Try it out at: https://www.evoca.com/signup/signup.jsp

• Share your recorded presentation online on your website, blog, and Facebook page using Evoca’s viral Flash player widgets. Use the copy/paste code we auto-generate for you.  If you record your final “live” presentation, you can upload the recording to your Evoca account and then embed the Flash player widget exactly where you want it to appear. Just like this:

• “Tweet” the recording to your Twitter account using Evoca’s handy TweeVoca feature that enables you to “click and post” Twitter audio updates.

• Ask your fans,  supporters, and customers for feedback. You can embed a Browser Mic in your WordPress blog, other blogs and your website to invite audio comments. Keep the recordings private to help your learning process, or if you want to share the comments with the world online, post them using an Evoca Flash player widget.

You can get More Insights from TJ Walker & Jess Todtfeld at http://www.tjwalker.com and www.SpeakingInsider.com.

TJ’s article – Media Training Worldwide  – Copyright 2010

Evoca LLC – Copyright 2010

Inspired by the annual “National Day of Listening” sponsored by StoryCorps and National Public Radio, Evoca makes family storytelling and recording a daily event during the holidays and year-round.

Using 21st century Internet and phone technologies Evoca launched “Every Day of Listening” to enable family members who are getting together at Grandma’s house or even across the ocean from each other to record using any phone, Skype, and a computer mic. With a shared Evoca account, creating a family audio memory album is possible whether family members can get together in person or not.

Getting underway is easy. The family “organizer” signs up online for an Evoca Express Pro subscription and registers up to 30 phone numbers of the family members who can call to record stories, memories, and humor. For family members located in different countries or any Skype users, 30 Skype accounts can also be registered. The organizer can sign up for a free trial subscription to practice. Then any family member with a registered phone number or Skype account simply dials any Evoca public phone number, hears the cheerful Evoca greeting: “Welcome to Evoca. Record after the beep and hang up when you’re done”, talks, and hangs up. The recording is instantly stored in the family account as an MP3 recording. Recording a Skype call starts by clicking on the Evoca Skype Call Recorder contact in your Skype account. Since Evoca is a web service, no software downloads or updates are required.

J’miah Nabawi, national award-winning storyteller, teaching and performing artist, and Evoca’s Artist-in-Residence offered, “Everyone has a story to tell. With Evoca, precious stories of family members, especially our elders, can be captured, shared, and saved for future generations.” He added, “We applaud StoryCorps and National Public Radio for encouraging the telling and sharing of family members’ stories. We are thrilled that Evoca makes it possible for anyone, anywhere to share their stories, short or long, simply by picking up their phone. They also can include singing, music, and laughter for their loved ones to hear.”

Two family members can easily record together with one of them asking questions and the other giving the answers. StoryCorps calls them “interview partners” and offers a terrific “Great Questions” guide. Evoca provides step by step instructions about how to record an interview by phone or Skype. The family can even record a group of people in “conference call” style using Evoca’s phone or Skype features. Evoca also provides its subscribers with a Browser Mic, an in-browser Flash recorder, which can also be embedded in a family genealogy website or blog to collect voice recordings using any computer mic.

The recordings can be kept private, emailed to family members, downloaded to a CD to mail to Grandma, or posted to family and genealogy websites, blogs, and social networking profiles such as Facebook. RSS feeds can alert family members to new recordings that they can add to their  Tunes, iPhones and iPods. Transcriptions are available through Evoca’s online transcription service.

About Evoca

Evoca is a leading global Voice-to-Web services provider, enabling businesses, organizations and individuals to easily create, post, and share fresh, engaging voice recordings using any phone, Skype™, and its browser microphone. Evoca Express (www.evoca.com) is available as a Free 30-day trial, Pro, Local, and Toll-free subscription. It provides voice recording and online digital content distribution services through its highly scalable “Software-as-a-Service” media platform, providing worldwide public phone numbers, as well as dedicated telephone numbers available in over 45 countries and more than 5,000 cities around the globe.

Organizations of any size can easily integrate and customize Evoca features into their online properties, marketing programs, education and language training courses, and customer-facing operations. Evoca launched its Twitter audio update application, TweeVoca to enable posting of audio recordings to this popular micro-blogging site. Evoca subscribers can also “share” recordings on Facebook, MySpace, websites, and blogs by posting digital media players streamed by Evoca. Large organizations and partners can also benefit from Evoca Enterprise, its multi-media platform delivered through a flexible interface (RESTful HTTP API – applications programming interface).

For more information, visit www.evoca.com or contact Evoca at +1.212.372.7670, toll-free U.S./Canada +1-866-940-9988, businessdevelopment@evoca.com, use our online contact form http://www.evoca.com/contact.php, or record your message using our Skype call recorder contact: evoca-bizdev-call-recorder. Any Evoca Express subscriber can receive the Evoca Express training schedule by emailing: customerservice@evoca.com.

©2009 Evoca LLC. All rights reserved.  All copyrights and trademarks mentioned herein are property of their respective owners.

Evoca (www.evoca.com) has expanded its voice recording services to instantly convert Apple-supported AAC, MP4, and AIFF audio file formats to MP3 recordings for easy posting online, sharing with customers, audiences, and supporters, and emailing to professional and personal contacts. This increase in services directly benefits users of Apple products and services.

For example, Evoca Express subscribers with an iPhone 3G can create a voice recording, known as a Voice Memo, let it auto-synch to iTunes™, and then upload the Voice Memo from iTunes to their Evoca Express account. Evoca already supports MP3 file upload and WAV upload conversion to MP3 files.

Apple suggests ”Capture a thought, a memo, a meeting, or any audio recording with Voice Memos”. The Evoca team adds: “Then share your Voice Memo online with your customers, audiences, or supporters using Evoca’s Flash player widgets, email, or bookmarking.”

Users of Apple products and services who also subscribe to Evoca Express have many choices for posting and sharing recordings from their Evoca Express account: post online in an audio player widget provided by Evoca; share the widget with their website visitors to post in their own social profiles, blogs, or websites; email recordings to colleagues, followers, students, and friends; download recordings to their computer, burn a CD, or archive it online. Recordings stored on an iPod™ can also be auto-synched to iTunes and instantly converted by Evoca to MP3 recordings upon upload to their Evoca account. In compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), protected WMA files in iTunes cannot be converted.

To experience the benefits first-hand, iPhone, iPod, and iTunes users can sign up for a Free 30-day trial or an Evoca Express Pro, Local, or Toll-free subscription starting at $4.95 per month. As a web service, no software downloads are required. Subscribers can also create voice recordings using any phone, Skype™, and browser mic. Current Evoca Express subscribers get this service expansion at no additional cost.

An audio file format is a file format for storing audio data on a computer system or other digital devices such as smart phones, iPods, and MP3 players. The file formats mentioned above are summarized as follows:

• MP3: The file format extension is .mp3. Evoca converts WAV files and Apple-supported formats AAC, M4A, and AIFF to MP3 format and then stores and streams these MP3 files per the subscriber’s decision to share a recording or keep it for private use. It is a common audio format for consumer audio storage, as well as a standard of digital audio compression for the transfer and playback of music on digital audio players. A 32 bit 44,100 Hz MP3 recording is stored at 32 bit 44,100 Hz. When Evoca detects a new file’s existing sample rate, the audio gets up-sampled to the next 11,025 Hz if it is not already an interval of 11,025 Hz.

• WAV: Windows Audio Format. File format extension is .wav. Short for Waveform, it is a format used on Windows systems for raw and typically uncompressed audio. Since uncompressed WAV files are quite large in size, as file sharing over the Internet has become popular, the WAV format has declined in popularity. It was developed jointly by Microsoft™ and IBM™. Evoca converts WAV to MP3 files upon upload and also in its Phone-to-Web voice recording process.

• AAC: Advanced Audio Coding. File format extension is .aac. Designed to be the successor of the MP3 format, AAC is best known for being the default audio format for Apple’s iPhone, iPod and iTunes, and is also the standard iTunes Store audio format.

• M4A: File format extension is .m4a.  M4A stands for MPEG 4 Audio. An M4A file always contains only MPEG 4 Audio. Apple Computer started using and popularizing the M4A file extension to denote the file was an unprotected (non digital rights management) MPEG 4 Audio file.

• AIFF: Audio Interchange File Format. File format extension is .aiff or .aif. Created by Apple, it is used for audio and video applications. Like any non-compressed format, it uses much more disk space than MP3.

About Evoca

Evoca is a leading global Voice-to-Web services provider, enabling businesses, organizations and individuals to easily create, post, and share fresh, engaging voice recordings using any phone, Skype™, and its browser microphone. Evoca Express (www.evoca.com) is available as a Free 30-day trial, Pro, Local, and Toll-free subscription. It provides voice recording and online digital content distribution services through its highly scalable “Software-as-a-Service” media platform, providing worldwide public phone numbers, as well as dedicated telephone numbers available in over 45 countries and more than 5,000 cities around the globe.

Organizations of any size can easily integrate and customize Evoca features into their online properties, marketing programs, education and language training courses, and customer-facing operations. Evoca launched its Twitter audio update application, TweeVoca to enable posting of audio recordings to this popular micro-blogging site. Evoca subscribers can also “share” recordings on Facebook, MySpace, websites, and blogs by posting digital media players streamed by Evoca. Large organizations and partners can also benefit from Evoca Enterprise, its multi-media platform delivered through a flexible interface (RESTful HTTP API – applications programming interface).

For more information, visit www.evoca.com or contact Evoca at +1.212.372.7670, toll-free U.S./Canada +1-866-940-9988, businessdevelopment@evoca.com, use our online contact form http://www.evoca.com/contact.php, or record your message using our Skype call recorder contact: evoca-bizdev-call-recorder.

Evoca for Educators™ provides educators and students with an easy, affordable method to record language learning exercises and other subjects that benefit from audio recording and teacher feedback.  Now a teacher or professor can register their students’ phone numbers and/or Skype accounts to make it easy to record audio assignments straight from their phones or computers.  It’s a web service so no downloads are required.  Read on.

How Evoca for Educators™ was launched is described by Murem Sharpe, Evoca CEO: “High school and middle school teachers asked the Evoca team for a way that students could use their phones to record practice assignments because many students and families could not afford a computer at home. They needed an accessible, affordable solution to offer to their Advanced Placement (AP) language students preparing for the College Board tests in Spanish, French, German,  and Japanese, and while learning other foreign languages during their cultural and religious instruction.  English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers also wanted their students to practice outside of class.”

The story is somewhat different, but equally compelling for higher education. Sharpe continues, “University and e-learning professors needed a way for their active students to use their mobile phones to record audio assignments. Students are often on the move between classes, work, and home. Evoca is meeting these important logistical challenges and delivering tangible learning opportunities with its Evoca for Educators program.”  As adults, university students often get their own Evoca accounts and email the recordings to their professors to get feedback.

Evoca turns any phone into a digital microphone. The phone is connected to the Internet without the user having to download any software or worry about updates. Students simply dial any of Evoca’s publicly available numbers. Evoca’s technology instantly recognizes the students’ registered phone numbers and saves the recordings to the educator’s Evoca account as digital (MP3) recordings, auto-tagged with the students’ names and course numbers. The recordings are always available online for the educator to listen and email the recording to the student with valuable feedback. Educators also can register their U.S. and international students’ Skype accounts, enabling them to record from anywhere in the world, just like having a global toll-free phone number.

Educators with a blog or website can also invite their students to record online using the embeddable Evoca Browser Mic, an in-browser Flash recorder. After recording, the student can add her/his email address, comments, or other identification in data fields associates with their recordings. Recorder “plugins” are available for popular web programs such as WordPress TypePad, Blogger, and Drupal, as well as a generic plugin for any website, blog, or social media profile.

In addition to foreign language and ESL (English as a Second Language) training, educators in “seated” public and private schools and universities, as well as e-learning organizations around the world are benefitting from Evoca’s Voice-to-Web services for a wide range of audio assignments. Any educator can use the convenient online sign up for an Evoca Express Pro subscription and have their students recording the same day. The program’s applications include:

High schools and middle schools
•     Advanced Placement (AP) foreign language test practice sessions
•     Beginning through advanced level language course assignments
•     English — including ESL (English as a Second Language)
•     Performing arts, writing, poetry, elocution, and speech classes
•     Oral history and storytelling courses
•     Job and college admissions interview role-playing

Universities, colleges, and eLearning organizations
•     Foreign language courses and practice sessions
•     English — including ESL (English as a Second Language)
•     Clinical training and intake interviews — psychology and other professions
•     Performing arts, writing, poetry, elocution, and speech classes
•     Oral history and storytelling classes
•     Clinical intake interview training
•     Job and graduate school interview role-playing
•     Journalism field assignments
•     Scientific research projects

About Evoca
Evoca is a leading global Voice-to-Web services provider, enabling businesses, organizations and individuals to easily create, post, and share fresh, engaging voice recordings using any phone, Skype™, and its browser microphone. Evoca Express is available as a Free 30-day Trial Pro, Local, and Toll-free subscription. It provides voice recording and online distribution services through its highly scalable “Software-as-a-Service” media platform, providing worldwide public phone numbers, as well as dedicated telephone numbers available in over 45 countries and more than 5,000 cities around the globe.

Organizations of any size can easily integrate and customize Evoca features into their online properties, marketing programs, education and language training courses, and customer-facing operations. Evoca launched its Twitter audio update application, TweeVoca to enable posting of audio recordings to this popular micro-blogging site. Evoca subscribers can also “share” recordings on Facebook, MySpace, websites, and blogs by posting digital media players streamed by Evoca. Large organizations and partners can also benefit from Evoca Enterprise, its media platform delivered through a flexible interface (RESTful HTTP API – applications programming interface).

For more information, visit www.evoca.com or contact Evoca at +1.212.372.7670, toll-free U.S./Canada +1-866-940-9988, businessdevelopment@evoca.com, use our online contact form, record your message with our Skype call recorder contact: evoca-bizdev-call-recorder.

Calling all authors, journalists, publishers, and promotional firms:  Conducting interviews while researching or writing your book or article? Promoting writers, books, or articles?

Evoca makes it easy for you to record interviews using any phone or Skype and then post interviews to websites, blogs, and social media sites.  For your online visitors, real voice recordings bring words, photographs, and writers to life.

Evoca saves your interview as an MP3 recording to your Evoca account. You can keep it private to use while researching or drafting or you can use it in your online marketing campaigns.

How to record an interview using your phone:

• Call your interviewee
  • “Hi Brenda, this is Fred. As planned, we’re going to do the interview today by phone. I’m going to start the interview as soon as I bring in the recording service.”
• Dial your favorite worldwide Evoca phone number
  • Save your favorite Evoca number to speed-dial it any time.
• Join the three lines together to record your interview
  • This phone feature is known as three-way dialing on your Blackberry, iPhone, and most mobile phones and landlines.
  • If you want to interview two or more people at the same time, it’s a conference call. Once you get all the interviewees on the call, add Evoca as the last party on the call.
• End the call and your interview is instantly saved as an MP3 recording in your Evoca account.

How to record an interview using Skype:

Skype™ is a free call recording service that works from your computer. You can host and save an interview recording using the Evoca-Skype call recorder. Add it to your Skype contact list.  Since Evoca is a web service, our Skype recorder doesn’t require any software downloads (or permission from your IT department).

• Make a free Skype call to your interviewee
• Add in the “Evoca Skype Call Recorder” from your contact list to begin recording
  • It’s especially convenient and affordable for international interview sessions and also handy for within-country calls.
  • Interviewee not a Skype user? Make a Skype Out call at Skype’s low per minute rates.
  • If you want to interview two or more people at the same time, it’s a Skype conference call. Add as many people (Skype contacts) to the call as you wish.
• End the call and your interview is instantly saved as an MP3 recording in your Evoca account.
  • Evoca sends you a Skype chat message so you can access it in your account, email or download it instantly.

How to use interviews in your online marketing campaigns:

• Post your interview player widget on your websites, blogs, and social media sites
• With the viral “share” button, invite your fans, readers, and supporters to post the recording widget to their blogs, websites, and social media pages
• Add e-commerce and other promotional links inside the viral player headers and footers
• Email it to your interviewee, editor, colleagues, and followers

Try an Evoca Express free trial subscription. No credit card is required to sign up. During your 30-day trial period you get 15 minutes of recording storage time. Need to start recording an important one-hour interview now?  Sign-up for your Evoca Express Pro subscription to conduct an interview of any length. You get 10 hours of recording storage time and can  add “buckets” of 10 hours any time.  You can also just click to order a transcription online from right inside your Evoca Express account.

Hint #1:  To make it really easy to use the recording or find it later on, create Albums named for your books, articles, or authors. You can easily add each new interview recording to the appropriate album.

Hint #2: Practice an interview recording before you record your first “real” interview. Once you’ve recorded your first interview using Evoca;  it’s like riding a bike, you’ll be able to do it again and again.  You can also bookmark or print this blog article.

Evoca is pleased to announce that The Moth, the acclaimed non-profit organization dedicated to the art of oral storytelling, selected Evoca’s online audio recording service to deliver The Moth Story Line. The Moth invites aspiring storytellers to record a one-minute audio recording “story pitch” to compete for air time on its new NPR (National Public Radio) program, The Moth Radio Hour. The Moth is now capturing storytellers’ audition recordings with Evoca’s digital media creation methods: phone (U.S./Canada toll-free 1-877-799-MOTH), Skype global recorder (the-moth-story-line), and online recorder.

The Moth competition continues throughout the broadcasting season of The Moth Radio Hour, which is being aired by NPR stations around the United States. Finalists’ recordings will be streamed on The Moth website. Winners will be invited to tell their stories live on The Moth stage in New York City. Whether it’s for fun or to launch a professional career as a performing artist, The Moth Story Line offers a chance to be in the spotlight.

Featured in the Sunday New York Times, The Moth was founded in 1997 in New York City by poet and novelist George Dawes Green, to recreate his storytelling experiences while living in St. Simon’s Island, Georgia. The Moth attracts storytellers from all walks of life including police officers, neurosurgeons, teachers, musicians, office workers, and actors. They tell true stories from their lives, with no notes, to enthusiastic audiences. Since their inception, The Moth StorySLAMs in New York and Los Angeles have been sold out.

The Moth’s national tour has attracted keen interest in the organization’s plans to expand to additional cities. Savannah, home base of Evoca, is on The Moth’s short list due to its history with Mr. Dawes and because of its thriving community of arts, culture, and history enthusiasts. “When Evoca was contacted by Lea Thau, The Moth’s executive director, we welcomed the opportunity to provide Evoca’s audio web services and to strengthen the natural bond between this outstanding arts organization and our Savannah community”, explained Murem Sharpe, Evoca CEO. Addressing whether Savannah could support StorySLAMs, Sharpe responded, “It is likely that Savannahians would embrace The Moth, given the vibrant pool of amateur and professional talent here. With Savannah as a global tourism magnet, future Savannah StorySLAMs could also attract out-of-town visitors who want to try out their storytelling skills.”

The Moth brought its Mainstage national tour to Savannah’s Telfair Museum on July 23^rd featuring five top winners of StorySLAMs, including Mr. Dawes, Wanda Bullard, an engaging storyteller from St. Simon’s Island and long-time school teacher, and Steve Osborne, a retired New York City police lieutenant. The evening incorporated music by Savannah’s Ben Tucker, hailed as one of the world’s Top Ten Bass Players and successful musician, businessman, and community leader.

Members of the Savannah community can attend “Pitch Your Best Story” workshops sponsored by various community organizations at locations throughout Savannah and surrounding counties beginning in August.  For more information call 1-866-940-9988 or send an email to wordup@evoca.com.  Skype users can click on the “Add me to Skype” button at the top of www.evoca.com to call using the evoca-bizdev-call-recorder.

About Evoca

Evoca is a leading global Voice-to-Web services provider, enabling organizations and individuals to easily create fresh, engaging voice recordings using any phone, Skype, and its browser microphone. Evoca provides its voice recording and online distribution services through its highly scalable “Software-as-a-Service” media platform, providing worldwide public phone numbers, as well as dedicated local and toll-free telephone numbers available in over 45 countries and more than 5,000 cities around the globe.

Organizations of any size can easily integrate and customize Evoca features into their online properties, marketing programs, education and language training courses, and customer-facing operations. Evoca launched its Twitter audio update application, TweeVoca, to enable posting of audio recordings to this popular micro-blogging site. Evoca subscribers can also “share” recordings on Facebook, MySpace, websites, and blogs by posting digital media players streamed by Evoca. Large organizations and partners can also benefit from Evoca Enterprise, its media platform delivered through a flexible interface (RESTful HTTP API – applications programming interface).

For more information, visit www.evoca.com or contact Evoca at businessdevelopment@evoca.com, +1.212.372.7670, toll-free U.S./Canada +1-866-940-9988, or via Skype contact: evoca-bizdev-call-recorder.