Sneaky Snake Proves to be One Slippery Customer

Posted on May 15, 2013 by mediagroup

boa-constrictor

Did you hear about the Giant Boa Constrictor in Nerang? It’s a LONG Story. That’s right, we had an exotic pet incident right here in Nerang when the sizable snake was found crossing the road. As HISS-terical 

as it may strike you, it’s become more common for these particular illegal pets to be found slithering around your local neighbourhood. As they grow bigger and bigger they become more expensive to feed and harder to maintain, so many owners end up letting them loose to roam the wild in “adder” to avoid penalties and paying hefty fees for their illegal pet. 

The problems begin when these dangerous wild animals go looking for food or to find a nice dark place to sleep. This must have been the case several days ago, when a giant boa constrictor was found crossing the road in Nerang. Luckily Bio Security Queensland was called and the snake was safely captured before he could squeeze the life out of anyone. Well suited to our tropical climate and a highly reproductive species, an introduced species such as this can cause irreversible damage to our native Flora and Fauna, just one of many deadly scenarios that could occur when a serpent like this is set on the loose.

“FANG-kfully” those that suffer with Ophidiophia (or a fear of snakes), can rest assured that everything is back to normal. This leads us to question was the curious constrictor venturing out to obtain messages on hold for its owners? Being that this intrepid reporter does not speak any kind of reptilian we’ll leave that for you to decide. Sssspeak to ussss today.

 

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How to Choose the Best Voice Artist for Your On Hold Message

Posted on May 5, 2013 by mediagroup

big-vs-smallVoices are like the people they belong to, no two are exactly the same. There are big booming voices and little tinny voices, old voices and young voices, voices with authority and voices that make you smile. So what makes a good voice actor for your on messages on hold? 

The first criteria is obviously that they can speak clearly and articulate the ideas you want them to present to your customers on hold. Especially since this is a situation where you can't actually see the person speaking, it makes it doubly important that they can get the messages across clearly without using the normal visual cues. 

They must have a pleasant and inviting voice. The last thing your business callers want to hear when they call is a high pitched whiney voice asking them to wait on hold. If your callers get annoyed by the sound of the voice, they will hang up.

The voice must be a good fit for your company. If for example, you are a supermarket, your target market would be women aged 25-45, as they would be the majority of your customers. It would make sense to draft your messages on hold and choose your voice artist to speak to that target market and make your company more relatable. On the other hand, if you are a mining excavation company or a mechanic, you would probably want a tough male voice who your callers would relate to. Your on hold messages would also have a different spin to them, with the focus being on what information they would like to hear. 

At Media Messages we write your scripts to match your company profile, using  either your website, or information that you provide us to create the best customised on hold message program for your individual company. You can choose your own voice artist personally, or our experienced audio technicians will choose the best one for you. They then mix them to produce a polished and professional finished on hold message program for you.

Try out a free message today to see for yourself what a great voice artist and a talented team of creative writers and audio producers can do for your on hold messages!

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Chimpanzee Goes APE for Human Porn

Posted on April 26, 2013 by mediagroup

Women around the world have been going bananas over the erotic novel “50 Shades of Grey”, and they aren’t the only ones monkeying around with pornography. Gina a female Chimpanzee in captivity at Seville Zoo in Spain, aroused interest in the media recently for her appreciation of Homo Sapien porn.

chimp loves pornScientists found that when a digital television and remote control were placed in her enclosure, the frisky primate chose to solely watch adult entertainment channels. Chimpanzees and their evolutionary relatives Bonobos are the closest cousins to humans sharing 90 percent of our DNA, and now as we’ve learnt, 100 percent of human pornography habits.

Certain species of animals have been known to have bizarre sexual habits. Panda pornography has been used at the Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base in Sichuan Province, China to encourage the animals to get in the sexy time mood and reproduce, ensuring the species doesn’t become instinct. However, scientists say they couldn’t have predicted how Gina the Chimp would respond to a television with access to adult channels.

A television was just one of the toys used to stimulate Gina psychologically. Scientists where surprised to find that within a few days of being placed in the enclosure Gina was using the remote perfectly. Even more interesting was the fact that she chose to watch the porn channel for entertainment, just as they would expect of any human being.

Scientists have concluded that humans and non-human primates possess an intense sexual life. It’s not certain if Gina took private time out from her pornography to “Spank the Monkey” per se, or if as a result the next edition will be “50 Shades of Primate Grey”.

What we do know is that people like to be entertained and comforted. Hopefully your callers won’t be sitting around in the nude. Whatever they are doing in the privacy of their home, the team here at Media Messages can ensure your on hold messages will sound titillating, and make being put on hold a more pleasurable experience.

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23 True Facts to Make You Smile

Posted on April 18, 2013 by mediagroup

Everyone has those days where its just so hard to get yourself out of bed and into work. For those of you having one of those type of days, this post is for you. For those of you having an aswesomely spectacular day, bookmark this for later, or at least stop rubbing it in our face. Here are 30 happy facts to brighten your day.

otters holding hands1. Otters hold hands while sleeping so they don't drift apart.

2. The country of Norway once knighted a penguin.

3. People blind from birth still know how to smile even though they have never seen anyone do it. Its just a natural instint. 

cat version of corgi4. There is a corgi (short legged dog) type of cat as well. Its called a munchkin. 

5. The voice over actors for Mickey and Minnie Mouse got married in real life. 

6. Spiders can't fly. 

rabbit show jumping7. Switzerland hosts a popular rabbit jumping competition called Kaninhoppning.

8. Gene Cernan, the latest man to walk on the moon, promised his daughter that he would write her initials there. This means that "TDC" will be written there for thousands of years.

9. If you fake laugh for long enough, you actually start to laugh for reals.

10. A group of flamingos is called a flamboyance. A group of pugs is called a grumble, and a group of ferrets is called a business of ferrets.

11. When you were born, for a very short amount of time you were the youngest person on the planet.

12. Puffins mate for life. Baby puffins are called pufflings.puffins

13. When you cuddle with people, it releases a chemical called oxytocin, which actually helps heal physical wounds.

14. According to scientists at Northampton University, cows have best friends, and stress out when they are away from each other. 

15. Turtles can breathe through their butts.

16. Alexander Graham Bell originally wanted people to greet each other with ahoy when answering his new invention the telephone. Luckily it never really caught on.

17. Rats laugh when tickled.

18. Thousands of new trees are planted each year by squirrels who forget where they hid their nuts. 

19. Police in Indiana once tried and convicted a monkey of smoking a cigarette.

spiderman window cleaner20. Worms communicate with each other by snuggling. 

21. Butterflies taste with their feet.

22. A group of friendly window washers working at a childrens hospital randomly dress up as superheros while cleaning the kids windows. 

23. Somewhere in the world: an orangutang just became best friends with a dog, a baby just discovered bubbles for the first time, somewhere someone is having the best day of their lives, and someone is pushing a door that says pull. 

Everyone needs a good laugh every now and then, and at Media Messages we are exactly the same. Thats why we give our creative team free reign when it comes to writing your on hold message scripts, they are able to craft any style of on hold message you like, from corporate to fun, and everything in between. Check out some of our samples of the work we have done for customers, chances are they is an industry similar to yours there so you can hear the different approaches we have taken to businesses similar to yours. 

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What Charlie Brown and Lucy can Teach Us About On Hold Messages

Posted on April 8, 2013 by mediagroup

lucy_call_centre

Its funny how just by putting someone famous into a commercial, we instantly pay more attention to it. Even if that person is an animated character. The much beloved Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Schroeder from the popular Peanuts cartoons feature in this ad from American insurance company Metlife. 

In this ad, Lucy is a call centre attendant and like most, she ends up putting her caller on hold. But even in a funny commercial, there are a few truths we can pull out. 

1. She is courteous and polite to the caller, explaining that she will have to put them on hold. Make sure they know that you are doing everything possible to help them in a quick and efficient manner, and that you care about them and meeting their needs.

2. She is passionate about her on hold program. Sure it maybe music by her boy crush, but she still makes sure that her caller get the absolute best on hold music that she has. 

In a way, Media Messages has a lot in common with Lucy. We care about each and every one of our customers and want to make sure that they walk away from all interactions with us feeling like we have helped them and done everything possible to meet their needs. We also are passionate about our on hold programs, we live and breathe quality on hold messages and on hold music. We make sure we have the best script writers, voice artists, and audio producers working for us, which means your completed on hold program will be the best one around and custom created just for you. 

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Six Degrees of Kylie Monogue?

Posted on April 5, 2013 by mediagroup

Six Degres of Kevin Bacon, is according to wikipedia is a "parlor game" that claims that any 2 people on Earth are only separated by six connections. Made popular by a couple of college students in the mid 90's, the theory caught on and they found themselves being interviewed on Jay Leno, and their game became a worldwide phenomenon with books, tv ads, and even a board game created in inspiration. Google has even added the capability to their search pages that uses popular movie database IMDB to create an actor's "Bacon number". Thats right, all you have to do is type in any actor's name and the words "Bacon number" and google knows your trying to find the link. For example, Angelina Jolie's Bacon number is 2: she and Billy Bob Thornton appeared in Pushing Tin, and BIlly Bob Thornton appeared with Kevin Bacon in Jayne Mansfield's Car. 

Kylie-MinogueSo in honour of this esteemed tradtion, we decided to find a connection from our company, Media Messages, to someone famous. We thought about the Prime Minister, but then thought maybe someone in the entertainment industry would be more exciting. Luckily for us, we have established a connection, and its even less than the recommended six connections!  Our marketing manager's mother-in-law has worked with an ex Neighbours actress's baby, and Kylie Minogue acted on Neighbours in the late 80s. That's four connections from Media Messages to Kylie Minogue! 

We proposed inclusion of this amazing fact onto some new marketing material, but were shut down by the marketing department. They suggested instead that we should focus on those things that make Media Messages great. Things like our flexible on hold message contracts, and outright purchase message on hold options, as well as the quality of our completed audio productions that use talented voice artists and on hold music to create professional sounding messages on hold. We reluctantly agreed that this is probably a more responsible marketing plan, but still plan to bring out our connection to Kylie Minogue at every future Christmas party and weekend barbeque!

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The Importance of Social Media for Businesses

Posted on April 2, 2013 by mediagroup

I LikeWhether you are a serial tweeter or a internet recluse, social media is no longer a flash in the pan phenomenon, it is a new way of communication that is here to stay. Savvy businesses and individuals have used these platforms for everything from raising money for charities, to Obama's getting relected as president.

It is a fantastic way for big corporations to connect with their customers and create a more intimate type relationship where people feel like their voices are being heard. It is also a great way for businesses to encourage customer loyalty, by offering social media exclusive discounts and promotions, and releasing information about new products or services exclusively to their social media followers first. 

There is no need to get into all the technical side of social media marketing, or to hire an expensive social media consultant, most businesses have at least one person on staff who is a bit tech savvy and can show you how to set up and run a successful social media site. And the bonus is that its totally free, so you are able to expand your market reach and customer demographics simply by being open to new forms of communication. 

Feel free to check out our social media sites accessible via the links below. Media Messages specialises in on hold on hold phone messages and on hold music for businesses. We provide quality voice artists and production facilities to create top quality on hold messages and on hold music. 

           

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How Messages on Hold Work

Posted on March 22, 2013 by mediagroup

Its a fact you probably know well, that through the course of a normal business day, some callers will be placed on hold, and if your on hold system is not up to par, they may not stay on the line for long. So what do your valued customers hear when you put them on hold or transfer them? Sometimes they may hear a click on the line before its completely silent and they think they've been disconnected.  Or if you have the radio playing, your on hold callers may be listening to your competitor's commercials, boring DJ chatter, or worse, static.

By creating a customised message on hold you gain control over what your customers hear and eliminate the problems that arise with using alternative methods. By informing your customers about current promotions or letting them know about new products pr services, you can enhance your company's image and ultimately increase sales. Plus, you can update your on hold messages with new promotions for maximum effectiveness and to keep things fresh and new.

Typical on hold messages are anywhere from 4 to 6 minutes in length, with 5 to 20  individual messages, depending on what type of package you choose. The on hold messages play on a continuous loop, so there's no beginning or end, and the caller will hear whatever part of the on hold message that is playing at the moment they is placed on hold. There is also music in the background, and a musical transition in between each message so that it all flows together smoothly.

Unless your a big telephone company or airline who keeps customers on hold for long amounts of time, your callers should not be on hold for your entire 6 minute on hold message program.  Most businesses will only keep callers on hold for a few minutes at the most, but with our program, they still will not hear the same messages twice.

If you have any other questions about how on hold messages work, or if you to talk to someone about getting your free message, contact us today.

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Feel Like you Need an Adventure? I Have just the Tour Company For You.

Posted on March 15, 2013 by mediagroup

Feel like life is getting a little bit boring? Need some adventure or excitement in your life to get you out of the hamster wheel of life? Why not take an Expedition with 5th Element Expeditions? Founder and lifelong adventurer Geoff WIlson has made a career out of living life on the edge, and wants to take you with him on an incredible adventure that will take you to the edge of your comfort zone, challenge you, and exhilerate the adventurer within all of us. 

ecare 1000His most recent expedition involved a 3 leg journey. Part one was cycling over 700km up the Cape Road to Cape York in 7 days. The second leg of the journey began at Cape York where a group of kite surfers gathered and proceeded to kite surf 200km from Australia to Papau New Guinea. The third leg is to hike the 93 km Kokoda trek from start to finish. Expeditioners who joined were given the option to do one or all legs of the journey, Due to the immense popularity and enthusiasm for this event last year, 5th Element will be repeating the adventure tour this year, with a professional video crew and a documentary in the works. 

5th element expeditions pink polar boob sledAnd if that's not adventurous enough for you, Geoff is currently training for a solo trek across Anartica later in the year to raise money for the McGrath Foundation and breast cancer awareness. Using skis and kite power to cross the Antartic, and pulling a pink "boob sled" of supplies, Geoff is hoping to use this crazy mission to gain sponsors and raise awareness of the need to support this fantastic charity. 

Interested yet? People who have joined Wilson on some of his crazy adventures cannot speak more highly of their experiences. These espeditions have been carefully planned to get you out of the normal and really see what you are capable of, and many come back feeling empowered and refreshed, ready to take on the world.

At Media Messages, we thrive on the new and unexpected and would love to send a representative from our team on one of these fantastic adventures. In the meantime, while we try to convince one of our staff members, we will continue to create quality on hold messages, IVR prompts and instore music packages for businesses. Contact us today to see how our low monthly rates or outright purchase programs stack up to the competition.

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Want to Work the Best Job in the World?

Posted on March 8, 2013 by mediagroup

best jobs in the word

Want to work the best job in Australia? Applications are now open! After 2009's hugely successful campaign, Tourism Australia has decided to repeat the job offer that attracted 35,00 applicants, this time offering 6 different jobs depending on what your pleasure it. The campaign targets young working holiday makers from overseas in a bid to raise awareness of the benefits to living and working in Australia.

So what are the jobs? The first one is labelled "Chief Funster" and located in Sydney. Touting perks like a 6 month contract, $100,00 package, this job will be to be a Sydney scenester VIP and write reviews of events and festivals. Not up your alley? What about working in Melbourne as a lifestyle photographer discovering the hippest city spots and local designers, or being an Outback Adventurer, Queensland Park Ranger, or South Australian Wildlife Caretaker?

Each different job will appeal to a different group of working holiday makers, and the competition is open to anyone over the age of 18 who is legally able to work in Australia. So what are you waiting for? Get your application in today and maybe you will win the best job in Australia. At least for 6 months.

Although many of us dream about getting out into nature or going on an exotic adventure, we think we have a pretty good gig working here at Media Messages. We have a tight knit team of experienced sale people, creative writers, audio producers, and technicians who work together to create professional onh ohld messages and on hold music for your business telephones. Contact us today to see why we so love what we do!

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