We are always being asked about how go get started as a Voiceover Artist...
Please bear in mind that there is so much
more to being a Voiceover Artist than having a good voice. Also there is no
such thing as a staff job with a company as a Voiceover Artist; they are all
self employed and also work either as broadcasters or actors or in some other
way in the media field. You don't need your own home studio but it helps (but only if it is a good one.)
Egg-actly the right advice
I once saw an interesting post on a forum that a newbie had complained that the company who made his/her voicereel, gave them the audio file then just felt abandoned. Yes that is what you do - you have to make your own way in this extremely competitive field. You need to think of yourself as a (very) small business. And start marketing yourself.
And this is where most wannabe voice artists fall down. They don't have the time energy and drive to do this. Or real life gets in the way - and they find they can't support a family or pay the rent on what they are earning. With no guarantee that their income will increase in time. It will almost certainly be erratic.
With the continuing downward pressure on costs, the barriers to entry for new talent being lower than ever and more actors and broadcasters trying to get in on the act, as well as new voiceover agencies and voice directories (or Pay to Play websites - commonly known as P2P sites) opening all the time I don't see this improving any time soon.
Plenty of people approach us with good
voices, but they don’t know how to use it. This blog contains lots of useful voiceover advice.
Not such good advice
I am afraid that we are unable to offer
auditions. Your first step towards becoming a voiceover artist is to get a
professional showreel made. This would be your calling card – which you can use
on your website, send to production companies and agencies.
If you do not have a voiceover showreel, we can make you
one for just £299+VAT. This production service is
highly unlikely to lead to representation as we are only seeking experienced
voiceover artists. You can hear examples of our work here;
please get in touch if you would like to discuss showreel production.
Call or email potential clients/producers/production companies and send them your MP3 or CD.
Or use the internet.
You need to get potential producers to hear your reel. You can get your own basic website built fairly cheaply. The hard part is getting search engines to find it and list it within the first two or three pages. This is extremely hard to do for the competitive keywords of voiceover and its variants. So consider using Google Adwords. Facebook also sell ad space. Use Social Media - Facebook, Twitter, Linked in etc
1) Voice Directories. There are lots. Some will work for you; some won't. Some are free - some charge an annual fee.
Here are a few:
Fiver.com Voicerealm Voice Bnny Gumtree VoiceXpress Voice Registry Entsweb Freelancer.com Media uk.com Radio Today Elance.com Vivastreet Star Now Voices.com Voice Bank Voice123 Voiceovers.co.uk Bodalgo Piehole Radio Talent Ukvoices.co.uk Voicetalents.co.uk Peopleperhour.com Voices Pro Casting Call Pro Freeindex Voice Emporium Hotfrog ODesk
2) Voice Agencies. If you can get one to take you on, they will take a cut of your earnings. There is no guarantee of any work even if you do get one. And getting one is harder than you think. Without a few years experience of voicing under your belt this is extremely unlikely.
However you can still make a living without an agent. Many voice artists work from their own home studio. And you don’t have to have ISDN these days. Many producers will monitor you on the phone or skype; you email the completed voiceover audio files after the session.
