Aflac Seeks New Voice for Duck

Aflac today announced plans for a nationwide casting call to find a new voice for the Aflac Duck. The company plans to hold auditions in six cities across the US during the first week of April.

Live auditions will be held in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Las Vegas, Austin and Atlanta. The online casting call is open today and will remain open until April 1, 2011 at midnight Pacific time.

Since 2000, the Aflac Duck has appeared in 52 television ads and numerous radio ads and is said to have increased brand recognition from slightly more than 10 percent to 93 percent. The Aflac Duck is also a symbol of the company's philanthropic cause which has raised more than $62 million for the treatment and research of childhood cancer.

The job description, which reads like a joke, includes the following requirements:

Ability to:

- Create innovative and original quacking that helps consumers understand how Aflac is different from major medical Insurance.

- Strategically develop ways for the word "Aflac" to communicate that the company's insurance provides a safety net for families.

- Translate complex messages into a single word that tells people, "Aflac is the insurance company that they can count on in their time of need."

- Present complex information clearly and concisely into an effective reading of the word "Aflac"

And most importantly:

- Requires correct pronunciation of the word Aflac.

Seriously?