Purchasing a Voice Over Online: Five Tips

Purchasing a voice over online? It is easier than ever to get the perfect voice for your commercial, explainer video, promo, training program, podcast intro, promotional video, YouTube intro, or anything else you may need. Thousands of voice over artists have home studios and can record your text and send it to you over the web, sometimes within hours. It is true that you can save time and money by skipping the middleman of an agency or studio. However, you will need to do a little homework to make sure you don't end up paying for something you simply can't use.

Five Tips for Ordering a Voice Over Online

Tip 1: You Get What You Pay For

When purchasing a voice over online, you get what you pay for.

True professional voice over artists make their living with voice work. Making a living charging under market rates is hard. So, if you find a bargain voice over price, you need to ask the questions, "Why so cheap?" It is possible to get work done at lower than market rates but consider why the talent is so inexpensive. Perhaps you have found a real pro who supplements her income by taking on extra work when she can. Maybe you have found an experienced voice actor trying to break into a new market niche. Or, perhaps someone has found a way to work so efficiently that he can do enough work to make up for low prices.

On the other side, maybe you have stumbled onto someone who just bought their first microphone. Perhaps the person has been at it a while but hasn't been able to master the delivery or production end and can't land decent paying gigs. Or, maybe it is something in between, an experienced voice actor who has just started her own business and is trying to build a client base.

So, how do you know? Your best bet is to pay market rates. If you set your sites on hiring someone in the correct range for professional voice talent, you will be drawing from a pool of professionals. Once you get into standard rates, the difference in quality will come down to budget. The very best, well-known artists will charge far more than going rates, but there is plenty of great talent out there working at the low end of the scale.

There are a lot of factors that go into voice over rates. Check out this page to get an idea.

Listen Closely to the Online Voice Over Demos

Tip 2: Listen Closely to the Online Voice Over Demos

I try to create demo reels that demonstrate the full range of my voice. Some voice actors have seemingly unlimited delivery styles. I think I have about five. Occasionally I will get a new client who, upon hearing their finished audio, asks me to redo it in a way that I simply can't do. Sometimes they are looking for a specific accent. Other times they send me a recording of another voice artist that sounds nothing like me and ask me to replicate. That's unfortunate. Listen carefully to demos before ordering a voice over online. Be sure that the talent you are considering has the tone and delivery you are looking for. If you aren't sure, ask. Most pros will be very upfront about what they can and cannot do.

Tip 3: Write a Great Script for Your Online Voice Over and Make Sure it’s the Final Version

Write a Great Script for Your Online Voice Over

Online voice over professionals have different policies about revisions. Almost any pro will recut all or part of a script if they make a mistake. Many include revisions. However, those revisions are usually offered for when the client wants to try a different delivery, add emphasis to a particular line, or give other creative direction. Not all online voice over talent will recut your script if you are revising the text itself. If you think you might have script changes after the initial recording, make sure the talent is aware of that. They may include it in their price, or they may quote you a price for revisions. Your best bet, if you want to get the best possible result is to make sure your script is ready to go. Check out this post for tips on creating a great script for your next online voice over purchase.

Tip 4: Be Clear About What is Included with Your Online Voice Over

Be Clear About What is Included with Your Online Voice Over

In my early career, when someone paid for a voice over, they got just that. When I was the talent, I would go into the studio, read the copy, sometimes more than once if the producer wanted a different read, get my check and go home. Even when I worked on the production end with talent in a remote studio, they would turn on the recorder, read my script, ask me if I wanted to do it again, then stop the recorder. They would then take the tape, stick it in a FedEx envelope and ship it off.

These days, clients are often expecting edited and processed vocals fully produced and ready to go. Fortunately, some of us do that. I include it in my price, and when someone doesn't need those extra steps, I offer a discount. But not all online voice talent works that way. If you are expecting editing, processing, or any production, be sure that those services are part of the package. Some talent will offer it an additional charge. Some don't do that at all, which is okay, because you can always hire an editor to take care of the rest. Just know what you are getting for the price you are paying so there will be no surprises.

Tip 5: Go With a Pro

If you listen to my demos and my voice is a fit for your project, I would love to work with you. If not, I still encourage you to work with a voice over professional. In my next post, I will offer some tips for finding exactly the right person.

Why a Great Script Makes a Great Voice Over (5-Tips)

Why a Great Script Makes a Great Voice Over

If you need to hire voice over talent for a commercial, video, eLearning, voicemail, or anything else, you want to get the best possible return on your investment. You want a recording that matches the vision you have for your final project. The script you send to the talent will have a significant impact on the quality of the voice over and, eventually, your final project.

Script Quality Matters

Script quality matters when writing for voiceovers.

I read voice over scripts every day. Really, every day. I try to take one or two days a week off, but there is always something that needs to get done or revised in a hurry. The scripts I read are all over the map in terms of topic. The subject itself isn't the most significant factor in delivering a stellar performance. It doesn't matter to me if I am instructing doctors how to use a new medical device, introducing a podcast, or pushing a new car model, the quality of the delivery is tied, not to the topic, but the quality of the script.

Writing for the Ear - Essential for Voice Over

Writing for the ear is essential when writing for voice over.

I can tell nearly instantly if a script has been written by someone with experience writing for the ear. What is "writing for the ear?" You may or may not notice but most of us use language differently when we write and when we talk. With the advent of email and instant messaging, those lines have blurred a bit, but there is still a difference. Many writers that write well for the page or screen have some amount of trouble writing copy that will be spoken out loud. "Writing for the ear," is about writing in a way that will sound right to someone listening.

Clients that send voice over scripts that are not written with vocal delivery in mind are sometimes disappointed by the results. They often wish the delivery sounded more natural, more conversational, or more passionate. While those are things I am trained to do, they are more difficult when the script gets in the way. Sometimes it is made even worse when scriptwriters include phrases that are not usually used in conversation. I also occasionally find word combinations that are nearly impossible to deliver well. Some word combinations will tongue-tie even the most experienced voice over professional. We find a way to get through them but making them sound natural is a real struggle.

So, what you can you do to get  better delivery from your voice over talent. Here are some tips.

Five Tips for Creating a Better Voice Over Script

1. Hire a Copywriter with Experience in Writing for Voice Overs.

If you have the luxury of working with a professional writer, hire one that has worked with voice over projects in the past. If you can't find one, or if you like working with the person you already have, push your writer to learn the difference between writing for the page and writing for the ear.

2. Teach Yourself How to Write Excellent Voice Over Copy.

If you don't have someone to write your copy, learn how to do a better job yourself. There are a ton of books, websites, and even online courses that can help you learn to write better for voice over.

3. Read Your Voice Over Copy Out Loud.

For a better voice over, read your copy out loud.

The best way to understand how your copy will sound out loud is to read it out loud. By "reading out loud" I don't mean read to yourself while moving your lips. Read it out loud the way you hope the voice talent will read it. Sometimes, you will hear, right away, parts that don't sound like you thought they would. This is your chance to fix them and try again. If you come across a phrase that is hard to say out loud, consider revising it. Remember, a voice pro will probably be able to work through it, but wouldn't you prefer instead they spend their efforts on the perfect delivery?

4. Make a Scratch Track.

Especially when a client has something very particular in mind, I like to listen to their delivery. A scratch track is simply a recording of you, or your copywriter reading the script out loud. Most people don't like this because most people don't like the sound of their own voice. But it is an excellent way for the talent to hear what is in your head and not necessarily printed on the page. Inflection can change the meaning of an entire sentence. Make sure the talent knows what you mean.

5. Ask your Voice Over Talent for Help (But Don't Expect them to Work for Free.)

Not all voice over pros are copywriters, but most can read through a script and point out questions or problems. Some (like me) also write copy and can turn your rough text into something ready to voice. Just don't expect the talent to do it for free. It might not seem like much to ask, but the margins for voice over talent are growing smaller and smaller. The time they are working on your script is time they aren't working on another recording or finishing an audition.

If you have chosen to work with professional voice talent, you can expect professional-level results. Just be sure you are giving them everything they need to provide exactly what you are looking for. Time spent dealing with a poorly written script will take time away from producing the best possible delivery. By taking just a few steps up front, you increase your chances of getting what you are looking for the first time.

Try out some of these tips. You might be surprised much better your voice over sounds with just a little effort upfront.