Why do Voiceover Artists need to know about Intellectual Property Rights?

Today we are going to take a look at rights and here at BigFish Media our voiceovers and their audio productions are our top priority. Ok let’s move right along – see what we did there?

What is intellectual property and why should voiceovers know about it?

In the UK there are different forms of intellectual property rights. They are all individual and have different duration periods. They are all there to help you protect yourself against other people duplicating or stealing your work. The work could be the names of your products or brands, your inventions, the design or look of your products, the things you write, make or produce.  Amongst these is trademark, copyright and what we discuss in a subsequent post will be copyright.

What exactly is intellectual property?

An idea by itself is not intellectual property. What is though, is what you do with it. So for example, it is something unique you create physically. An idea for a film is not intellectual property but writing the screenplay is. I have this idea for a plucky little fish that finds their voice and when I get around to putting pen to paper then it will be intellectual property.

So, who owns what?

There are three areas where IP rights can be owned. Specifically, you own it if you created it (and it meets the requirements for copyright, a patent or a design), you bought the IP rights from the creator or a previous owner, you have a brand that could be a trade mark. So I could have bought the rights to my Fish Story from someone else who either wrote it down or someone who had the rights themselves.

Also note that intellectual property can have more than one owner, belong to people or to businesses and can be sold or transferred.  For example, my Little Fish Story could be owned by me and my fishy friend who collaborated on it, or a team who I wanted involved in it and should events happen that I find myself selling the story then I could decide that a business could own it.

If you are self-employed like all of our voiceover artists are then you usually own the intellectual property rights even if the work was commissioned by someone else.

However, if you sign a contract, then that can change. This is why it really is important to read that fine print. We always check all contracts and NDAs so that you always retain ownership of your audio and we won’t sign our voice talent up to things if they are asking you to give up that particular IP right.

Now, for those non self-employed workers. If you happen to create something as part of your work while you were employed by someone else then you do not hold the intellectual property rights. In our next blog we will talk about copyright for voiceover artists which is an intellectual property right.

I have a Voiceover Agent but do I still need to market myself?

One of the greatest myths in the voiceover industry is that all it takes to be successful and “make it big” is get on a major agent’s roster. There is a lot to be said for working with a well-known and reputable agent but, an agent is not where the buck stops. The most successful voice artists are those who actively employ agent-driven marketing as well as their own.

A lot of talent rest on their laurel’s and say; “I’ve made it now that I’ve got an agent! I never have to look for work again.” Voice Artists who fall into the trap of believing their agents mean they don't have to get their own work are living in a fantasy world.

Agents do create and distribute marketing materials using a variety of the latest technologies to reach industry professionals who might hire you. These marketing efforts are not usually specific to any one talent on the agent’s roster. These efforts exist to bolster the agency as a whole. This is why individual marketing is critical.

Every Voice Artist should take steps on their own to bring attention to their unique skills and abilities with or without an agent! Working in conjunction with and communicating with your agent is crucial to get the best results.

In most cases your agent will even offer their advice when it comes to creating the best possible presentation, and why wouldn’t they? Any marketing you do benefits you both.

If you don’t have a marketing plan, there’s no time like the present. Instead of putting unnecessary pressure on your agent to be the sole source for new clients, try taking a more pro-active route.

Direct mail campaigns, website advertising, newsletter blasts and blogs are all proven and effective ways to promote your voice. Set aside a small percentage of your earnings for a marketing budget to help you accumulate the funds needed.

Then consult your agent, a voiceover marketing expert and other voice talent about where your money is best invested. Don’t try to blanket an industry; chose proven, targeted methods. If your material is well presented and you give your marketing campaign time to work – it will work.

Voiceover Artists are cool

According to new research, conducted by MSN, being a Voiceover Artist is among the ten coolest jobs. 

Working as a Voice Actor, as the Americans seem to prefer to call it, is the tenth coolest job to have. How lucky are we?!    

How does a Voiceover Agency cope without the internet?

Terrific! On Tuesday afternoon the broadband connection to our office went down. Completely. It had been playing up all morning, but then after one of those wonderful “power cycles” to try to solve the problem, the internet failed. Completely.

How can you run an internet-based voiceover business without the internet? Quite Tricky.

Why the phone line (on which the broadband is carried) still works is a mystery to me – and my neighbour – who had the opposite problem a few months back.

After a frustrating call routed via India and a guy instructing me on how to diagnose the problem which involved a series of increasingly bizarre questions, a screwdriver and the BT socket, he gave up and transferred me back to the UK.

Eventually a nice man from BT was promised on Thursday morning who would come out to fix the problem on what the nice woman in Southampton called ” a free visit”. Quite why she was so pleased to speak to someone else in “the south” I don’t know. I was going to ask, and then reminisce about my seven years living there (working for BBC Radio Solent and Ocean Sound/Power FM) and my first ever professional voiceover engagement in Eastleigh, but I decided against it.

True to their word a nice little man from BT turned up today, got out his screwdriver and laptop, fiddled about under my desk and the mass of wires there and eventually diagnosed a faulty filter. He then apologised and said he’d have to charge me for the filter. (That’s fair enough I thought). Oh and for his time. So which bit of the this was a “free visit”?

Still, I am delighted that the voiceover business is back up and running again. Now to that backlog of emails….

How do I find voiceover work?

Sometimes finding voiceover work when you are self-employed can come from the most unexpected sources.

Through a strategy of a good new website, advertising using Google Adwords and a great guy who does most of our search engine optimisation work (to get the website listed high up on the google free - or organic - listings), BigFish Media is now proudly on page one. It's very rewarding and has taken most of last year to achieve.

It is because of all these things that clients find our voiceover services. However, a great source of new unexpected work came through a most peculiar route: My partner had his hotmail account hacked and lost all of his contacts and emails. All of his contacts were then emailed with a link which threatened to do the same thing to them.

So, being the nice guy I am, I emailed all the contacts to tell them to ignore the email and delete it. One of them then returned the email offering me some lucrative presentation training work with an international law firm.

Even for voiceovers, its a funny old world eh?

How do I find a good Voiceover Artist?

What do you normally do when your client comes to you and asks you to find them a Voiceover Artist?

Do you point them towards an agency and let them get on with it?

Perhaps you suggest hiring the voice you hired last time, to save the trouble?

Or maybe you panic about the best way forward, perhaps even by trying to convince them that they don’t need one for their project, and that it’s strong enough to speak for itself?

If any of the above seems familiar then you’re not alone, but it doesn’t have to be quite like that. In the same way that technology has revolutionised the business of making video in the last decade, that same technology has seen a quiet revolution in the world of the Voiceover Artist.

The equipment to produce professional audio doesn’t cost what it once did, and this has meant that more “voices” than ever are working from home studios and marketing themselves either outside, or as well as, traditional artiste/agency relationships. I know because I’m one of them.

Voiceover Artists all over the world now use the internet to find, or attract, work,  whether through their own websites like BigFish Media, or via one of the online casting directories. 

If your client is on a budget, then cutting out both the agency fees, and the time and cost of taking your talent into a production facility with an engineer, could make an attractive difference to the balance sheet. Not only that, but the quality of the finished audio might well surprise you.

Of course you need to do your homework. The lower the bar of entry, the more any profession becomes attractive to those who don’t necessarily possess the skills to do it justice.

But the beauty of the internet is that you and your client can check out what you’re likely to get back before you engage a voiceover talent. You can even ask for a sample as an audition. Most voiceovers will be happy to record a part of your script and deliver it in a format of your choice.

If you get them to do that, then you’ll know exactly the quality of the end product,  including the voiceover artists delivery, technical quality and editing skills.

What should you expect to pay? Well, the price range varies hugely. On some casting sites you might be lucky and pay well under the £250 or so that’s still perceived to be the ballpark hourly rate you’d pay for taking your talent into a studio.

But make sure you do that homework: if you don’t, then that £45 voiceover track that seemed like such a bargain at the time might not turn out to be all it promised.

It’s still true that in voiceovers – as in life – you generally get what you pay for. Buy cheap, buy twice. And if you’re paying £250 for your voiceover artist, but not paying the traditional associated costs on top, that is still a huge saving.

Check that your agreed rate includes things such as preparation time, session fees, studio costs, de-breathing editing and file transfer. BigFish Media will do all these for you.

Check the talent’s policy on re-takes or amendments in case there’s anything that you or your client aren’t happy with. Don’t be afraid to ask for a written quote. And make sure you have agreed any usage fees, if appropriate.

It’s true that not every project needs a voiceover, but the next time that one does, take heart: With a bit of care, and with the help of the internet, Voiceover Artists from all over the world are now well within your reach.

How do Voiceover Agents earn their money?

One of the jobs of a Voiceover Agent is to go through all the voiceover reels that they get sent (mostly via email these days rather than CDs in the post). They then have to choose the voiceover artists, who they think, they can make money from.

The first thing - the very first thing - that you will need is a professionally-produced Voiceover Showreel. 

If you don't have one you will never, ever get a Voiceover Agent. Just because you are presenting programmes or reading news or travel bulletins on the radio or tv, doesn't make you a Voiceover Artist. 

We don't want to hear you broadcasting because our clients don’t want to hear it. They want to hear what you might sound like selling or promoting their product.

There is only one instance in which this is useful - and that is in assessing whether we can make you a voiceover showreel.

Many voiceover agents won't even reply to unsolicited voiceover reels, so do bear with us if it takes a few months to reply. It's hard work - and long hours - running any business and this aspect of the job is a low priority. Don't be offended, that's just the way it is.

Voiceover Agents listen to many Voiceover Showreels from many “would-be” Voiceover Artists and make their decision to listen further within the first few seconds. If they like what they hear on your voiceover showreel and take you on, there is no guarantee that you will get any work -let alone regular work - as a voiceover artist.

The agent handles the details of the booking and negotiates contracts and your fee. Most Voiceover Agents take a 20% commission.

Potential employers rely on the Voiceover Agent as a “filter”; they know that Voiceover Agents are bombarded by people wanting to get into the voice-over business, most of which are not talented enough or ready to break into it yet.

Even as an existing voice talent, it’s still difficult to get a Voiceover Agent; most try to keep their pool of voiceover artists to a manageable size. They will also want variety among their performers; they won't represent a voice or style that they already have. These are the two main reasons for rejection.

However if you cannot break into our represented voices, you could invest in your career by gettting listed on some of the dozens of voiceover directories. 

How do Voiceover Artists train?

It is easy, all you need to do is read out loud and boom! In the can right? Well no. If only our world of voiceover recording were that easy. There is much more to it than that and we take time, a lot of time to reel in voices that will work for you and work well. It is a never ending process and we pride ourselves on making sure our voices are experienced, personable and great at voicing.

The process is long and with good reason. We listen to each reel, meet and greet voices online or in person and record the voice so we can see how they handle direction as well as being in the recording studio.

From our vast ocean of voices we have actors, performers, radio presenters, singers and voices that have a unique quality to them. Each has a place in our portfolio and each brings experience and abilities that make them unique and able to help you when you need a voice for your audio production. We have asked many of them where they learnt their trade and these are the top answers.

1. Acting Background: Many of our voices are actors and many still focus on film, TV or theatre. These voices are great for when you need character work and can bring a variety of intentions easily to each read.
2. Performance Background: Whether it be dance or song, these voices are great at delivering solid reads and if you need singers then we have those for those all important jingles.
3. Radio Background: We have a rich heritage in radio and we have many voices that have worked at national and regional level. They can handle pretty much anything because they've seen it all before.
4. Presenters: These voices have lived their vocal lives in front of audiences or the camera and are great voices that connect quickly to target audiences.

As we meet as many of the voices as we can then we make sure we know their strengths so we can always give you the best voices for your productions. Call us today to book your voiceover artist.

What are the latest Voiceover trends this year?

It is finally summer which means that all the BigFish Media recording engineers sit down to have a natter (well of course we do) about what trends in voiceovers we have seen so far this year. As we record hours of audio from our voices over the year we clearly see patterns of what clients want. This summer is not exception and as we enjoy the heat we drew up a list of what we have heard this year.

1. The youth chatter - this is a style that many of our clients have been asking for lately. It is used to target millennials and talk to them as if their friends were talking to them about cold brew, vegan options (we very much agree with not eating Fishy or his friends) and their favourite new payment apps. We have heard clients suggest to voices that they use a "if you like" intention. As if the voice is a friend but when they deliver the lines the intention is very much "well if you want to, I'm OK either way". This makes for a genuine authentically zeitgeist read with little or no heavy emphasis on anything, not even the brand name, product or service.

2. The genuine article - this is a favoured style of read by our clients. This is when the voice is your friend and is advising you like a friendly voice mother or father about getting a new car, insurance, holiday. They aren't selling it to you, just letting you know about it because they thought about you when they heard about this product. So its a warm fuzzy hug of a read. A genuine voice that cares about you for you.

3. Farewell RP, hello neutral - our clients love to take our British voices and just rub their accents a little so it is less RP and much more accent less or neutral. This is an especially good read when the product is for an international market and they don't want to sound American or British but something more less distinguishable. At times it does mean we have actually used Scandinavian voices as they are hard to pin down to a place aurally.

And there we have it, after considering, articulating and drinking much tea this is what we have heard most in our trend updates. What will the next few months bring for voiceover artists? We can't wait to hear.

How do I prepare for a long voiceover script?

Finally, as a voice actor you get the script and you realise its long. Really really loooooonnnnnggg! When a script is this long how do you use your voiceover skills to ensure you get through it all?

Many times scripts are written for visual effect rather than audio - we can always tell when this is the case. It means that sight reading and plenty of breaths are the key to get your through it all. Then there are scripts that keep on going and going and going with no punctuation in sight.

• Learn how to breathe: Why is it important in the voice over world?  We need to breathe to give us enough breath to get through those tricky sentences/paragraphs so that the sentences make sense and it doesn't become too breathy. There are many exercises that you can practice so you can achieve optimum breathing capacity for narration. You need to do diaphragm exercises daily to keep it in top condition, because like anything if you do not use your diaphragm properly on a daily basis then your muscles will lose their ability. You need to breathe deep down, not just short breaths but deep breaths feel those lungs fill up. Try not to lift the shoulders but focus on your belly expanding moving in and out. Count up to 5 breathing in  then let the air slowly out, then 10 etc doing this for a good few minutes if you find it helpful focus on a spot on the wall. When you are in the booth remember your exercises and when you come across those tricky sentences use those muscles in your diaphragm. They will get you through.

• Twist your tongue: Whilst you are in the booth or before you go into the booth, make sure that the voice is properly warmed up too. Use tongue twisters- our favourite of course is about fish "Fresh fried fish, fish fresh fried, fried fish fresh, fish fried fresh." Give your mouth a good work out and stretch it out by making exaggerated smiles that make you grin like the Joker. 

• Read the script: Before you go in the booth, sit down, digest and understand what you are trying to say, who you are talking/selling too. Find the important words you need to highlight in your script and underline them and mark the pauses.  It is your time so use it wisely. Settle down make sure you have water available and don't rush through the script and if there are words you don't know how to say or understand ASK. RELAX, take a deep breath and away you go. MOST OF ALL ENJOY. Because if you are enjoying reading it out loud your audience will. And that could make a voiceover artist out of you yet.

What happens in a Voiceover recording session?

Over the past 15 years we have worked on hours and hours of audio and produced audio projects for clients ranging from corporate videos to fun commercial sounds and even long form narrative video game content. With a team of six sound engineers we pride ourselves on being able to bring copy to life. But how do we produce this audio using one of our many voiceovers on our books?

Firstly we look at the script and ask what the client wants in terms of a voice. They can either have some suggestions that fit in with their brand ethos and we can shortlist a selection of voices to that. Or we can supply demos when a client wants to listen to hear what different ages and voices would sound like to specific copy. We also tend to cast voices when a client leaves the decision to us. We read the copy, understand the clients target audience and then make a selection of the voices based on those choices.

Once we have an agreed and signed off script as well as a signed off voice we check in with everyone's availability. We love having our clients listening in on sessions and directing if they want to. We encourage them to listen in as we feel that it gives a better experience and a better final audio product at the end as they are listening live and can ask for safety and other takes as well. Our engineers are also skilled directors and can encourage the voices and speak their language so that clients get the best performance from them.

Once the session time and date has been agreed we ensure that our equipment and studio is ready for the voice. To voice copy is hard work. Recall presenting in front of people or talking for long periods. That is similar to working in a voice over studio. We ensure we make the voice as comfortable as we can with water, regular breaks and a seat should they need it. We set the microphone and video to the height that the voice over artist needs as well as ensuring all parties have the correct copy of the script.

Once in a session we take the time for the voice and client to get to know each other and then talk to the other one so they understand the style, tone and pace. After a demo take we go for a full take and record each take. We have delivered projects that have all the takes so that the client can have many options or in some cases we deliver the winning takes as the client wants one final finished product. Either way we can deliver.

The use of the voice over track really emphasises what a client is trying to promote, be it a brand, project or service or procedural process. We love audio and we encourage all our audio clients to work with our voiceovers for a unique audio production. Please get in touch to book.

How do Voiceovers deal with Audition Anxiety?

As a voiceover artist auditions are part and parcel of this freelance life. However auditions can be a nerve-wracking process. It can seem like you submit hundreds of auditions, and never get a role! This may be true, but it’s more likely to be appear to be worse than it actually is. This is what we call “Audition Anxiety”, and we have some techniques to get through it.

1- Confidence

Auditions are similar to job interviews. You are trying to convince someone (agency or even the end client) that you are the best fit and voice for the role. Being confident brings conviction, which adds psychological weight to your performance. The confidence shows you are also used to the process and are a professional. In short; you’re actually more likely to get a role when feeling confident than you would if you approached the audition with NO confidence.

2 - Prepare

“Fail to prepare – prepare to fail”. To give yourself the best chance of getting a role, it pays to be on top form. Vocal exercises and techniques will help keep your voice in good condition, and getting familiar with the script will help your understanding, and help you perform it. Think about the script and the context and nuances behind it. What is the point of it? Additionally, you’ll get the additional psychological benefit of FEELING prepared from doing these exercises too.

3 – Persistence

Auditions are an inevitable part of being an actor, particularly if you’re just starting out. So, it’s more than likely you’ll be one of several people auditioning for a particularly role. You can’t win them all. But don’t lose faith. Remember the old adage, “throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick”.

We can ask our voiceovers to submit demos and auditions free of charge once you have let us know your criteria. Please get in touch to hear our voices for your next project. 

How do Voiceover Artists look after their voices?

Ah once again it is that time of year again. Back to school, the summer holidays a memory and it might almost be time to turn up the heating thermostat. We are busy preparing the decks for the autumn business and ensuring that our voiceovers are in tip top condition.

With over 2000 voices on our books and the approaching cooler weather here in the UK we felt a run down of how to look after your voice would be a good plan. In summer, the heat and light is a rather welcome blessing after the cooler spring months. However now as we head into autumn, what should you do to ensure your voice stays in tip top condition?

1. Drink warm but not hot drinks - warm/tepid/lukewarm drinks such as lemon and ginger tea, throat coat

2. Vocal exercises - ensure you keep exercising your vocal cords and mouth with articulation exercises

3. Layers - many studios will be cool to start a session but as you are in a small room exhaling hot air while narrating then its likely to get warm to toasty. So scarves, layers, jumpers, shirts etc are your firm friends.

Keep well ahead of the autumn and when you want to book our warmed up voiceovers then please get in touch.

How do I improve my Voiceover skills?

Being a professional voiceover artist is a talent, gift and a skilled profession. We are proud to represent and work with highly skilled and talented voice over actors on a daily basis. Many have trained through an acting or presenting background while others have worked in radio for decades. However the main thing is that all of our voices love what they do and enjoy working.

Some of our voices have been on our books for years and are solid bookers, working daily. Others are new and fresh to the voice over industry. Many are in between. What they all have in common is that they take voice work very seriously and many train or retrain year after year. What are the best options to improve your voice skills?

The main skills necessary for being a professional voice over artist include;

1. Sight reading – reading copy and understanding the context is key and with scripts changing up to and including in a session, sight reading is a really valuable skill to have. Practice, practice and practice.
2. Vocal exercise – like any other job that requires physicality ensure your muscles are in good working order. Train and understand and appreciate your working voice box and how to warm up, work and cool down. Become a guru of voice exercise.
3. Listen – yes while talking is the job, actually a fair part of it if not more is listening. Do you listen and hear your own voice and what it can do? Do you listen and understand and then act on what the director says? If not, then get working on this. Listening and opening your eyes and ears and not just your mouth will really help your vocal skills.

  

All our voiceovers are used to understanding context and working on upskilling themselves every day. Please get in touch. 

How do I become a Voiceover Artist?

Simples – its simply speaking isn’t it? Actually it is as simple and as complicated as that. Our 2000 + voiceovers are skilled in all manners of speaking and in many languages as well.

But how did they become voiceover actors and be on our books? Yes speaking and speaking with confidence is part of it but we have a list of skills you need if you want to be a voiceover artist. These are essential in our field of work.

Sight Read – learning to read copy that you are given at the last minute and to read it fluently and conversationally is a real skill. Practice this daily, read social media posts, news headlines, newspaper stories out loud every day.

Listen - Taking direction is a huge part of being a voiceover talent. Accepting and understanding that the voice is part of the creative process is crucial. By listening, pausing to interpret the direction and then speaking is a true mark of a voiceover professional. 

Understand your voice - Where do you fit in the voice world? Know thyself and your path will be clear to discuss what your voice can and can't do with producers and casting directors. 

Patience - Be very patient, adverts, IVRs, audiobooks, video animations etc  need a voice. One day it will be yours. Also in a session things can take time, software and cables are involved and many directors as well so having a place where you can practice patience is important.

Be Nice - People work with people and they work with people they can go down to the pub with at the end of a session. So please be sweet and nice, you'll probably be back for a repeat session. 

All our voiceovers at Big Fish Media are chosen to join the big ocean of voices. Each has talent, experience, professionalism, a great voice and are great people.

How does a Voiceover Artist look after their voice?

We love nothing more than tackling a voiceover script bringing the words to life. Some days are long and after narrating thousands of words, it can be like a marathon. And that takes time, dedication and patience to get to that level.

Voiceovers are athletes, vocal athletes and like all athletes they take care of themselves holistically ensuring their physical and emotional well being are in tip top condition. Many voiceover jobs are long and even the short ones can become long if take after take is required. To meet the highest standards of narration all of our voices ensure several areas are covered.

Drink water – plenty of water, speaking is very drying to the vocal folds, voice box and mouth in general. By drinking at least two litres of water a day ensures the mouth is lubricated and avoids dry and sticky mouth sounds. When its hot as it has been recently then drink more and keep cool.

Learn to breathe – In and out, in and out and I bet you didn’t even notice that you are doing that all day, everyday. But voiceover talent know how important it is to actually breathe for the sentence, phrase or paragraph they need to record. Learning to breathe will ensure the voice will pause appropriately making a cleaner and also easier to edit read.

Articulation exercises – practise these daily, in the warm steamy shower first thing. The exercises will ensure that your tongue, vocal cords and mouth are stress free and ready to wrap themselves around word shapes easily without straining or stressing you. Releasing the tension in your tongue ensures a more fluid read.

Look out for your eyes – ensure you go to regular eye appointments. Reading long form narration in studios in dark or even bright light can make them tired and sore. Takes eye breaks and get some sleep to ensure they rest fully.

Check your ears – yes they are also connected to your breathing and vocal elements so keep them clean and watch out for them as well. If you can’t hear direction properly the director won’t be pleased.

When you need professional voiceovers, do get in touch. 

How do I write a Voiceover Script?

Despite it being hotter than Hades out there and in here currently, Big Fish Media, The UK’s premier Voiceover Agency, has been busy working on some very fun audio projects.

The team have been schooled in copywriting over the years and over the past few months we have been working with clients old and new on refreshing and reworking their content.

With over 2000 voiceovers on our books we have worked on all sorts of audio projects. All of our voices are hand picked and put through their paces. They are experienced, professional and able to take direction. This month we took on some new clients who loved our voices and how conversational they are.

We’ve been busy writing scripts as well as tweaking clients copy. Does your script for your video animation need to be written? Or does your next TV Commercial need to be voiced and produced? Over the years we have written content and providing the voice actor to that audio production.

We have picked up a few copywriting tricks over the decades working with content. Take a look at the list we have;

1.        The Rule of three – The holy Trinity of all content. The trio concept always emphasis a point and hammers home facts. 
2.         Kiss – Keep it short and simple, yes it is that simple. Long and over-complicated sentences cause audiences to turn off and let their minds wander away from your brand, product or service.
3.        Cut, cut, cut – content always ends up being too long. Less is always more. Be ruthless and understand that the narration is an indication and not a lecture. 
4.        Audience – who is the content for? It makes a difference to language and words when you need to communicate a brand/product or service to a young audience vs an older audience.
5.       CTA – Call to Action – Every script needs to have a call to action to bring it all together and ensure that the target audience does exactly that…take action.

Our voice talent have decades of experience reading copy for voiceover recordings. They are highly trained and know how to deliver lines to suit the copy's needs. Please get in touch with us when you need your own voiceovers.

How do I Record a Voiceover Audition?

We often get asked by various clients if we would provide demos to them. Our voices are speedy and as many of them record voiceover jobs daily morning, noon and night then we are more than happy to supply our clients with demos.

But why do they need a demo? Many clients know about our voices and have heard their reels. The varied voices on our books often have several reels showing off real voice, from corporate and explainer narration to commercials to video games and narration long form.

These voice actors are highly adept at reading a script and recording a few lines. It takes real skill to sight read a few lines with no real idea of the context and only bring content to life. Our 2000 voices are picked because they are experienced and know how to perform and take direction.

When our clients give us copy and ask for a demo we select voices that we know will work well for them. In order to nail the job from a demo audition read on to see what we suggest;

1. Confirm receipt of the email; often demos take a few hours to days to collate depending on the voice requirements that have been requested. We prefer the voice to confirm they have received our email demo request and preferably send it back by receipt!
2. Record one clean take; the end client is just listening for your voice and how it fits into their large marketing mix so one take and you are good to go. The clients know that they will do various takes in a session anyway of different emotions so the demo is simply to hear their lines in your voice.
3. Dropbox or email; ideally the voice pops it into dropbox so that the client can just send the links all together.

1. To produce or not to produce? Some voices do production and often will do takes with production. If you prefer this as a voice, please do but please always send a raw version as that is what the client is after.
2. Patience; Choosing a voice client side can take a while due to many circumstances. Our voices are patient and understand that it can take a while for projects to get off the ground.

So, if you need one of our voiceovers and you are after a bespoke demo then please get in touch Our ocean of voices would be happy to help.

How do I get the best performance from a Voiceover Artist?

Today we had a fantastic session with a client and voiceover artist. Maybe it was the stars being aligned, maybe it was the summer weather or maybe it was a collaboration with all parties completely on board with the objective.

The session was like any other session here at the Big Fish Media HQ. The client had sent the final signed off script over a week before and on checking on the voice actor's availability booked them.

When the time came, the voice-over was in the booth, already prepared with script and annotations in the margins. They had read the copy and understood the emotional position, the pivot point and the aim of the copy.

Being able to lift of all the nuances of the content and convey that to an invisible audience is quite a talent and one that our voices are able to do with ease.

The client was also on hand and understood the copy and what they needed from the voiceover artist. They had written the copy so that it made sense to speak and had directed sessions before.

As with every voice over session, our duty engineer asked the client to go through the aim and objectives of the video production so that the voice would understand the voice over genre.

Despite a technical script both client and voiceover developed an emotional intention that was perfect for this job.

Why was the session such as success ensuring both voice and client were happy with the results?

1. Timely and Signed off Scripts : In this way the client can be sure that they have the final version which is necessary for the voice to practice with. Too many changes late on mean that everyone gets confused and mark ups can lead to more confusion.
2. Voice actor talent : Quick to inform of their availability and as they are both talented and professional, they know how to prepare for a session, with breathing exercises as well as sight reading skills.
3. Client communication : The client understood how sessions work and what words and emotional stances the voice needed to hear to place their voice in that role.

The result? A great session with all the takes the client was after in the time they needed. The voice over was happy as they were able to add in their years of experience of this technical subject and know how to elevate the copy from just reading to story telling.

If you would like to have one of our voiceovers to engage your target audience with your brand, product or service then please contact us - we would be happy to help!

Why should I use a Voiceover?

Lately we have had such an avalanche of jobs that we took some time to sort the scripts out. When we checked them all we found an encyclopedia of information.

Our voiceovers have narrated everything from financial forecasts, animal antics and even the Changing of the Guard as part of a London Tour. We love getting such a variety of copy.

This month alone our voiceover artists have been leaders of industry, Mindfulness Managers, Automobile agents and so much more.

As we sort through the pile of scripts we have information that not only would stand you well in a pub quiz (Do you know the century when the concept of Emotions was documented?) but information that expands your mind.

Our voiceover actors acknowledge the importance of the words they read out loud, knowing that it will be for an audience that has to connect directly to the information in front of them.

From blockchain arrangements and medical marvels, they each know that what they say must be understood by the listener, conveyed with the correct emotion. It ensures that the audience engages with the visual, text and product.

We have seen pretty much everything in our scripts and we have learnt a few things about the information in scripts. With this in mind we felt a rundown of the best 5 things we have learnt from the copy we have seen:

1. Omnipresent Voice Actors: We have voiced pretty much every single industry, product, brand and service. Our voices can be heard globally
2. Expect the unexpected: Either a script will be changed at the last minute or words may be asked to be said in a different way than you are used to, simply to cover all option bases.
3. Pivot Points: All copy will have pivot point from a serious message to fun and/or back again. Content usually turns on a penny and so the voice must be able to see this and voice accordingly.
4. Check copy: Always check that the script is the correct one before a voiceover session. Our voices can sight read but it is always best to give the voice a chance to read the lines, especially if they are verbose and using technical language.  
5. Information: Copy and content are there to provide information, to tell a story, to get a message across. As the audience is made up of multi learning methods (visual, audio, kinaesthetic etc) then give them as much help as you can. Include both text, visuals and audio to ensure you touch and engage them on the level that works for them.

We find it incredible that content in the right context can make words jump off the page and engage consumers. To choose your next voiceover for your audio project then please get in touch.