SourceCon Recap #2

Hopefully you didn't miss my last newsletter edition where I talked about the future of outreach in text messages. this was part of my SourceCon presentation in Orlando 2 weeks ago.

Voice & Video messages

As I already announced, this time we are moving to a less used format of outreach- the voice message. Now, just one little comment about why we should even consider using this format. In the rise of more awareness for neuro-diversity we all came to realize that people process information in different ways. Think of people who don't like reading texts and prefer listening to someone. This might not only be neurodiverse talent but also think about working mums who have their hands full and need to keep an eye on their little one. Another aspect is this: a significant portion of the cues we receive in communication are non-verbal (55%), with tone of voice accounting for 38%, and the actual words used only making up 7% of the communication impact.

But how can we scale this? You probably don't want to record a message to each one of your candidates, right?!

If we want to personlize it and scale it we need to work with some AI magic here.

Presenting: Elevenlabs.io

This is where elevenlabs.io is coming into the game. You provide this tool with about 30 minutes of you speaking and it gives you a perefct clone of your voice. You can go ahead and ask it to say anything you write down. It also let's you include variables like firstname.

Since the custom models require fine-tuning and training, it will take some time before you can use your voice clone. Giving an estimate is challenging as it depends on the number of people in the queue before you and a few other factors. However, we recommend estimating somewhere between 2 to 6 hours until you receive your voice clone. A few recommendations:

1. Use high-quality recording equipment for optimal results as the AI will clone everything about the audio. High-quality input = high-quality output.
2. Use a Pop Filter: Use a pop-filter when recording. This will minimize plosives when recording.
3. Provide at least 30 minutes of high-quality audio that follows the above guidelines for best results - preferably closer to 3 hours of audio.

Now the same arguments of why you should use voice messages apply to video. Plus you have even more optical cues from a video. It would be extremely helpful if you could clone yourself, right?!

And if Instagram AI influencers can do it, why shouldn't you be able to use and AI avatar for outreach?

According to Rubén Cruz, Aitana's creator and founder of The Clueless, he created her because too many real influencers he worked with were unpredictable and costing his firm money. Maybe we as sourcers should also watch out to not be replaced hahaha....

Enrich template videos with custom variables

Now how should that work exactly? Well, there are multiple ways of doing this. For one, you could record a video message of yourself and let AI personlize some parts of it, like when you say the candidate's name for example. In my case, I only use "Hello and the person's name". Therefore, if I send the video to 100 people, everyone will hear their own name. I can also change backgrounds based on the recipient, showing their LinkedIn profile, company site, or any other desired background. You can include multiple dynamic elements in the video created via SendPotion.

To make sure that the AI won't mess up the recipient's name, I can record the pronunciation for each placeholder. And don't worry, if you have 20 people named Josh on your list, you don't need to say "Josh" 20 times.

Personalized Videos at Scale with BHuman

BHuman is another AI software that lets you personalize videos on a large scale.

One of the things BHuman offers is LinkedIn automation. It lets you generate and send personalized AI videos to your LinkedIn prospects. Just enter a LinkedIn search URL, choose your template video, and you'll be sending videos to prospects right away!

And if you don't know what you should say you can of course use ChatGPT to draft a script for you.

Let's skip the template

So, now we have the template thing again. But what if you want to clone yourself entirely and create an avatar for yourself that does all the work?

One tool for this is HeyGen and it looks pretty realistic already. Their technology analyzes your facial expressions, speech patterns, and mannerisms to produce an eerily accurate digital clone. It synthesizes a virtual avatar that looks, sounds, and acts just like you. You don't even need much equipment for that like a greenscreen or anything like that.

A word of caution

Now we got a sneak peek into the future of outreach using AI. And I need to lose a few words of caution when playing around with these kind of tools.

First of all, you could become a victim of identity theft. Recently, fraudsters used deepfake technology to impersonate a CEO and steal $25 million from a Hong Kong company. This scam reveals the dark side of voice cloning capabilities. Criminals could call loved ones pretending to be you and ask for money or personal information. The implications are alarming. To protect yourself, I recommend establishing a unique "security word" with family and friends.

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Hi, I am Sandra, founder of?itsatalent.business ???.?I'm always here to chat about all things talent sourcing & attraction, employer branding, and the future of recruitment. If you have questions, insights to share, or just want to connect, drop me a line. Let's continue this conversation!

?? If you like my tips & hacks, have a look at my book <TALENT TITANS>

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