Who are professional voice over artists?
In general, most professional full-time voice over artists tend to come from one of the following backgrounds, as each one has relevant skill and experience to bring to what I term the ‘voice over party’:
- Actors
- Presenters – radio/tv
- Audio engineers/producers
Mine is as a trained and experienced actor, who has since also trained on the audio editing/engineering side of things in order to be able to provide both a voice over and audio editing service.
So how do I choose the right voice and why is this important?
Think about what you want to achieve from adding the voice over to your audio. You need to align your voice to the target market for your product or service. and/or what you want to achieve. For example, if it’s an online product demonstration, you want to provide your customers with a clear, helpful, friendly but informative voice. Remember, the audio aspect of your project accounts for 38% of the total impact (55% visual), as opposed to only 7% of the words you use, so it’s crucial to select the right one! If you can get both the visual and the auditory factors to hit the spot, you’ll have made a huge impact – that’s up to a whopping 93%!
How do I know if they are experienced?
You’ve probably already invested time and money into your project and, bearing the above paragraph in mind, it’s important to get someone experienced who can produce quality results. Try to find out a little about the voice over artist you are using – are they experienced enough to entrust them with recording and editing your project?
I’ve been approached on more than one occasion to re-voice a project that had originally been done using an inexperienced voice over at a low budget rate. The client lost both time and money – and, indeed, face, as they are often working on behalf of another client into the bargain…
How much will it cost?
Primary factors in determining cost depend on the length and complexity of the project, so give me a ring and I will be happy to discuss your particular project with you. Voice over rates can vary, according to experience, skill, studio equipment, and overall professionalism, which invariably means you get what you pay for. We charge a basic studio fee which includes our recorded voice over, plus studio editing time. To give you an idea, here is a rough guide to my fees:
- Corporate, e-learning, multi-media or training videos. Cost is dependent upon number of words in your piece. The greater the volume the more cost-effective it works out per word. Feel free to either send me the script or let me know the word count and I can give you a quote.
- Commercials in radio and television. There are standard industry rates that full-time professional voice overs like myself use as a guideline.
- On-hold messages/voicemail/IVR. Basic fee £45, plus £5 per prompt.
- All other services such as audio books, cartoon & animation, podcasting and documentary narration, please get in touch for a more bespoke quote.
Do you have a fixed budget in mind? It’s usually best to be up front about this with the voice over artist you approach.
What is a realistic schedule?
Full-time voice overs working from their own studio are likely to have more availability and flexibility, other pre-booked voice sessions permitting. Depending upon the length of your project, if it’s a shortish piece I can invariably turn this around within 24 hours, just give me a call and I can quickly give you an anticipated turnaround time.
Is the quality of a home studio as good as a sound studio?
If the voice over has their own home studio, make sure you have had a chance to listen to the quality of their audio and editing skills by checking out their demo/s. Were they recorded directly from their own studio, or another studio, as is sometimes the case with demos? Many voice overs get special demos recorded elsewhere, so do check. Is the audio clean in terms of noise/sound? Can you hear the joins between the edits? Does it flow basically?! Not all voice over artists have good, professional standard:
a) sound equipment and noise-free acoustics
b) audio editing skills
Most of my demos are snippets of recent actual work (and updated regularly) recorded directly from my home studio. If you’re unsure, just ask the voice over to send you a short recorded message so you can hear for yourself.
What file formats will I receive?
Would you like the completed, finished audio (fully edited), or is it being edited/processed by another production house? No problem, I can either provide what we call a ‘dry’ or ‘raw’ file to you. ‘Dry’ means I would supply a fully edited, clean file that has been de-breathed and flows well. Alternatively, some clients will be editing the piece themselves – in which case, I can supply a ‘raw’, unedited file, or of course a ‘dry’ edit if preferred which may then be further processed to suit by the production house. I provide audio in most commonly known formats – these are the mostly frequently asked for: .wav, .mp3, or .aiff (MAC users), but just ask for whatever you need.
What is the process for creating a voice over?
- Reviewing your script
- Confirming your recording requirements, including reading style and technical settings
- Recording the voice over
- Basic edit
- Final edit, checking it through and polishing up
- Filemaking and despatch. Some projects involve multi-files, which take a bit longer.
Those of us with home studios are doing two jobs on the project – voicing and audio engineering – in order to produce the final product – your audio file/s. There are a lot of misconceptions out there as to how long it takes to produce. Most of the time it isn’t a one-take process in order to do a professional job! Often I will also provide an alternative, or several alternative reads, time and budget permitting.
How flexible is the voice over artist’s voice?
A good voice over will always check in advance with you as to the required reading style, pace etcetera, and/or can even provide advice if you’re unsure. They must also be able to take direction, and be able to offer alternative reads, as required. I always check with my clients that they are happy with my work, and offer to make amendments as necessary.
Can you provide advice on our script?
Yes of course. However, it is important to make sure that you are happy with it before signing it off for recording, as post-edit script amendments may incur an extra charge.
Can you provide a fully processed file, with or without royalty free music and/or sound effects?
Yes, just ask!
What forms of payment do you receive?
For new clients and one-off jobs I ask for pre-payment, usually by PayPal, which is very safe and also simple for everyone. I will, of course, provide you with an invoice. I want you to be really happy with the voice over I provide, and offer reading style/interpretation/intonation amendments free of charge, within reason!
So, why use me?
Find out here!
