Professional Voice Over Services

This is a common and even popular thing to do these days. With audiences increasingly mobile and active, lives increasingly short on time, having text available to listen to, rather than read makes them far more likely to be absorbed.

With books, magazines and newspapers the reader must sit in one place and occupy their eyes and their limbs in order to hold, turn and read pages, for the purpose of simply absorbing the material at hand.

With audio copy, a consumer can be driving, working out, gardening or any other task using their eyes and body freely and, at the same time, take in the materials being presented in the audio format.

One of the most common products of our MP3-player generation are books on tape. Now individuals can 'read' their favorite authors new novel or learn the latest skills through their headset or car or home stereo. And with the popularity of theses audio products comes the popularity of the Voice Actor.

The Voice Talents of our generation can be seen repeatedly getting the staring rolls with the largest advertising companies of our day. Listen to commercials carefully & you will get to know the most popular voices very quickly!

When you begin to think of it logically, you know how important it is for your TV commercial or presentation to have the correct voice behind it. After all, voices are powerful. Even though they often take a backseat in our minds to the way a person looks, without the right voice, looks ain't nothin'. And if the voice is all a person has to go on - for instance, in a radio commercial - then the voice becomes the most important thing in the world.

A person who understands just how to use their vocal capabilities can control another person just by speaking. This is a startling concept the first time you consider it, but when you consider some of the most famous voices in the world, you will understand how true that is. Consider, for example, the actor Michael Wincott.

He's an attractive guy, but of course in the movie industry that doesn't mean a whole lot. Good-looking guys are a dime a dozen. But this guy gets role after role after role based on the power of his voice. He has a voice that can keep you up at night, long after the movie is over, because you're just a little worried that the latest Michael Wincott character may just be lurking in the shadows. Remember the movie, The Count of Monte Cristo? He was the warden with the whip and the gravelly voice. Fans of the movie weren't quite sure which was more frightening, the whip - or that voice. That voice is what gets him work.

Then there's Clint Eastwood. Of course, that unflinching, squinty stare of his is something to write home about. But what do people do when they're pulling off their best Eastwood impression? They give some love to the stare, but mostly they copy the way he said, "Come on punk. Make my day." Like Wincott, Eastwood has a gravelly characteristic in his voice. But once upon a time, he knew where all the pauses were supposed to happen, and that made him something worth watching. He was worth watching because he was worth hearing.

Another actor who understood the concept of using his voice was Marlon Brando. Now this actor had a nasally cotton-mouth voice that, untrained, would have grated on the ear. But he became an actor. He got training. He took something that stood out and made it a trademark. The rest, my friend, was timing. When he said, "I made him an offer he couldn't refuse," as the Godfather, he didn't just say a cleverly written line - he said it with emphasis. With weight. What we are responding to isn't something these guys do inherently. They've had training. Therefore, when they said those lines, the audience never knew what hit them. But they knew that it was important.

Of course Michael Wincott, Clint Eastwood and Marlon Brando won't be available for your project, but they make great models to study when you are studying about how voices affect listeners. You want to use some of the same principals in picking out your voice actor, or in determining whether to use one. You are not the only one with a message for the public. There are thousands of other messages out there in addition to yours. You will have to persuade listeners, and that means getting and holding on to their attention. A powerful voice over can do that.

If you're reading this article, it's likely that you have already made the decision to hire a professional voice actor or actress for your marketing project - congratulations! A voice over professional can add a lot to just about any project. After this decision, however, comes perhaps the most difficult yet essential part of the process: interviewing. Those who have not done extensive work involving voice over may be wondering what exactly it is that sets truly great voice actors and actresses apart from the rest of the pack.

Here are some of the key traits of great voice over talent:

1.He or she has a believable voice. Though there is certainly a place for exaggerated narration in the style of an announcer or newscaster, you're generally going to want an actor or actress who can perform naturally in a wide range of vocal styles.

2.He or she demonstrates a mastery of tone and pitch. It isn't simply chance that makes the voices of professionals stand out - voice over artists work hard to cultivate their vocal styles in order to create a unique and musical effect.

3.He or she is willing to provide you with high quality examples of his or her work. When interviewing voice over talent, it's essential that you obtain a demo tape from each of your prospects. In addition to granting you insight into the quality of a candidate's work, this will help you keep your prospects straight after you're done interviewing.

4.He or she demonstrates the ability to perform in a wide range of vocal styles. During the interviewing process, you will probably ask your potential hires to read from a sample script or scripts of your choosing. Take a advantage of this opportunity and have candidates read in a variety of different styles.

5.The voice over talent can pace themselves. Creating a fluid, seamless voice over takes time, but you need an artist who already has a strong sense of how to pause, speed up, and slow down the message to deliver just the right message.

6.References. Checking into the references that you receive from potential hires is an essential part of the hiring process, as it will give you an invaluable chance to see whether or not your candidate truly is the seasoned professional he or she claims to be.

7.He or she exhibits enthusiasm and vocal stamina. At times, recording a voice is no picnic; lines will likely need to be repeated over and over to get the exact right take. Be sure to pick a candidate that will maintain a good attitude and a strong voice under these conditions.

Interviewing potential voice talent may, at times, feel tedious, but in reality it is a key factor in the success of your project. If you can find a voice actor or actress with all of the aforementioned traits during the interview process, you will save yourself a lot of time and trouble down the road.

Author Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, Minnesota and Has Been Providing the Voice Talent for Dozens of Companies and Agencies Since 1991.