voice over actor

5 Trends Voice Actors and Voice Talent Seekers Should Understand in 2018

April 17, 2018 by Debbie Grattan

The voice over industry has changed dramatically since I first picked up the microphone in the 1990s, and it continues to evolve every year. Keeping up with the changes is essential for voice actors who want to remain successful in the business, and it’s equally important for voice talent seekers and buyers intent on producing projects that continue to have an impact.

Five voice over trends for 2018 particularly caught my attention as I was researching this topic on the internet, so I thought I’d share my thoughts on them below.

Different languages gaining ground, but English still most popular language for voiceover.

More VO jobs are opening up for specific accents, dialects, and different languages. The demand for English with an Australian accent rose by 22 percent since last year, while Spanish is the greatest in-demand, non-English language for voice over work.

Growth in demand for accents:

22 percent: English with Australian accent
12 percent: English with British accent
11 percent: Spanish, Latin American
3 percent: French, Canadian

Even though the demand is rising for different accents, dialects, and languages, English remains the top language for voice over work. If you want to get even more specific, the greatest demand is for North American English with no distinct accent.

One reason behind the rising demand for other languages and accents is the desire for companies to portray a hyper-local feel. Regional advertising in the American South, for instance, may connect more keenly with a Southern audience if the speaker has a Southern accent.

The rise may also be linked to the amount of content being produced in non-English speaking countries to teach English to school children. Voice seekers from other parts of the world can hire voice over talent to help create a myriad of learning apps, programs, toys, games and other projects geared toward teaching English to the world.

What this means for voice actors: Actors with different accents and native languages may benefit from extra work in those categories, although voice training is still an important part of the industry. Being able to remove all traces of any accent is still essential for many jobs.

What this means for voice talent buyers: In English-speaking areas, standard, North American English remains the mainstay. Choosing a specific accent or dialect may connect more soundly with a specific community, but it can also limit the effectiveness of your project for a wider audience.

For voice actors, making an emotional connection is top priority.

No matter how logical you may think your decision to purchase a new item may be, your emotions are what drive you to buy. Savvy marketers have been capitalizing on this fact by focusing on making an emotional connection with the audience, whether it’s with print, images or voice overs.

Videos and ad campaigns are increasingly being designed to engage and communicate with the audience, rather than simply talk at them. Most auditions these days are going for a voice that sounds real and authentic, or “not like a professional voice over actor.”

What this means for voice actors: New voice over talent getting into the business can have an advantage here, as they may not have developed certain habits, like perfect pronunciation or energetic deliveries that used to be more mainstream. Although voices are becoming much more laid back and authentic, developing a real sound that can also cut through with a messages isn’t always as easy as it may seem.

What this means for voice talent buyers: While an authentic voice is one part of the equation for making an emotional connection, it’s not the only part. Seeking out voice talent with a background in acting can be a bonus when looking to make a meaningful connection with the audience. Plus, hiring a voice actor who can offer a variety of vocal styles will give you more options in the recording session, and in post.

Budget is no longer the voice over bottom line.

Voice seekers are looking beyond the budget when it comes to hiring voice talent. The ability to make an emotional connection tops the list of what they’re looking for, followed by four other factors that are more important than budget.

Clients are looking for voice talent who can:

Add personality
Match the brand voice
Reflect the sound of target market
Sound aspirational to the target market

What this means for voice actors: Having the lowest rates won’t necessarily snag you the highest number of gigs. The factors listed above, as well as things like professionalism, quality production methods, and experience, can matter more than extremely low rates.

What this means for voice talent buyers: Voice seekers who continue to make the budget their bottom line may be missing out on important factors competitors are seeking. Being aware of the way voice over work is typically priced can also be a plus. Pricing can vary drastically for Broadcast audio, depending on usage, and the number and size of markets, and for non-broadcast audio, usage is also a determining rate factor, and fees can often be calculated by either word count, or hours worked, or finished audio minutes.

Voice talent agents, unions, and established rates can still work as a guideline, but in recent times, it’s more like the Wild West, where anything goes. Supply and demand play a role, and the buyer should always beware of cut-rate talent and sites. You do generally get what you pay for.

Age matters.

The actual age of voice artists doesn’t matter, as long as they can tailor their voice to align with the age group the client is targeting. And the vast majority of clients are targeting audiences in Gen X and millennial generations. A rundown on the percentage of projects targeting different age groups shows:

54 percent: Gen X
39 percent: Millennials
4 percent: Gen Z
2 percent: Baby Boomers
1 percent: Great Generation

What this means for voice actors: If you can train your voice to align with different age groups, you’ll have more opportunities for work. And there appears to be a lot of work for those with voices aligned with Gen X and Millennials. Those same age groups are also largely at the helm when it comes to making hiring decisions for voice over talent. Voice talent of any age group who can relate to these generations on a business level will likewise have an advantage.

What this means for voice talent buyers: While a voice that resonates with the target audience is important, so are other factors that go far beyond the sound. Look for a well-rounded professional for best results, regardless of the age group that professional may be in.

Real voices still beat out robotic voices.

Even though voice-activated virtual assistants and technology continue to become more commonplace, people are not as gung-ho about using virtual voices. A notable 93 percent of folks who responded to an annual survey pegged the human voice as more powerful than a robotic voice.

What this means for voice actors: You don’t have to fret about losing your job to machines, at least not yet. For me, that’s fabulous news. I wouldn’t mind staying relevant for another decade or so, and hopefully, we won’t fall into the world of AI and computer everything prior to that. Voice actors may also see opportunities to work on projects related to AI and computerized voices. I was recently part of a few projects for text-to-speech, and it’s an interesting phenomenon to see play out.

What this means for voice talent buyers: Real people provide the human touch – and emotional connection – that robots simply can’t produce… At least not yet. Hiring a real person for voice over work also comes with additional perks, such as enjoying guidance from his or her expertise and making your own mutual meaningful connections.

Keeping these trends in mind while seeking your next voice over talent or running your voice over business can help you stay ahead of the crowd. Just don’t get too comfortable with any amendments you make to accommodate them. As with any industry in this rapidly changing world, we can all expect the voice over arena to continue to evolve for years to come.

Resources:

https://www.digitalinformationworld.com/2018/02/voice-over-trends-in-marketing-and.html

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/inside-the-consumer-mind/201302/how-emotions-influence-what-we-buy

When You Need More Than Just a Voice-Over Actor

January 15, 2017 by Debbie Grattan

Some seekers of voiceover talent may say they’re looking for a voice-over actor. But what they really need or expect may be someone who is much more than just a voice-over actor. It’s someone who can do double or even triple duty. In addition to playing a variety of roles in front of the microphone, professional voice-over actors often have plenty of opportunities to don a number of hats behind the scenes as well.

No, we don’t usually wash windows. But we do take on the roles of director, editor, writer, consultant – and in some cases I can even start to feel like an English teacher fixing up grammar and smoothing out vocabulary.

While these duties may not be part of a particular voice over acting job description per se, they tend to come with the territory when you’ve worked in the business long enough, especially when running your own business as a voice-over actor / entrepreneur. And they’re particularly common when you’re working with clients who are new to the scene or inexperienced with live recording sessions and the full scope of what voice-over work entails.

Many clients won’t even realize they need more than just a voice over actor for their project when contacting me for assistance. An experienced professional VO actor will be able to understand some things the client does not know, and will ask questions and offer solutions to situations that the client may be oblivious to until partway down the road of hiring talent. It’s definitely something clients should keep in mind when they’re seeking out talent; being careful to choose someone with experience who can handle all the extras the job may entail.

Your Voice-Over Actor May Also Need to Be a Director

In a voice-over session, the director is responsible for ensuring the session goes smoothly and the results mesh with the perfect sound the client is looking for. Even when I’m connecting my studio to another professional recording studio somewhere on the planet, (via ISDN, Skype, phone patch, Source Connect, ipDTL) and collaborating with the “creative team” on the line, (which could include the audio engineer, production personnel, writers, and the end client, among others) the studio engineer may act mostly as a conduit, leaving the creative team to perform the duty of directing the talent.

And at other times during a live phone patch session, I’m dealing with just one person, maybe the business owner, end client, or even video production manager, who may not be exactly sure what sound they want, and is expecting me to put on my director hat, and use my professional VO experience to interpret the copy as I see best. A voiceover actor can step in here, and I frequently do, by self-directing my own read and delivering a number of options that could work for the audience and script. After asking the client what they desire for the read during the session, I will parrot back to them what I’m hearing in their direction, and I may offer several different takes, each with a slightly different tone and feel.

This kind of self-direction always happens when we haven’t scheduled a live phone patch or ISDN session, and I am just emailed a script and expected to deliver final audio. In this instance, I use my best judgement in understanding what is needed for the vocal tone of the script, and may offer a couple of options as a sample for audio approval before proceeding with recording and editing the entire script.

In some cases, clients not only need help with the overall sound of the voice, but with the entire structure of the recording session. Do they want to record the whole script in one full take, record it in steps, or record a series of lines a few different ways (ABC series) and then review and adjust? It’s not all that uncommon to have to walk some clients through the entire process.

On the flipside, clients who conduct sessions all the time have the process down pat. They detail exactly what they want, how they want it, and provide helpful direction along the way.

Directing skills definitely come from experience in the industry, as evidenced by long-time VO talent and clients who have directed sessions numerous times and know how to get the best results out of each and every one of them.

Editor or Writer

A voice over actor’s editing duties include putting any final touches on the recording before delivery. But they sometimes start way before that point by editing or rewriting portions of the script.

Sometimes a piece of commercial voiceover copy just doesn’t fit, requiring words or entire sentences to be taken out and reworked into the script. And sometimes this needs to happen when the recording is already in session, with edits and reworking happening on the fly. You’d think copy writers and directors would time their copy, either with a stopwatch, or even by word count, to understand what can fit in 30 or 60 seconds, but often, this is not the case. Enough practice at this dilemma has given me a good handle on the word-editing process, ensuring we don’t have to cancel the session and re-book, just for copy changes to the script.

Another time editing and writing skills come into play is when the script is written by someone whose first language is not English. Certain words, incorrect verb tenses or other issues will be apparent in the script, and is something that’s usually fairly straightforward to fix while we’re moving through it. This is definitely where the English teacher part comes in.

While I haven’t been trained as an English teacher, my acting and communication experience has played a huge role in helping me with the editing and writing duties that come up. Strong writing and language skills likewise help me communicate with people not only during a live recording session, but also through email or over the telephone.

Communication skills are essential for running any business in general, and for the VO industry in particular.

An Experienced Consultant

Consultants get to provide insight, input and guidance about the voice-over project at hand, and there can be several areas that could use a little guidance. One area is the audio format type for the final recording; a question that can leave some clients baffled. If I can’t determine what audio format they need, (wav, mp3, ulaw, personal specs) I send them over to the company’s in-house production team or IT or IP person for guidance within their system.

Consulting on scripts is often related to the length, especially with outbound messages for phone scripts or short commercial spots. Some clients may not realize there is only so much copy that can fit into a 30-second spot – and the ear and mind can only take in so much information before the listener shuts down and simply won’t remember any of it.

Instead of outlining every single detail about a product, I can help clients boil it down to the most important points to mention during that 30-second ad or outbound phone message.

One more essential role voice over actors are always playing is that of student. New things pop up all the time, especially in the realm of technology. Experienced VO talent will not be afraid to learn new things – even when those things can initially seem like a real pain – as technology is constantly evolving to ultimately make our lives easier (so they say).

Making the clients’ life easier is the overall aim of any seasoned voice over actor, and most of us will have no problem playing the roles of director, editor, writer and consultant to ensure exactly that. If you’d like me to help you with one of your upcoming projects, please contact me for a voice-over services quote, custom audition or to discuss what you need.

You may also like to read the following related articles:

“A Client’s Guide to Selecting the Right Voice-Over Talent”

“6 Reasons People Trust a Female Voice Over Male Voices”

“Are You Getting Remarkable Voice-Over Service?”

What an Aspiring Voice-Over Actor and a Winky Artist May Have in Common

April 8, 2015 by Debbie Grattan

Remember Winky? Winky artist was just one of many different cute, pencil-drawn animals that my generation may fondly recall appearing in a series of ads in the back of magazines. The ads promised something like:

“If you can draw this, you may have hidden talent as an artist!”

Well, I wasn’t much of an artist back then, but I did my best to copy the drawing, send it for evaluation, and then hope upon hope to win a cash prize. Of course, what I didn’t understand at my tender age was that the offer was just an advertising gimmick to get people to sign up for a home-study art course. It’s tough to remember when we were innocent enough to believe there was a simple, predictable path to follow to have a career as an artist.

So I had to smile when I read the title of this blog post: “8 Steps to Becoming a Voice-Over Talent” Wow! Follow these eight simple steps, and you can be a professional voice over actor. Hang your shingle, start your business, and begin raking in the dough.

While I respect the article’s author and believe he was genuinely trying to be helpful, I have a few issues (four to be exact) with articles that make voice-over careers sound like a piece of cake.

Issue 1: Tricking the Brain

Breaking topics into a small number of steps has become a very trendy way to catch readers’ attention. They’re also prime for tricking the brain into thinking something tough is actually easy.

Since at least half of the human mind thinks in linear terms, divide and conquer is a strategy the mind embraces. And just because your mind is tricked into thinking something is easy doesn’t mean, in reality, it is. A case in point:

Eight easy steps from your couch to the OR, with drill and scalpel in tow!

Issue 2: Misconstrued Career View

The brain surgeon article may appear laughable, knowing it takes a heck of a lot more than eight steps to operate inside someone’s skull. But eight steps to becoming a voice-over actor may seem entirely feasible.

I’m not comparing voice-over work to brain surgery (although let’s face it, the marketing is WAY easier for brain surgeons), but I am pointing out a consistent misconception that views a voice-over career as somehow different and easier than many other types of career paths.

Information is often presented as if anyone with a “good speaking voice” could easily and successfully launch a high-paying voice-over career. Lots of voice over workshop advertisements hype up the career to sometimes dizzying degrees, leading readers to believe they can jump right in and meet with instant success.

Issue 3: The Age-Old Winky Artist Lure

What readers may not realize is many of the hyped-up and easy-step articles are drawing them in with a rickety promise, telling them things they want to hear – and then trying to lure them into voice-over coaching, classes, demo services, or other paid offerings.

Kinda reminds me of the same way “Drawing Winky” lured people into home-study art courses.

Issue 4: Becoming vs. Being a Voice-Over Actor

Finally, there’s a massive difference between becoming something and being something. Following all the necessary steps does not MAKE you a professional voice-over actor — or even a good one. While those eight steps may be somewhere on every successful voice talent’s path, countless other steps may or may not need to be taken as well.

Three Cheers for Reality

Aspiring voice-over actors would be well served in reading articles written by seasoned pros that tell it like it is.

“Hey, this is not an easy profession but if you have some natural talent and are willing to put in the time, energy and money to develop your talent, AND you have the necessary drive and discipline to run your own business successfully (doing everything that entails), then you may have a shot.”

I have read (and written a few) articles that say that, and I appreciate the honesty. More importantly, I hope aspiring voice-over talents take the time to get a balanced view of what is actually involved in ramping up a successful voice-over career.

Why You Need a Pro Commercial Voice-Over Artist for Your Next Commercial

January 30, 2012 by Debbie Grattan

Professional Commercial Voice-Over Artist Debbie Grattan offers her thoughts on the advantages of hiring a Pro Commercial Voice-Over Talent versus someone who is newer to the voice-over business.

.
Being a full-time commercial voice-over artist, I always have my ear tuned to commercials. Whether it’s on tv or radio, I find it amusing how just as many listeners are taking their attention away from the program (as it goes to commercial break), I am unconsciously tuning in.

Living in a relatively small media market in the Midwest, I see and hear a wide range of quality in the radio and tv commercial spots. Occasionally, I say to myself (or my husband if he’s in earshot), “What were they thinking? Who approved that read?!”

Perhaps I’m overly sensitive because I grew up in the monstrous market of Southern California, where nearly every single spot (in prime time anyway) is extremely well crafted. And where radio commercials are perhaps even more important than television commercials in attracting listeners and customers, since capturing the ear of all of those drivers on the freeway is essential. I find that a good commercial voice-over track and script can make up for a lot of subpar stuff that may be happening elsewhere in the spot.

So, choosing a quality commercial voice-over talent and making sure you have a well-written script are of paramount importance when you’re trying to make that strong, positive impression on your audience. This holds true for both radio and television commercials when choosing which pro voice talent to hire.

As I’ve mentioned in other commercial voice-over business articles, there are a whole lot of voice talent newbies out there who have jumped into this business thinking they’ve got what it takes to do this for a living. What they usually fail to realize is the subtlety and nuance involved in reads, and how one little change in inflection can completely change the meaning that is conveyed to the audience.

I find that without some solid acting training and script interpretation skills, it’s very difficult to have the foundation to be able to provide the array of vocal options that clients often want to hear, so they can choose the best take. Most of the time, that foundation comes only after years of experience.

If you’re going to the cost and effort of producing a tv or radio commercial, I strongly suggest you don’t cut corners in the voice talent selection part of the process. The voice talent can make or break the success of your advertising spot.

I know not everyone realizes this. Some people are very visual, others are kinesthetic and still others are auditory. It’s essential to cover all three bases (and look/listen) to your spot from all combined perspectives, to make sure you are sending the desired message on all channels

Debbie Grattan is a professional commercial voice-over artist who has been in the voiceover business for more than 20 years. She’s been the “go to” artist for many production companies and recording studios across the US. Check out her commercial voice-over demos, and request a commercial voice-over audition to hear what kind of quality Debbie can deliver.

Voiceover Acting and the Battle of the Blowers

November 20, 2010 by Debbie Grattan

Female Voiceover Acting Talent Debbie Grattan shares the challenges of recording in a Home Voiceover Recording Studio when outside the leaves are a-fallin’!

At last we are nearing the time of year when the leaves have almost all fallen safely to Mother Earth and the roaring chorus of leaf blowers and lawnmowers has reached its climactic finale.

What does this have to do with being a female voice actress, you ask?

Well, here’s the connection. I live in the Midwest now, where they actually have a season called Autumn. Being born and bred in southern California shielded me from events such as this. I used to think the seasons had more to do with location (you go to the beach for summer, to the mountains for winter) than the tilting of the planet and extreme changes in temperatures.

When you make your living as a voiceover actress, working out of your home recording studio (even a well sound-proofed one), you need to pay attention to things like this because all it takes is one landscape crew on a mission to rid somebody’s yard of every earthbound leaf remnant… Well, you get the picture. It can really mess up a full schedule of voiceover acting recording projects.

I’ve been pretty fortunate this year. The Leaf Gods have been very cooperative with the timing of the “the fall” so as not to interfere with my often jam-packed recording schedule. I live in a neighborhood that has many folks who really like to take care of their property (which is a good thing) and somehow some way, we’ve all managed to co-exist quite peacefully. Sometimes just in the nick of time, with John or Bill (keeping this anonymous) finishing up their cleanup just minutes before I am set to do an ISDN voiceover session. It can get a little nerve-racking at times! Not that I escaped these types of scenarios when I lived in California. I can remember more than one occasion when I sent my husband out to “pay off” the landscaping crews so I could complete a phone patch with a very high profile client.

Last year, my husband (he’s a Lifecoach btw) taught me a little saying (or prayer perhaps) called The One Command, and it can be used anytime you are trying to get a specific outcome and it seems like a bit of a stretch to achieve it. I admit, I used this command few times this fall.

“I don’t know how it is that I have total peace and quiet for this voiceover acting session at 2pm today, I only know that I have that and I am grateful and fulfilled!” Then I would relax and take a few deep breaths feeling the way I will actually feel when that reality shows up just as I requested it.

I was very pleasantly surprised at how well that statement worked most of the time.

So, now I’m breathing a relaxed sigh of relief knowing that the worst of the “noisy season” is behind me. At least until the snow flies and the snow blowers come out of hibernation!

Be sure to also check out a more updated article about this topic, “Voice-Over Actor vs. Leaf Blowers: This Year the Actor Wins” for my present day solution to those pesky blowers.

Debbie Grattan is a professional female voiceover actor who has been doing voice over work for more than 20 years. She’s been a “go to” artist for many production companies and recording studios across the US for several years. Check out Debbie’s Voiceover Acting Demos and request a Custom Voiceover Audition or Quote for Upcoming Project.

VERSATILE

EXPERIENCED

PROFESSIONAL