social media for voice actors

In our ever-connected online age, social media has practically become a must for anyone who wishes to create visibility or grow their brand. Voice actors are no exception, and many voice actors will tell stories about how social media helped them get cast—whether through finding an open casting call shared by others in their network, by a casting director finding them through videos/reels posted on their accounts, or even by just using it to chat and network with others in the industry.

But for all its benefits, social media most certainly has its downsides. Not only can it feed negative mindsets re: comparing your own accomplishments with those of your peers, but it can also create pitfalls in regards to how you are seen by potential clients, casting directors, and other actors. The tips in this article can help you navigate the “unspoken rules” – some obvious, some not so much – that you often won’t be taught as part of your VO training.

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The modern social media landscape changes frequently – we will do our best to update this article periodically to reflect current best practices.

social media for voice actors – FAQ

How important is a social media presence for voice actors?

There is not one definitive answer to this, as it depends on what type of projects you are marketing yourself for, what your career goals are, and what you hope to get out of social media. For example, if you are involved in the anime scene and trying to get on the convention circuit, being active on places like Instagram and Twitter/X can be a major boost for visibility. But if you’re aiming towards commercial or corporate clientele, LinkedIn and direct marketing may be a better focus, and the idea of growing a “fanbase” will be much less relevant.

If social media marketing is important to you, keeping your accounts reasonably active not only shows that you are engaged in your career, but also helps keep you in the forefront of people’s minds when they may be considering who to send an audition to or recommend for a job. However, many people understandably find social media to be toxic and/or draining for their mental health, so it’s entirely okay to keep more of a distance if you prefer. At the bare minimum, you can use it to post relevant career updates only (such as role announcements).

What social media sites are most effective for voice actors?

Social media is constantly changing, but Twitter/X, Bluesky, and Instagram tend to be most popular for voice actors. TikTok is also quite big if you happen to make video content, and LinkedIn is a good bet if you work in commercial or narration VO or wish to direct market to clients.
Facebook is used more on a personal level for many people to connect with those they actually know, but you can use it to join voice acting groups and find out about local events.
Social apps such as Discord are also very popular in the voice acting community. Joining servers (such as ours!) can be a great way to make new friends, ask questions and find indie projects to audition for.

Does follower count influence whether or not someone gets cast?

This depends entirely on the project, client, and other circumstances beyond your control.

Yes, it’s not unheard of for some clients to want to cast people who are popular on socials or otherwise well-known, because they think it will translate into better marketing for their product. It’s easy to cite factors like celebrity cameos and influencer/stunt casting as proof that “everyone just wants to cast big names”. But overall, social media’s impact on casting is actually not as important as you think. Remember that there are tons and tons of projects being produced outside of big-budget animated movies, and hundreds to thousands of regular working voice actors cast among all those projects.

While social media following may be a factor in SOME castings with particular companies or marketing teams, the majority of clients want to hire professional actors who are good at their jobs and easy to work with. Instead of focusing too much on trying to increase your follower count, channel that energy into improving your skills as an actor and chances are you’ll see a much more effective return on your bookings!

Do not buy followers or participate in “follow-back” schemes—it’s better to grow your following organically.

Do clients/studios do social media checks before casting?

Not always, but it’s not unheard of. Social media checks are generally more likely for situations where there is expected to be a lot of attention drawn to the voice actor—for example, being the voice of a hot new anticipated character in a popular video game, or the lead of a major anime. It’s likely much less of a factor for roles that aren’t as “public facing”, such as narrating an audiobook or working on an e-Learning project.

Don’t worry, this is highly unlikely to be some sort of deep dive into anything embarrassing you’ve ever posted on the internet—just a general, quick check to make sure you won’t be a potential liability for casting (for example, do you routinely post about controversial matters, share NSFW content, or get involved in drama on a regular basis?) People still can be and ARE cast who do all of those things, but it’s good to keep in the back of your mind that you are essentially your own brand, and your public-facing social media accounts are a part of how that brand is perceived.

Do clients ever dictate how you may use social media?

It’s not unheard of for some clients, especially for bigger properties, to create a list of guidelines for how you may post about their project. Relatively common examples include prohibiting actors from posting unauthorized recordings in their character voices, posting leaks/spoilers, or engaging with fans of the property in a way that would reflect poorly on the company. Much of the social media guidelines will have to do with NDAs and ensuring that no confidential information is shared. Even if you don’t have to sign any separate social media agreement, your NDA will almost always cover confidentiality clauses related to social media—for instance, by stating that you may not release any proprietary details about the company, and that you may not announce your involvement until you are given permission.

However, such agreements should only apply to how you interact with their specific IP. While clients may choose not to cast someone in a project due to the way they behave on socials in general, one specific project or company cannot realistically expect to own your entire image and online presence unless they are paying you accordingly!

Should I create separate accounts for different jobs/creative pursuits?

This is entirely up to you. Some people prefer to keep all of their creative pursuits tied to their main account, which can be smart as it can help grow your brand as a whole.

However, if you feel your other endeavors are too unrelated or are concerned that routinely promoting your works outside of voice acting will lessen your impact as a voice actor, then you can feel free to separate them. Some people would also prefer audiences to be able to follow them for the thing they’re specifically interested in—for example, if they’re also an author, they may worry that fans of their books will not be interested in seeing a bunch of posts about their voice acting or vice versa. Link your various accounts in your bio if need be.

One particular situation where it can be smart to separate accounts is if you work as a NSFW voice actor, especially under a pseudonym, but want to promote yourself in the SFW market also. While NSFW voice acting is a valid career path and there’s no shame in it, it can potentially cause issues if you’re also trying to market yourself to say, kid-friendly media. (*NSFW VO in this context relates to openly explicit material and does not apply to suggestive or “ecchi” content such as in anime dubbing.)

What types of things should I post on social media?

How much or how little you want to share on social media is up to you. Not all your posts need to be related to voice acting; it’s quite common for people to share photos and stories about their daily lives, talk about what they’re watching/playing, or connect with others about hobbies/interests unrelated to the industry. Of course, you don’t need to share anything personal if you don’t want to!

Even if you decide to make your account business-only, you’ll generally want to post role announcements for new projects you are in (when you’re officially allowed to talk about them, of course), news about upcoming conventions/appearances, demo reels or other clips of your voice acting work, and any other important updates related to your acting career.

Do I NEED to be on social media as a voice actor?

You do not need to post or check social media with any regularity if you would prefer not to, but it’s smart to at least create an account under your name on the major social media sites so that if people wish to look you up, they can easily find your website and how to contact you for work. Claiming your name and creating an “official” account can also help prevent others from easily impersonating you in the future.

If you want to create a placeholder account but prefer not to use or check it, make a single pinned post or place a link in your bio that leads to your website where potential clients may contact you for work.

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tips for optimizing your social presence

Make it easy for people to find you.

Having the username you want isn’t always an option, but your name (or at least the name you go by for your work) should be included somewhere in your display name or bio so that people know it’s you and that you’ll come up in searches.

You may wish to include a few of your most prominent credits or characters you’ve played as part of your bio and/or header photo. If you hashtag the character or project names, they’ll also help your profile show up in searches! Linking to your social media from your website and other accounts can help you get more followers, too.

Follow and engage authentically with others in your industry.

Following, liking and commenting on others’ posts can help foster personal and professional relationships. However, the key is to be genuine. If you engage with others just in hopes of getting likes or follows back, your intentions become transparent. Quality over quantity!

Make use of visuals and hashtags, where appropriate, to help get more reach.

Posts with images or videos tend to get higher engagement overall, so utilize them accordingly if you feel it will help. Additionally, using keywords and hashtagging certain projects you are involved with can help your posts show up in search results. Just don’t overdo it!

Retweet/share fun things related to projects you’re a part of.

When you come across cool fanart of a character you’ve voiced or see that the official account for a game you’ve worked on has posted a major update, you may wish to occasionally reshare this content onto your own feed, such as by retweeting on Twitter/X or adding to your story on Instagram.

A few words of caution…

  • Be sure to share the original post rather than directly reposting artwork—even if you credit the artist, reposting is often frowned upon as it drives engagement and views away from the artist’s original post.
  • Double check to make sure that any artwork or other images you are sharing are not AI-generated.
  • Avoid sharing overly NSFW art, unless you specifically market yourself as a NSFW voice actor or “18+ account”.
  • Avoid sharing materials that would reasonably be considered a spoiler to much of the audience at the current point in time.
  • Memes can be a fun way to engage, but don’t post memes that are harmful to your client’s image or that may be considered offensive.
  • Take care that any news and updates you share are from official accounts—beware of “leaks”.

Think about your desired branding.

Your profile on any given social media site may be someone’s first impression of you, so think about what kind of impression you’d like that to be. Your header image/banner can be a great opportunity to play with colors, symbols and other visuals that speak to your personality and general aesthetic. And since you’re only allowed a limited amount of text for your bio, think about the most important information you’d like to include and what you’d like people to know about you right away.

Your pinned post can also be a great opportunity to showcase something important to you. One common format for a pinned post is to create an introduction where you talk a little about who you are and post your demo reel or visual reel (make sure to include this as an embedded video if possible so that people don’t need to go to a separate page to play it.) You may also wish to link to your website, other socials, and/or include your agency information.

Include at least one way for people to get in touch with you for business inquiries.

Putting your email address directly in your social media bio isn’t necessarily recommended, as there are bots that scrape email addresses on sites such as Instagram to sell to mailing lists. However, it’s important that if someone wishes to cast, audition or refer you to a project, they have a relatively easy way to do so. If your email is listed on your website (which it really should be!) then putting your website as the link in your bio is sufficient, or you could create a LinkTree which can function as a one-stop “link in bio” where you can share your accounts on other social media services as well as your website, email, etc. If you are represented by an agency, you may also wish to list your agency in your bio so that casting directors who work with agents also have an easy go-to.

Having a contact method available for business inquiries can also mean you don’t need to leave your DMs open to people you don’t follow.

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being smart with social media

What you post on socials may not seem like a big deal when you’re still an up-and-coming voice actor with barely any credits or following. But if you book a major character in a popular show or game, you may find yourself with a sudden influx of engagement that can be overwhelming or challenging to handle.

While the idea of having fans may seem enticing, being in the public eye can be a difficult adjustment, and many voice actors struggle with how to handle sudden visibility. Being mindful of what you post and how you choose to engage can go a long way in avoiding uncomfortable situations.

Think before you post.

It can be very tempting to post something in the heat of the moment, particularly if tensions are high and you’re feeling upset or offended. But even if these feelings are completely justified, remember that once something’s out there, it’s difficult to undo. Even if you delete a post or comment, it can still be screenshot and shared to others.

When you feel emotional, it can be easy to immediately take to social media to let everyone know how you feel. But get in the habit of putting your phone away for a bit until you are in a better headspace. Once you’ve given yourself some time to cool down, you can decide whether you’d still like to blast it to the Internet, or whether you’d rather ask a trusted friend if they’ve got the bandwidth for you to vent to them instead.

If you’re not sure whether or not you’ll regret posting something inflammatory, ask yourself: Would you be okay with people finding this post five years from now? Would you be comfortable if clients or directors you work with happen to see it? If in doubt, leave it in the drafts.

Avoid posting or hinting at anything that might break NDA.

We have an entire article about non-disclosure agreements here, but social media is perhaps the easiest way for NDA breaches to happen – and leaks for major projects can and have occurred as a result of voice actors (often unintentionally) sharing too much on socials. Accidentally confirming roles, announcing roles before you are supposed to, or posting hints that lead fans to guess what you’re working on can all potentially land you in hot water. Even “liking” a comment asking if you are involved in a certain project that isn’t released yet can be taken as a confirmation by fans! Always take care not to share information about projects or roles before you are officially allowed to (and ask if you’re not sure.)

Don’t badmouth projects you worked on.

Not everything you work on is going to be creatively fulfilling. Perhaps you worked on a project where the script was awful, the character felt one-dimensional, or the show was something you’d never yourself watch in a million years. That’s okay—sometimes a job is just that, a job—but, it’s best to keep those feelings to yourself! Speaking negatively about something you worked on can feel like a slap in the face to all the staff and other cast members who worked hard on the production, as well as people who ARE fans of the material. Don’t feel compelled to talk about or share things from the project if your heart isn’t in it, but always be respectful if you do choose to engage, and be grateful that you were trusted to help bring someone else’s creative vision to life.

Think VERY carefully before “naming and shaming” a problem client.

Now, if you’ve been outright scammed, that’s a different story and it can be good to share this info to help protect others.

But what about circumstances where you work with a client who’s otherwise legitimate, but just…difficult? Perhaps they routinely take too long to pay you, they’re rude in their interactions, or are otherwise frustrating or unprofessional in the way they conduct business. While it might be tempting to put them on blast to all your followers, it’s almost always better to handle these situations privately, even if it means sometimes cutting your losses.

Why? Even if you don’t care about burning a bridge with this particular client, it can also strain relationships with other people who worked with them, and those people may go on to work for different companies in the future or otherwise have decision-making power. Additionally, even if your complaints are justified, publicly talking trash about someone who hired you can make other GOOD clients hesitant to hire you, because you’re seen as a potential liability.

Of course there are always exceptions, and there may be a situation where you feel you need to speak out about how things went down, particularly on matters involving more serious issues. As always, it’ll be important to use your best judgment as to if and how you share.

Exercise caution when it comes to getting involved in drama.

When voice actor drama hits social media – which happens more frequently than perhaps it should – it can be tempting for everyone to pile on with the latest “hot take”. But remember that you don’t always need to get involved. An actor who is constantly having a go at others in their industry may be seen as a potential liability for casting. After all, would you want to hire someone if you had serious doubt that they could get along with their castmates or at least treat them with basic respect?

Additionally, it’s best to avoid “vague posting” about other actors – there’s a good chance the person you are referring to you may see your post and suspect it’s about them, and it can create bad blood. If you truly have an issue with someone and care about resolving it, communicate with them directly.

Of course, there may always be some exception where you feel compelled to speak on a certain matter…but do consider carefully how your words will be perceived. Once your comment is out there, it becomes difficult or impossible to take back.

Avoid speaking “officially” on behalf of any company, project, or character.

As a voice actor, you are hired as an independent contractor to provide voice work for a character that is owned by someone else as part of their intellectual property. It should be evident from your socials that your opinions are your own and belong to you as a person/actor. This can be difficult if you are primarily only known for one specific character, as fans cannot always separate the character from the actor, but take care that your posts do not come across as speaking as a representative or authority—for instance, you might say “I support [certain cause]”, but avoid saying “[Character name] would support [certain cause].”

Consider carefully if and how you wish to engage with politics and social issues.

While traditional advice for voice actors used to be “keep politics off your social media accounts”, the landscape of recent years means that many people feel they do not have the luxury of staying silent, especially when it comes to issues that affect their communities. You shouldn’t feel the need to censor yourself when it comes to speaking up about what’s important to you, but do be aware that being outspoken about certain political topics may be a dealbreaker for some clients, and that voiceover is a global market—you may be doing business with clients in countries that have different norms for what is considered acceptable or even taboo to speak about. Some actors feel very strongly that if any client that has an issue with their viewpoints is one they’d rather not do business with anyway, and that’s a valid perspective, but remember that whatever you post online does still reflect you and your brand.

Make a private account if you must (but beware that nothing is truly “private” on the Internet).

If you want to share things with your close friends that you don’t necessarily want the general public seeing, you may wish to create a locked account under another name that only people you grant access to may see.

Be aware, however, that things you share can still be saved, shared, and traced back to you. For example, if you badmouth another voice actor in a private Discord server, but someone else in there is friends with that person, what happens if they screenshot your comment and send it to them? If you’re commenting under a pseudonym on Reddit with proprietary information about a company you work with, but you shared a link to your demo in another comment that happens to have your name in the file, what happens when someone views your post history and puts two and two together? You don’t need to be overly paranoid, but do just keep in mind that there’s always a chance that something you post in a “private” space does have a chance of going beyond its intended audience.

Avoid tasteless bragging.

It’s good to be confident in your work and your skills, and you certainly don’t want to put yourself down when posting on platforms where someone may hire you for work…but it can be easy to come across as full of yourself on social media even if you don’t mean to be.

Consider this common style of post:
Booked and BUSY!!! LOVING my life right now…got yet another compliment from a client and just got scheduled for even more sessions! I am working on so many top secret projects that I can’t wait to share. Can’t believe I get paid to do this! #BoothLife
While actors may make posts like these in hopes of showing off to casting directors that they are working, it can actually be off-putting to peers who may be dealing with a slow period themselves or otherwise find these types of posts tacky. Celebrate your wins, but do so in a way that is respectful and classy—for example, by thanking people you’ve worked with or expressing your gratitude for being a part of a great project. In the end, it’s your page and you can post whatever you want, but it’s just good to be aware how these types of posts may come across.

Be positive overall in the energy you put out.

It’s okay to be human and share moments of vulnerability, and having support from an online community can help get you through difficult times. However, be cautious about routinely using your public-facing accounts for complaining, venting, or “trauma dumping”. Constant negative posts may make others uncomfortable or cause them to unfollow. Even worse, if you’re always “crashing out” on social media, potential clients may be concerned that you won’t be able to keep your emotions under control when it comes to a business setting. Again, sometimes a bad life circumstance will happen and you’ll need support, and that’s okay! But just try to balance out any negative posts with positive or neutral ones, and/or discuss your more personal problems privately with friends or family. If you’re having trouble thinking of something positive to write, try giving a genuine compliment to a friend or colleague!

If you make a mistake, try not to beat yourself up.

Everyone makes mistakes from time to time, and even very high-profile voice actors could surely tell you about a time when they posted something they regretted.

Every situation is different, so how you address the issue may range from simply deleting the offending post, to making a private apology to the person involved, all the way to making a public statement if you decide that’s the best option. Ask for advice from a close friend or trusted peer if need be. But above all, give yourself grace and treat it as a learning experience for the future.

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social media + protecting your peace

Set your DMs to be mutuals only.

On virtually any social media site, there will be an option to go into your settings and select who you would like to be able to send you direct messages. It will greatly behoove you to only allow people you already follow (aka “mutuals”) to send you DMs.

While it may be tempting to keep your DMs open to everyone just in case someone needs to contact you about business, you can mitigate that by linking your website in your bio where you have contact information available. This will limit more of your messages to serious inquiries. But if your DMs are open, you may receive a barrage of spam and other unwanted requests.

The concept of parasocial relationships is another reason to keep your DMs closed to anyone you don’t follow back. The nature of the modern-day Internet means that people are more likely to latch onto public figures or other content creators they follow (yes, even if you are not “well known” yet) and demand their time and attention—imagine someone you don’t know treating your messages as a 24/7 chat room and getting angry when you don’t respond. People who enjoy your work are welcome to make a public comment on your social posts/pages instead, to which you can “like” or otherwise show appreciation if you wish.

Some people may fear that setting boundaries in this manner will cause them to appear stuck-up or ungrateful for those who support them, but maintaining a level of professional separation is actually smart and healthy for everyone involved. For example, it’s generally not appropriate in most circumstances for minor fans and adult public figures to be private messaging with each other—instead, these younger fans would be welcome to meet and interact in a public setting such as a convention, where a parent or guardian could also supervise if desired.

Don’t feel compelled to respond to everyone.

Remember that you don’t owe anyone your time or attention—this includes random trolls, obsessively clingy fans, or someone whose comments or presence make you uncomfortable (trust your gut instinct!) In most cases, it is better not to engage with these types of people. If someone is determined that your work is terrible because they hate English dubs, there really isn’t much you can say that will change their mind, nor is it worth your time to argue. Block, mute, or simply ignore (more on this below).

Understand the difference between blocking and muting.

On most social media platforms, if you block someone, that person is able to see that you’ve blocked them if they attempt to view your profile. If that’s no issue for you, then go ahead and block!

However, because blocking is considered an “antagonistic” action, this can sometimes instigate the person to ramp up activity further, such as by posting about you or bothering you on other platforms. Trolls may even view it as a badge of honor or see it as having won the argument. Or, consider a situation where someone views themselves as a genuine fan but they constantly spam you with replies or comments that otherwise annoy you—blocking them would hurt their feelings, but muting can help keep your notifications tab manageable.

For situations where someone is making you uncomfortable, muting may be considered safer than blocking if you don’t want to see the person’s comments but don’t want them to know you’ve blocked them. Do be aware that even if you mute someone, their replies on your posts may still be visible to others.

Blocking bots and spammers is no problem, but when it comes to real people, think about whether you would indeed prefer to block, or just mute and let them post into the void.

Only “name search” if you’re sure you can handle the results.

Searching your own name on social media (or, searching for comments where people discuss a performance of yours) can be very tempting. But keep in mind that not every result you see may be positive. While it may feel bad to see a random person trashing a performance you worked hard on, you finding and commenting on their post is unlikely to change their mind or have any sort of positive impact on either of you.

Also, beware of the Streisand effect – as frustrating as it can be to read a negative comment, replying to it can have the unintended effect of pushing the comment onto all your followers’ feeds, drawing even more attention to something that may otherwise have only been seen by a small handful of people.

Be mindful of how much private/personal information you want to reveal.

Anything you put on your social media accounts is public, and can be seen by anyone who happens to look at it. There are many databases and wiki sites who will include personal information that an actor happened to share on socials even in a one-off reply, which can sometimes cause issues (for example, if an actor is closeted about their sexual orientation and/or gender identity in certain spaces but not others.) Be sure to keep your safety and well-being in mind when it comes to deciding what you’re comfortable sharing.

Finally, be aware that unfortunately there are a lot of people out there who either don’t understand or don’t care about boundaries. Various content creators and other public figures have shared frightening experiences of strangers showing up at places they frequent, sending mail to their homes, or even contacting their family members! Protect yourself by double checking what you share—for instance, it’s best to avoid posting photos where the front of your house or apartment building is clearly visible. If you’re concerned about “doxing sites”, which scrape information from public records, consider a subscription to JoinDeleteMe or follow their guide on manually removing yourself from these databases.

Keep personal Facebook pages personal.

Facebook is where people tend to communicate with close friends/family, so unless you want a bunch of strangers knowing your business, it may be a good idea to try to keep your personal account to people you actually know. If you want the general public to be able to keep up with your work on Facebook, consider creating a Page that people can follow and comment on. Just like with other social media, it’s a good idea to turn off messaging on that page. It doesn’t always stop people from finding and trying to message your personal account, but those requests will at least get filtered into the “Other” folder most of the time.

Also, on the topic of Facebook: Adding a ton of voice actors may seem like “networking”, but if you haven’t actually made some sort of connection with the person before, they are unlikely to want to add you. Consider following them on a place like Twitter or LinkedIn instead and engaging with them there. Friendships should be formed naturally if they are meant to happen! Don’t take it personally if someone doesn’t accept your friend request—they may be very selective about who they allow to access their private page, or they may not wish to mix their personal life with work. If you think this seems harsh, consider that a voice actor actually had people attempt to contact his wife and daughter via Facebook to try to get in contact with him. And it’s not the first instance that people have had fans or aspiring actors overstep boundaries in a similar manner by attempting to contact their families, significant others, etc. If someone seems guarded…it’s probably for a reason. Respect their wishes.

Curate your feed as you see fit.

It’s okay if you need to mute or “snooze” certain content because it’s making you feel bad about yourself or is just too much to handle at the moment. Remember these social media sites work off of algorithms, so in general, if you tend to search and interact with certain types of content a lot, the algorithm will show you more of that type of content.

If your feed is all industry-related and it’s driving you up the wall, search for and “like” content related to your special interests or other wholesome content such as cute animal photos, and these types of things will start to appear on your For You Page. Remember that being well rounded as a person can help make you a better actor, so don’t feel like your whole feed needs to be related to voice acting!

Resist the urge to constantly check social media.

As addictive as social media can be, it can also be terrible for your mental health and well-being. It’s easy to get caught in a loop of mindless scrolling, looking at the constant announcements and achievements from your peers and feeling like you’re lagging behind or will never be as accomplished as they are. Our mindset articles go much more in-depth on this subject, but it’s important to remember that social media isn’t reality – and just as you surely see the importance of using it to market yourself as a voice actor, so do others – and it’s quite easy to set oneself up to be perceived as more “successful” based on how posts are worded. Take a break if you need to, put down your phone, and work on your craft instead – after all, in the field of acting, your acting skills will ultimately serve you better than your social media skills!

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This article is written by Kira Buckland. While all guides and resources on this site are provided on a volunteer basis, you may optionally support with a coffee if you found them helpful!