Voice Over Man’s blog

Finding the best voiceover artist for your commercial or ad campaign can take time, and the interview process typically includes listening to each candidate's voiceover demo tapes. Demo tapes give you and the rest of the interviewing panel a chance to listen to the talent's overall style and tone and determine if they will be a good match for your specific project.

Voiceover demo tapes can be a better resource of determining the candidate's talent than an in-person test or voice over session at your office. Voiceover artists who are not under the pressure of the job interview may have the freedom to perform at their best, and their demo tapes will give them a chance to showcase their best work. Still, there are some critical elements to listen for when reviewing the voiceover demos. These include:

1. Pace. Pay attention to the speed of the actor's delivery. A good voiceover artist is someone who can adjust his pace easily to emphasize different ideas. Rodney Saulsberry, author of "You Can Bank On Your Voice", states that the speed of delivery has an important effect on any voice over piece. Good artists understand that a very slow delivery and an extremely fast delivery are a pain to listen to and they should know how to pace their voice throughout a piece.

2. Attention Grabber. A good voiceover artist can easily arouse your interest at the start of a piece. Experienced artists will put the right stress on particular words and phrases to match their tone and personality. Look for tapes that grab your attention in the first few lines.

3. Dialect and accents. Many talented voiceover artists have the ability to imitate certain accents and dialects. Listen for examples of different accents and styles; these indicate that the artist is flexible and skilled in changing tones and can play different characters with ease.

4. Speaking Pattern. The delivery pattern of a voiceover piece is a significant element in any recording. The correct delivery pattern or rhythm can help listeners to remember the script and even identify the brand being promoted. It is important to take note of this when listening to every demo tape.

5. Comic ability. Most conversational and commercial scripts nowadays use humor to effectively communicate their message. Listen if a talent's tone conveys a sense of humor or if he or she throws jokes in the demo tape performance. See if the joke was delivered right and made the panel smile. Or did the joke felt awkward?

Use voice over demo tapes to help you judge every candidate to pick out the best talent that would fit your voice over project. Listen to each demo tape with the above qualities in mind so that you will have an objective standard to base your decision on. Good voiceover artists possess these qualities and are able to easily exhibit them in a demo tape.

About the Author: Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota and Has Been Providing the Voice Talent for Hundreds of Companies and Agencies Since 1991.

A solid voiceover script is the key to success for your podcast or your radio and television commercials. Writing voiceover scripts that are compelling and persuasive is very different from writing print ads and small blurbs that appear on online advertisements.

You shoud be "writing for the ear, not the eye", so says Peter Drew, a professional voiceover talent who has done countless voiceovers for internet and radio ads. Writing for the ear entails writing in a conversational manner. This technique requires short and concisely written messages. This technique may look unusual initially, but you'll produce very effective messages as you get used to it.

Listed here are some techniques you can immediately apply to improve your voiceover copies and get results out of them.

1. Make sure everything is in the active voice. Voiceovers need to take place in the present time, as if they were a real conversation. Make sure the whole script is written in the active voice so that the audience can identify with the messages easily.

2. Attach a windscreen to your microphone. A lot of unwanted noise are produced if your script is filled with words beginning in 'T', 'P' and 'B'. A windscreen protects your mic from catching these unwanted noises. This will free your voiceover artist from worrying about sound quality and instead focus on delivering the meaning behind your message.

3. Mark up the copy for inflection. Bolding certain words, highlighting parts of the copy or using something simple as underlines can really help your voiceover artist understand the gist of the message and deliver a quality piece. Read the copy out loud yourself to identify what parts of the sentence you want to emphasize, then mark up the copy so that the artist understands exactly what you need.

4. Spell out phone numbers. Don't be lazy in spelling out numbers in your copy. Practicing this will reveal any obstructions to the flow of your copy. Read out loud each digit to see any out of placed words and edit your script.

5. Instantly grab your listeners' attention. Headlines are what lure audiences to listen to any advertisement. Your headline will serve as an opening to your ad's body. A great headline would be composed of less than ten words and contain at least one compelling benefit or statement.

A script should always be compatible with the voiceover talent. A script writer should therefore always bear in mind the personality of the talent when composing the script. You can also adjust the script once you have chosen a voiceover talent. Fine-tune the script so that it matches the talent's positive and even negative features. In addition, provide ample time for your talent to practice. Follow all of these tips and you'll be producing effective scripts in no time.

About the Author: Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota and Has Been Providing the Voice Talent for Dozens of Companies and Agencies Since'91.

Voice Over Recording In Progress

Creating a professional voice over project on your own can be achieved using computer programs and tools. This will allow you to save on the cost of hiring a videographer or a production team. You just need to hire talents and have a script and you are all set to record.

There is a significant amount of preparation required to ensure that the environment in which you record the voice over will help you create a quality piece. Here are some essential tips when preparing the room for your voiceover recording:

1. Check all your equipment. Booking the voiceover talent for the project and then wasting several hours testing equipment will cost you. Jay Rose, the author of the book "Producing Great Sound for Digital Video" suggests that you make sure you get the right kind of equipment and test it well before production day. Even testing it a few hours before production time can reduce unforeseen delays.

2. Check if the room produces echoes. The only way to do this is to seal the room by shutting all the doors and windows and record some samples. Again, test all of your equipments to determine and lessen echoes.

3. Make use of a background music. A Narration should feel and sound like as if the narrator is having an intimate conversation with the audience. There should not be any 'white noise' to produce this effect. If you find that you're recording a lot of 'white noise' and can do nothing about it, I suggest you use a background music to somehow mask those noises.

4. Find the best position in the room for the recording. There are no rules about where to position the microphone, so feel free to move the mic setup into different areas of the room to get the right sound. You don't want to record when the sounds seem hollow or filtered in any way. Move around to find the best fit.

5. Don't worry about outside traffic or small rumbles. Even simple things like fluorescent lighting or distant traffic outside the window can effect the sound quality of your voiceover recording. However, most mics do not pick up these sounds. If you do feel like the script is being affected by these outside sounds, consider adding a high-pass filter to the microphone for a crisper recording.

6. Switch off fans and blowers. Fans on computers, air-cons and other blower devices can affect the air atmosphere of your recording room as they produce turbulence. This is more evident in a small room than a large one. The solution to this is to switch of these equipment while doing a recording. You can turn them on in between segments.

Also monitor always the recording session in real-time using your headphones. Utilize playback functions in a seperate room to ensure that all is in order. Doing this will allow you to solve problems real-time and spare you doing retakes.

About the Author: Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Actor from Minneapolis, Minnesota and Has Been Providing the Voice Talent for Dozens of Projects and Advertisements Since 1991.

Those working in the realm of marketing are more than likely aware that a multimedia elements can prove valuable additions to just about any campaign. Though the audio/visual approach to marketing was honed on more traditional media such as television, the advent of the Internet has left us with even greater opportunities, including but certainly not limited to webinars, podcasts, and YouTube videos.

With all of these avenues for the creation of memorable campaigns, savvy marketers will quickly realize that, although compelling visuals are certainly important, you will also want to put some thought into other crucial ways of reaching your audience, including powerful slogans and audio components.

Hiring a voice over artist will help you create a compelling and high-impact segment for your target market. No matter what type of advertising method you choose, any audio segments need to be developed with voice over talent; here are six reasons why:

1. To help create an identity for your brand. To start your marketing campaign off on the right foot, you will want to create a strong sense of brand identity. A distinctive, professionally-done voice over can be the human element that makes consumers remember your brand.

2. To polish the appearance of your marketing. Marketing is always concerned with portraying a product or service and the organization that provides it in the best possible light. A good voice over can do a lot to increase both the professionalism and relatability of your ad campaign, making your product or service palatable to wider audience.

3. Voice over artists can help your company stand apart from the competition. As advertising and marketing becomes more competitive than ever, finding unique ways to reach your target market is a great asset. Voice overs can help to differentiate your brand, company, and messages from the rest of the marketplace and position you as a strong leader in the industry.

4. Professional voice talent will render your message more powerful. While so many advertisements concentrate on flashy visuals and text, you should keep in mind that human speech has always been our basic method of commuhnication. For this reason, people listen when they hear someone speaking, particulaly someone possessed of a convincing, polished voice.

5.To drive up website hits. In the marketing world of today, it is becoming more and common for everything to point back to one's online presence. In your marketing campaigns, it's a great idea to incorporate messages that lead back to your website, and voice overs, whether contained in podcasts, webinars, or other, more traditional media, provide a great opportunity to do this.

6. Hiring a professional voice over artist doesn't have to be expensive. Marketing pathways like online podcasts and radio spots can offer a cheaper alternative to TV ads, bypassing the entire cost of producing visuals. With the right voice actor or actress, these media can be equally effective in reaching your audience and communicating a strong message.

Author Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Actor from Minneapolis, MN and Has Provided the Voice Talent for Hundreds of Projects and Advertisements Since 1991.

In marketing today, the perfect voice over can be the element that turns an advertising campaign that is simply good into a great one.  Picking a voice with which your target market will identify, you can forge a human connection with your audience and enjoy the resultant boost in sales.

Those who are considering using voice actors in their marketing projects would do well to learn a few key terms and definitions  that are commonly used to talk about the voice over field. 

Audition Tapes:  Prospective voice actors and actresses will submit their audition tapes as they apply for the job.  In addition to allowing you to judge the abilities of each actor, these tapes also can be kept on hand to help you keep track of the numerous applicants you will be interviewing.

Demo Tapes:  Demo tapes are also part of the interview and audition process, and can be recorded in your own studio, or completed by the voice over talent. These tapes will be a recording of the sample scripts you provide as part of the interview.

Recording Studio:  To complete any voice work, you will need a studio in which it can be recorded.  While you always have the option of renting a studio for a project, you should always ask voice talent if they have the  equipment to record at home, as this will save you the cost of studio time.

ISDN Voiceover:  Professional voice over talent will record most of their work in a home studio that makes use of ISDN technology. These recordings are sharper and more fine-tuned than the average recording studio.

Commercial Voice Overs:  These are primarily targeting customers with a direct sales approach, and will push a product or service as part of the script. Commercial voice overs are powerful marketing tools that can deliver a message with high impact.

Narrative Voice Overs:  These often accompany a film, video, or story and are scripted to entertain and inform, rather than sell. However, you may require a narrative voice for a portion of a commercial or sales segment.

Impressions:  A voice actor or actress who can impersonate a famous voice can add an extra layer of humor to your ad campaign, and advertisements including impressions never fail to capture the attention of an audience. This is an easy way to make your product or service stand out from the pack.

Performers' Unions:  Unions such as the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and the Screen Artists Guild, in addition to advocating for the rights of their members and dealing with pay rate issues, provide voice actors and actresses valuable  opportunities to grow and develop their skills.

Actors:  The voice industry is full of actors and actresses with a knack for drama, who entered the field because of its unique nature and potential profitability.  The voices provided by professional talent can help give your marketing a human flavor.

Familiarity with these key concepts and the associated terminology will help you immensely in your dealing with professionals in the voice over business.  If you approach interviewing talent from an organized, educated perspective, you are sure to find a voice over professional who will boost the appeal of your advertising campaign.

Author Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, MN and Has Provided the Voice Talent for Dozens of Companies and Agencies Since 1991.

If you're reading this article, it's likely that you have already made the decision to hire a professional voice actor or actress for your marketing project - congratulations!  A voice over professional can add a lot to just about any project. After this decision, however, comes perhaps the most difficult yet essential part of the process: interviewing. Those who have not done extensive work involving voice over may be wondering what exactly it is that sets truly great voice actors and actresses apart from the rest of the pack.

These are a few of the characteristics that add up to an outstanding voice over artist:

1.A natural sounding voice.  Unless you're advertising an upcoming monster truck rally, you're going to want a voice actor or actress who can speak in a manner that sounds natural.  Just about anyone can speak in an exaggerated cartoon voice, or imitate the wooden diction of a newscaster - the real test of vocal skill is whether one can perform in a natural, fluid manner. 

2.The voice over has the right pitch and tone. Voice over artists are constantly practicing different pitches and tones of their voice so that they can create their own 'music.' This ensures that their voice stands apart from the rest; take the time to listen for distinct characteristics that make them different from other actors and actresses.

3.He or she is willing to provide you with high quality examples of his or her work. When interviewing voice over talent, it's essential that you obtain a demo tape from each of your prospects. In addition to granting you insight into the quality of a candidate's work, this will help you keep your prospects straight after you're done interviewing.

4.Versatility. This is fairly self-explanatory; a truly skilled voice over professional will have the skill and talent necessary to perform well in a wide variety of dissimilar projects. Whether authoritatively reading off facts and figures, or attempting to make listeners laugh, a true professional will shine.

5.A good sense of tempo. Another 'musical' element of voice over work is that of tempo, or pacing; you should look for a voice actor or actress whose speech flows naturally, and who has an intuitive grasp of the the rhythm with which he or she must speak in order to get your message across.

6.He or she can provide you with references. You should always ask for references from potential voice talent, and, furthermore, you should always take the few minutes necessary to look into them. Don't underestimate the importance of this part of the interviewing process.

7.He or she exhibits enthusiasm and vocal stamina. At times, recording a voice is no picnic; lines will likely need to be repeated over and over to get the exact right take. Be sure to pick a candidate that will maintain a good attitude and a strong voice under these conditions.

Interviewing potential voice talent may, at times, feel tedious, but in reality it is a key factor in the success of your project.  If you can find a voice actor or actress with all of the aforementioned traits during the interview process, you will save yourself a lot of time and trouble down the road.

About the Author: Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Actor from Minneapolis, MN and Has Been Providing the Voice Talent for Hundreds of Companies and Agencies Since 1991.

Though there is certainly no shortage of potential voice talent for the hiring, picking through the thousands available to find the voice actor that is perfect for the job can seem like a daunting task.  Since the actor or actress you choose will affect the tone and message of your project, it's essential to make the right selection.

The internet offers many resource and options for putting together your multimedia project.  You can locate scripts from a database, or create a script of your own and find just the right tone and theme by reviewing samples of other companies in a few clicks.  The web allows you to view artist portfolios and samples with ease;  many professionals upload clips of previous projects as samples which saves you time during your hiring process, and can help you narrow down your search.  From reviewing resumes to conducting online interviews, the internet is making the voice over talent search much easier and effective.

The Internet is easily the most useful and extensive resource at your disposal during the hiring process, but the time you spend searching for voice talent online may amount to nothing if you don't have a good idea of what you're looking for and how to find it.  Here are five simple pointers that will go a long way towards making your time spent on the Internet more effective and valuable.

1. When you first contact a voice actor or actress, ask that they send you samples of their work.  Any professional voice actor or actress is sure to have some .mpeg files that they can send you, or a website showcasing their work.  Actors without  any samples can safely be written off as amateurs.  This simple screening step will save you a good deal of time and effort.

2. Ask that all potential candidates submit a formal rsum. Professional voice talent should also have no trouble providing you with a rsum  that exhibits their work experience.  You will also want to check in on two or more of your potential hire's references, to get an accurate and balanced picture of his or her ability.

3. Request a preferred rate.  Many voice over professionals have an expected rate for each project, and you'll want to know about both hourly and per-project rates. Some professionals will request payment only after final delivery, while others will require a portion upfront with the remainder due at the end of the project.

4. Conduct a telephone interview.  Telephone interviews are best for any talent you may not have the opportunity to meet with in person.  Telephone interviews can touch upon previous work, a brief script reading, and to gauge the confidence level of your candidate.

5. Ask if your voice talent is equipped to provide services digitally.  It is increasingly common for voice over artists to set up studios in their own homes.  If your actor or actress is able to record his or her performance from home and send it to you over the Internet, this means that you will save on the costs associated with travel and the shipping of tapes.

About the Author: Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota and Has Been Providing the Voice Talent for Hundreds of Projects and Advertisements Since 1991.

While you can learn a lot about potential voice talent through face-to-face interviewing and listening to demo tapes, you will also need a sample script that will help you gauge if an applicant is the right fit for the job.  With a well-chosen sample script, you can get a sense for the tone and style of the voice actor or actress you are interviewing, and hear an example of the kind of work they do.

It's up to you how much time you give them to rehearse each piece, but most experienced individuals can complete their testing within a few hours.  Since they'll be reading directly from paper, they will just need time to practice their lines, learn about the background or nature of the script, and proceed accordingly.  There are very few cases where a voice over script will need to be memorized word for word; since the recording will take place in a studio, your talent will have the script right in front of them.

Many companies struggle with determining what type of tone and style they are looking for.  The best way to start is to narrow down who you are marketing to. Learning the demographics of the target market will help you narrow down the different types of voices that would be most appropriate for your advertising or other promotions. This approach can also help eliminate most of the voice over talent applicants during the initial stages, making your hiring process much easier.

Regardless of exactly what it is that you're marketing, you're going to need several different scripts in order to judge the nature of a particular actor or actress's talents.  Think about what your company is trying to produce.  Are you looking to create an informal, humorous advertisement, and therefore seeking a voice that will make your audience laugh?  Are you trying to create an air of journalistic integrity, necessitating a more authoritative-sounding voice?  The tone that you ultimately want in your finished product will serve as the basis for your sample script.

Finding voice over scripts is easy with a simple search online.  Many script databases are available free of charge, and give you a chance to search by keyword, theme, or subject.  Look for scripts that are similar in scope to your field, or pick something that challenges the applicant to try different styles and themes.  Many voice over script collections are royalty-free, affordable, and from trusted sites and projects.  These can also be a great resource for developing and adapting your own scripts, and give you some more ideas for making different types of scripts with your key goals in mind.

In making the final decisions as to whether or not to hire a particular voice actor, you're going to want to be able to refer to his or her demo and compare it side-by side with the tapes of other applicants. This demo should include several script selections that are representative of an actor's range of talents, and how well they will fit in with your vision of the marketing you would like to produce. You may either have your voice actors send in demos along with their applications, or complete them in your studio.

Author Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota and Has Provided the Voice Talent for Dozens of Companies and Agencies Since 1991.

No matter how badly you think you need to save money, it is never a good idea for a merchant to read his own commercial—unless, of course, he has a talent for it. The truth is, however, that most people don't. They may succeed in giving their commercial an air of originality, but that isn't a good thing if it results in people laughing at your commercial. And people are less likely to purchase your product or service if they don't respect you.

Many people mistakenly underestimate the importance of the voice over talent they use when approaching the public, because many people mistakenly believe that all they have to do to sell their product or service is to let people know that it's there. As long as they do something memorable, people will buy from them, right? Wrong. They may remember the guy with the funny voice or the guy who read in a monotone or tried to act out a little skit with his brother, but they'll buy from the guy who hired a professional to do his commercial.

And that is the heart of the matter. There is a purpose behind buying airtime and creating a commercial—you are trying to convince people to do something. You're trying to talk them out of their hard-earned cash, to come and give it to you in exchange for what you have to offer. You are trying, in other words, to impress them. If they sense that you didn't care enough about your marketing to do it correctly, then they will not be impressed. In fact, if you attempt to convince them using a very bad commercial, they may even feel as though you are insulting their intelligence, and that is definitely something you don't want.

When your commercial airs, it should sound professional. This makes you look professional. It may be the first contact a potential customer has with your business. In this way, your commercial is like your clothing. You wouldn't wear something sloppy and poorly assembled to go meet a client, so why would you present them with a sloppy and poorly assembled piece of advertising? Even though the voice telling the world about your service has nothing to do with how well you do what you do, in the same way the state of your clothing has nothing to do with how good you are at your job, you want to make the best impression possible with that voice, just as you would with your suit.

So what are the elements of a well-read commercial that a professional voice over artist can give you? Professionalism is one very important thing that you will get. Your brother-in-law can't give you that in reading your commercial, because he doesn't know how. Just because he's been speaking all his life doesn't mean that he does it well. In fact, most people don't speak well. Speaking well is partly about pronouncing the words clearly so that people can understand, and partly about doing that so that it sounds natural.

Everyone in need of a commercial has to do it in the way they think is best, of course. For some it actually may not matter if they put out a professional-sounding commercials. Some customers may truly not care. However, someone who wants potential customers to associate his business with a voice that sounds professional, then it is vitally important that he hire a professional to do the talking.