Be Local, Be Vocal, Vocalyze

DO NOT Read this blog… Vocalyze! Listen, we are always on the look out for new ways to amplify our marketing messages and those of our clients. Vocalyze does exactly that!

Vocalzye is web-text-to-speech technology that creates a real-time audio stream of your blog. “It does what… it reads your blog?” Yes, but it gets even better…

Vocalyze can be easily installed on a WordPress blog as a plugin. (Also available for Blogger and Tumblr) You can download the Vocalyze WP plugin from here (no longer supported). Once you’ve configured it and installed the Toucan button on your page you’re set and ready to go. Now anyone visiting your blog can click on the button and listen to your posts instead of reading them. This is an ideal solution when you’re multi-tasking, have site-impaired visitors to your blog or at the end of a long day, like me, have just very tired eyes!

Now listen up! This is where Vocalyze gets really interesting. It also comes as an App so you can listen to any website from your smart phone – iPhone & Android. It’s a Free download and you can grab it here for iPhone. This wonderful App allows you to listen to your favorite websites or blog while you are commuting, walking the dog or like my business partner Lee, on the treadmill at the gym. It’s a great time management tool! There is also a Twitter integration feature in Vocalyze, so you could try adding your favorite comedian to your list for a few laughs.

The synthesized voice alternates between male and female and generally sounds pretty good… for a robot.

3 Ways to Listen to the Blend Blog with Vocalyze

1) On the home page of Blend Local Search Marketing you can locate the Vocalyze button above our optin box (See above). Click on the Toucan avatar and a new window will open. Now choose the blog post you would like to listen to while you type up that report. Alternatively find a second Vocalyze button in our footer. It looks like this:

2) Head to the Vocalyze website and create an account. From there you can compile your playlist. Add Blend Local Search Marketing and other favorites like Mashable, The Onion or the NYTimes Business. Easily share you favorites with friends and across your social media channels.

Blend Local Search Marketing can be easily added to “My Favorites” from the “Featured Blogs” list on the mobile and through any web browser.

3) To really leverage you’re Vocalyze listening experience download the Free App for iPhone or Android and listen to your favorite blog IE. Blend Local Search Marketing on the go. Wherever you are, you can access your playlist and listen to your content so you stay both productive and and up to date with the latest news and views from your favorite media channels.

Here is a quick video overview of Vocalyze.

Anyway that’s enough from me. If you’re still reading this why don’t you go ahead, listen to it instead (and some of our other blog posts) and leave a comment below to tell us what you think of Vacalyze.

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Posted by Perry Stevens – Chief Operations Director of Blend local Search Marketing