Debbie Grattan

Can You Spot the 14 Voice-Over Mistakes Waiting to Happen?

April 15, 2017 by Debbie Grattan

Your script is written and ready to go. It’s short, straightforward, and simple. It doesn’t contain anything about complicated medical procedures, highly technical computer jargon, or words that have been translated from a different language. You’ve hired a professional voice-over talent to record it, and have about one hour to deliver the finished recording to your boss. No problem, right? Not so fast. There could be plenty of voice over mistakes brewing in even the simplest-looking scripts if the copy is not carefully reviewed to ensure the voice-over actor knows exactly what you want. And we’re not just talking about directions on tone, emphasis, and style. We’re talking about a host of issues within standard copy that could turn a quick VO project into a long and arduous ordeal.

To illustrate the point, I created a seemingly simple script of exactly four sentences – that’s actually not so simple at all. The script is packed with 14 potential mistakes just waiting to happen if the voice-over talent isn’t given a heads up on specific preferences the client desires.

Review This Sample VO Script – Do You See Any Problems Brewing?

Well, folks, we will be having our annual party to celebrate yet another successful completion of our animal/plant life data project! Invites will go out ASAP, and this year’s topic is the effects of caramel on animal/plant life. Neither appeared to mind the gooey substance. Researcher Sinead Linux looked at data from 1996 to 2016 and found a total of 592 different benefits caramel brings to plants/animals (i.e. it prompts growth).

Avoid These Potential Voice Over Mistakes

Mistake No. 1 – “We will”

While the copy uses “we will,” the copy also kicks off with a very casual opening. An experienced voice-over artist may be inclined to keep the casual vibe alive by changing “we will” to “we’ll” for a smoother, more conversational flow.

Avoid the issue: Use contractions if you want a friendlier, more casual copy. Don’t use contractions if you want a more formal tone. Make sure your choice, however, is consistent with the rest of the copy’s tone.

Mistake No. 2 – “Animal/plant life”

Voice-over artists have numerous ways to interpret slashes, and chances are high they’re not going to pick the exact way you want it unless you prep them in advance. This particular slashed phrase could be read as:

Animal and plant life
Animal or plant life
Animal and or plant life
Animal (pause) plant life

Avoid the issue: Skip slashes in VO copy, spelling out what you want said instead.

Mistake No. 3 – “Data”

Do you want data pronounced “DAY-tuh” or “DA-tuh?” The VO actor has a 50/50 chance of getting it right. (Make that fifty fifty! See mistake number 2)

Avoid the issue: Words that have multiple pronunciation options should include the preferred pronunciation within the copy.

Mistake No. 4 – “Use of bold or ALL CAPS”

You put the invitation information in bold as a reminder to yourself to put it on your to-do list. But the voice-over artist read the information with massive emphasis. That’s not what you wanted!

Avoid the issue: Only bold copy or use ALL CAPS if you want voice-over talent to put a big emphasis on the bolded words or phrases.

Mistake No. 5 – “ASAP”

You wanted the VO actor to say “as soon as possible,” but he said “AY-SAP” instead.

Avoid the issue: Indicate within the copy how all acronyms should be pronounced.

Mistake No. 6- “Caramel”

Who says “car-mel,” making the word two syllables? Your VO artist, that’s who – even though you wanted the three syllable pronunciation of “car-a-mel.”

Avoid the issue: Indicate your preferred pronunciation of words that may have regional or alternate pronunciations across the country.

Mistake No. 7 – “Neither”

“NEE-ther” or “NIGH-ther?” Go back four steps to Mistake No. 3. Also, check out the Cambridge Dictionary and listen to British English and American English recordings of how words should be pronounced.

Mistake No. 8 and 9 – “Sinead Linux”

Names can be incredibly tricky to pronounce, especially those that are less common than the straightforward John Doe.

Avoid the issue: Include the pronunciation of any name that’s not as straightforward as John Doe. In this case, your copy could have read: “Sinead (Shin ADE) Linux (LEE necks).”

Mistake No. 10 – “1995 to 2016”

Nineteen-ninety-five is pretty straightforward. Unless, of course, you wanted it pronounced nineteen hundred ninety-five. Or nineteen hundred and ninety-five. The year 2016 also has a handful of variants:

Twenty-sixteen
Two-oh-sixteen
Two thousand sixteen
Two thousand and sixteen

Avoid the issue: Spell out in letters how you want numbers pronounced. This is especially preferred with phone numbers in commercial copy. If you want 2414 to be pronounced twenty four fourteen, write it that way, or as 24-14.

Mistake No. 11 – “592”

Like 2016, the number 592 has at least two possible variations. Five hundred ninety-two vs. five hundred and ninety-two.

Avoid the issue: Same fix as mistake No. 10. Spell out in letters how you want numbers pronounced. And if there is a decimal point used with your number (i.e. module 12.1 or civil code 345.91) – let your reader know if you need them to say “dot,” or “point,” or something else.

Mistake No. 12 – “Plants/animals”

This one can make for a triple whammy. Not only does it contain the bothersome slash, but it reverses the order of plants and animals from how the words have appeared previously in the text. It also changes the previously used “plant life” to plain ole “plants.”

Good VO actors may notice these inconsistencies and switch it back, putting animals first and changing plants to “plant life.” Or they may not, thinking you may have wanted the words reversed and changed for some reason.

Avoid the issue: You already know to avoid slashes. Do the same with inconsistencies with a thorough proofread of your text. Don’t assume the VO talent reading your copy will understand what you mean, just because of it’s familiar usage to you.

Mistake No. 13 – “i.e.”

How should the VO talent pronounce this? Choices include:

Phonetically, as in “eye-eee”
In Latin, as in “id est” (pretty unusual, but you never know)
The English translation of the Latin, which is “that is to say”
The English translation of the Latin e.g., which is “for example” – which is also really what you meant

The Latin abbreviations i.e. and e.g. have two different meanings yet are commonly confused for one another. The former provides more information while the latter provides an example.

Avoid the issue: Clear out the confusion altogether by spelling out what you want said in the copy, omitting abbreviations whenever possible.

Mistake No. 14 – “Use of parentheses”

Parentheses are nearly as annoying as slashes. Do you want the information contained within them read aloud? Or are they just there for additional information?

Avoid the issue: Only use parenthesis in VO copy to indicate a direction, pronunciation or other information that’s not intended to be said aloud.

As you can clearly see, even a short script can turn into a lengthy project with tons of edits, revisions, and do-overs. Avoid the headache by reading all your scripts aloud, with the mindset of a VO artist who is seeing it for the very first time. Clear up anything that raises a question, and you’re likely to clear up the potential for mistakes.

Avoid Costly and Tedious Voice Over Mistakes and Do-Overs

Another way to avoid costly and tedious mistakes is to hire a voice-over pro who knows just the right questions to ask before the recording even begins. With more than 20 years in the industry, I am happy to answer questions or provide a quote for your upcoming project.

For more posts on similar topics, please check out:

“When You Need More Than Just a Voice-Over Actor”

“Voice-Over Narration: Do it Yourself or Pay for a Pro?”

“8 Tips for Directing Voice Over Talent – What You Can Do BEFORE the Session”

Voiceover Career Readiness – A Five Question Quiz

March 15, 2017 by Debbie Grattan

The world of voiceover may be drawing you in with its bright promise of exciting work, big bucks, and loads of fame to come. But like any other industry, voiceover career readiness has a slightly dimmer side that comes with the territory.

If you’re in the midst of making a decision to jump off into the pool of voice-over actors to determine if it’s right for you, you will want to answer these five questions to ensure you’re truly prepared to climb up on that diving board.

The first question deals with an overview of your intent, while the next four gauge your overall readiness to enter the industry by examining how prepared you are to deal with specific aspects of a voiceover career.

1. What is My Purpose for Having a Voiceover Career?

Yes, a voice-over career sounds cool. But that’s typically not a strong enough reason to dive into it with abandon. Here you’d be smart to dig deep to understand what you’re really looking to get out of your voice-over profession. Perhaps you want:

• A full-time career
• A little extra money
• A creative outlet
• A replacement for your existing job
• Fame and recognition
• Impress friends, family, and colleagues
• Achieve success
• Any combination of the above

If your reasons for entering the voice-over arena include achieving success, you’ll again want further clarification. What does success in voice-over mean to you? And how will you know when you’ve nabbed it?

The only way you’ll reach your ultimate goals in your voice-over career is to know what those goals actually are. If you have a solid idea of why you’re getting into VO, feel free to move on to the next question.

2. Am I Ready to Deal with Rejection?

Rejection is a huge part of any type of acting career, so we may as well put this question up near the top of the list. Once you start moving forward with auditions, you may find only one to two percent of the jobs you auditioned for end up becoming a paid booking – and that could be a high estimate!

It’s not uncommon for voice-over talents to send out audition after audition after audition and not see a single job for an entire year. Startling, but true.

The number of rejections you may receive depends on several factors both within and out of your control. Those within your control include your skill level and experience. Those outside of your control include your gender, the competition, (both in volume and expertise), and what the voice seeker specifically wants to hear. It’s a mixed and changing bag that can largely depend on the “mood of the day” of the person reviewing the auditions.

A good word of advice is to try to find someone to hire you at the level and locality where you already are. Instead of immediately pitting yourself against career voice-over talents who have already established themselves and understand the marketplace, look into local production companies, and/or local radio and TV commercial opportunities.

You can also scout out e-learning or narration gigs for companies that need that type of ongoing work, and may be willing to hire someone new at a slightly lower rate.

3. Am I Ready to Go with the Flow, Whatever That Flow May Be?

Going with the flow in the voice-over industry means being highly adaptable to whatever may come your way… And adaptability is a must on several levels.

Every day in your voiceover career is going to be a little different, so you need to be flexible enough to accommodate an ever-changing schedule. This can mean adjusting work hours to meet deadlines, and weekends to meet workloads.

It can also mean adapting your acting abilities to meet the jobs that come down the pike. Are your acting skills savvy enough to play a harried mom one minute and a doctor sharing important medical information the next?

Adapting your budget is another must in the voice-over business. Going with the flow in acting work often means being able to survive when there is no flow of work coming in. Lean periods are typically part of the deal, and it’s essential to have a backup plan so you can still pay the mortgage or buy your kids new shoes.

Even when you establish a good foothold with clients that bring you repetitive work, you need to be constantly auditioning and looking for new gigs, as you never know when that repetitive work may dry up. With more than 22 years in the industry, I’ve seen voice over clients come and go. In some cases, I’ve had accounts that used to pay tens of thousands per year dwindle down to nothing. Not because of anything I did wrong. Business models change. Markets change. Change is constant, in everything, so you have to adapt.

Going with the flow means ensuring the flow keeps coming. It’s always a good plan to consistently bring in new clients while maintaining the clients you already have. It’s also prudent to set up a nest egg in the form of a generous savings account, or other form of investing.

4. Am I Ready to Make Substantial Investments Without a Guarantee of Reward?

Speaking of generous savings accounts, investing in professional workshops, technology, and studio equipment is typically a MUST to get started. A soundproof booth is essential for high-quality results. If you don’t have your own home recording studio, you’ll need to find nearby accommodations. And you’ll also have to adjust your schedule (and perhaps your clients’ as well) to be available when the studio is.

Additional investments of time and effort are also required. Sending out auditions daily, creating professional voice over demos, and learning new skills are part of the deal. Acting skills are one category, but you’ll also need to learn about technology, business, marketing, and trends in all of the above.

The investment of time, effort, and money doesn’t stop once you’re established in the industry, either. There are always new technologies to learn, website updates to make, marketing materials to create, print or email, subscriptions and memberships to maintain, blogs to write, branding to strengthen, and bills to pay.

The adage says it takes money to make money, and this is definitely true in the voice-over industry. But it can also be a tricky adage to follow when there’s no money coming in at the onset of a fledgling voice-over career.

5. Am I Ready to Spend Loads of Time Working Alone?

Many voice-over folks I know end up talking to themselves – a lot. That’s because there’s seldom anyone else around during our workdays, spent in our soundproof booths. While you can certainly interact with clients through phone patches, or attend workshops and industry events that put you in contact with other voice-over actors, and the surrounding community of the VO industry, a good bulk of your time is going to be spent flying solo.

In most instances (unless you’re working with a recording studio that will take your audio and create the mix on their end) you alone are responsible for producing the entire recording, inclusive of creating the vocal sound, ( i.e. being your own director,) editing the final audio, and delivering the final results.

People who are used to being in an environment with a lot of social interaction may be in for a rude awakening when they realize how rarely many VO actors (especially those working from remote-location, home studios) actually connect with the outside world during a workweek. This particularly holds true if you’re not in a large metropolitan city that offers opportunities to record or audition live, or even interact with others, except via email and maybe a quick phone call. The learning curve for voiceover self-direction, not only in the booth but in general solopreneurship duties, is a steep one to navigate.

A Voiceover Career, Ready or Not?

If you’ve clearly outlined your purpose, your definition of success, and your readiness to deal with all the side effects that come with a voice over career, then congratulations! You may be primed to get up on that diving board and take the plunge.

If you remain hesitant about any of the issues, you may want to spend some more time pondering your next move. Strategizing for success can also help, with an honest review of your strengths and weaknesses so you can capitalize on the former and get help with the latter.

Being an entrepreneur with your own voice-over business can be exciting, fun, and terrifying all at once. But it also takes time, money, resources, knowledge – and a good amount of faith. You need to have faith in your abilities, the faith you made a well-informed decision, and faith you’ll be able to go with the flow, whatever that flow may be.

Debbie Grattan has been a working actor for most of her adult life, and a successful professional voice-over talent since the mid-1990s. Check our her many diverse voice-over demos and portfolio of hundreds of video samples to get to know Debbie’s sound.

For more posts on similar topics, please check out:

“How Professional Voice-Over Talents Get Off Track – The 3 Stages of Failure”

“Voice Over Talent Alone Won’t Pay the Bills”

“The Troublesome Plight of the Working Actor (and Voice Actor, Too)”

Changes in VO Styles Over the Years: From Big Booming Voice Overs to a More Natural, Conversational Style

February 15, 2017 by Debbie Grattan

Once upon time, the big thing in voice-overs was that big, booming voice – the very polished, voice-over announcer type, with a strong kind of yelling-at-you delivery and feel. People listened. People purchased. That was simply how sales were made.

As times have changed, so have selling strategies. Most folks are no longer apt to listen to the very polished, big, booming voice – much less believe what it says. People today tend to instead respond to companies that focus on transparency, honesty and being real, with marketing that does the same.

This trend has definitely filtered into the voice-over arena, and has been there for some time. The big, booming voice-over announcer type of sound has been largely replaced with something that’s very casual and real.

So what does this mean?

Is the Big Booming Voice-Over Announcer Style Dead?

For starters, it can certainly mean less work for the announcer types, at least in the lineup of radio and TV spots. In fact, I recently had a discussion with another voice-over talent who has been in the business for more than 40 years. He has a great announcer VO sound, got his start in radio, and used to book two to three sessions a day for decades.

Now he doesn’t book anywhere close to that number. Those voice-over announcer style gigs have become much more sparse and he’s trying to branch out into other areas of voice-over to keep his business afloat.

Louder, Hard-Sell Voice-Overs Are Still Popular for Selling Cars, Mattresses and in Sports

This is not to say there is absolutely no demand for the big, booming announcer voice. Sports announcers thrive on this type of style, especially when their voice reverberates throughout gymnasiums, colosseums and arenas. The style also remains common in several industries. The automotive industry is a prime example. Car commercials on TV and radio still tend to use the big, boomy, hard-sell approach, as do many furniture and mattress stores.

Here are a couple of examples showcasing two differing announcer reads: One pokes fun at the announcer sound in a conversation with on-camera talent, and the other is the “yelling at you” variety. Both are currently on TV as of this writing.

The announcer-type delivery remains particularly popular for local and regional spots. However, a national spot for any major automobile brand, by contrast, may have a much more polished and subdued delivery.

While the male voice typically makes a good match for the announcer-type, booming voice, I have had my own chance to use it on several occasions.

Below are a couple examples that show some of the range I am asked to provide for auto-related commercials. From a typical soft-sell voice-over announcer style that I use for a Ford Dealership, to a more sultry conversational style on a Harley-Davidson dealer commercial. Check out many more samples of other styles on my Automotive Commercials page.

On Being a Voice at the Happiest Place on Earth

One of my more memorable voice-over announcer opportunities was as the original in-the-park announcer for Disney’s California Adventure when it opened in 2001. I was living in Southern California at the time, so the commute was much shorter than it would be if I were traveling from my current home in Michigan.

When the park opened, I was there in person making the announcement for the company president, dignitaries and all other attendees at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. My voice was broadcast over the park’s public address system, in between my pre-recorded announcements welcoming guests, weather contingencies and starting time of the parade.

Over the next few years, I really enjoyed being the “voice of the park” and having friends and relatives ask me if that was my voice they heard while waiting in line for a ride.

Here’s a short clip I was able to dig up from a special event announcer gig at the Disney Park in California. I think this may have been a New Year’s Eve event.

Sending Dreams & Wishes Into the Future

To succeed with the announcer-type voice, it’s imperative to get into the announcer-type mode. As with all voice-over work, you have to really know your audience and speak to them. Announcer-type deliveries must be clear, enunciated and perfectly pronounced. In the case of speaking to the crowd at a Disney theme park, the delivery also required enthusiasm, smile and warmth – since they were, of course, at the “happiest place on earth.”

Both VO Styles Have Their Challenges

While the announcer-type style and the casual conversation style may seem as if they’re on opposite sides of the spectrum, they do share a common challenge. In both cases, the overall goal is to be believable.

As big and booming as an announcer-type voice may be, it still needs some degree of warmth and humanity so it doesn’t totally turn off the listener. The delivery requires an element that characterizes the information as important, and as something the audience wants to listen to.

The casual, real-person read also needs to be believable. It has to sound like a real conversation someone is having with her girlfriend at Starbucks about a place to get a bank loan, or with her aging mother about an assisted living facility (click to listen to some of my conversational demo samples).Here is where voice acting comes into play, with the voice-over artist entering the reality of the moment and actually being that person in that particular situation. Underplaying these types of conversations, and making them believable can be one of the hardest things for a VO artist to successfully accomplish, especially from just words on the page. That’s where the “talent” part comes in. But it’s still got to have vocal energy, billboard client names, come in under 30 seconds, and all the other things that are important in advertising. It’s a tricky road to navigate sometimes.Some modern spots tend toward the snarky and sarcastic, featuring the befuddled mom, frustrated worker or similar roles. The trend is to create a situation of frustration, present the problem – and then solve it with the for-sale-now solution within 30 seconds, and make it all sound perfectly natural and believable. Visit my voice over demos page to hear examples of these kinds of styles.The greatest challenge in these cases may be taking the copy that someone else wrote and truly making it your own. The words need to feel like they came from your own heart, instead of a script sitting in front of you. It seems easy. But of course, that’s why you hire a professional to do the work; since it’s their business to make something quite challenging look easy.Both announcer and conversational voice-over styles still have their places in the world, and no matter how easy and straightforward either voice-over style may seem, both the larger-than-life- announcer and the “real person” require insight, experience, and just the right read to provide the most effective results.Whether you’re looking for an announcer-style or more conversational tone, I would love to help you with your project. Please contact me today for a complimentary voice over quote or custom audition.You may also enjoy reading these posts on similar topics:“When You Need More Than Just a Voice-Over Actor”“6 Reasons People Trust a Female Voice Over Male Voices”
“Voice-Over Narration: Do It Yourself or Pay for a Pro?”

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?”

Looking for Free Voice-Over Talent? Here’s Why You Shouldn’t

December 20, 2016 by Debbie Grattan

While the concept of “free” anything is often attractive, when it comes to using free voice-over talent, the downside risks will usually far outweigh the upside cost savings.

Head into a store, any store, and bring your selected item up to the cashier. Then tell him or her you’d like to have this particular item for free, with the promise of coming back to purchase loads and loads of additional items in the future.

Think the cashiers will go for it?

Not if they want to keep their job.

In fact, you may be lucky if you get out of the store without a personal security guard escort.

But this very scenario happens all the time in creative industries, particularly in the voice-over world. Asking VO talent to work for free is a ridiculous request in the world of business. It hurts their business for obvious reasons, but it can also hurt yours. Still, some companies still ask for it, and some VO actors still oblige.

Why Free Voice-Over Talent May Agree to Work for Nothing

Finding free voice-over talent may be easier than you think, especially with increased competition popping up in every corner of the internet. But you need to be wary of those who agree to performing work at no cost, as not all the reasons for accepting such work may promise exceptional – or even usable – results.

The talent is new or inexperienced.

Nabbing that first voice-over job can be tough. But nabbing that first free voice-over talent gig can be relatively easy. Even if the new voice-over actor has talent, it may be rather raw. And inexperience in the business may leave the final product in a state of incompleteness, or worse. Hiring a full-time pro VO talent from the get-go can save your company time, money and headaches in the long-run. It can also ensure you get the job right the first time.

The talent believes the promises of more work to come.

Even if your company has the honest intent of providing more work for the person if the first freebie is a goody, there is usually nothing binding you to make the promise come true. And if you really look at the deal from the talent’s point of view, additional work from a company that is too cheap to even pay for the first job may not be such a good deal after all.

The talent wants exposure, professional samples.

This reason is not all that horrible, as it’s always a good move to stock a voice-over portfolio with stellar samples of your work. But it also uses the project as a training ground, and if the voice-over talent is providing their contribution to the project at no cost, it can make you wonder how highly other aspects of the project are valued. This could result in a decidedly less-than-stellar sample out of the gig.

The talent thinks that’s the way the industry works.

Yes, even in this age of information, many remain uninformed on the basics of the voice-over industry. Attention clients and talent alike: working for free is NOT how the industry works. Anyone who tells you differently may also have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn.

How It Can Hurt Your Business

If you’re not yet convinced that asking voice-over talent to work for free is not the best route to take for your business, a few more reasons may do the trick.

You get what you pay for.

This adage holds true all across the board. Cheaper services can often mean cheaper results. And you can’t get much cheaper than free. It simply doesn’t make sense to cheapen your marketing or video efforts with a free voice-over talent added to the mix.

You can earn a reputation as a cheapskate.

Once your company is known for offering low-cost or no-cost gigs, a cheapskate reputation can be hard to shake. Even if you up the ante in the future and start paying fair rates for professional services, your name may already be tainted enough for talent to view you with suspicion or avoid you altogether.

You can end paying more in the long run.

A free recording technically costs you absolutely nothing, at least in theory. But in reality you must account for the possibility of multiple do-overs as well as the editing, training and babysitting you may have to provide.

An anecdotal case in point comes from a friend who owns an event planning firm. She’s frequently had to clean up after her unpaid staffers by retracing their missteps, correcting their mistakes and apologizing to business partners they’ve alienated.

She notes it’s easier to hire one decently paid person who knows what she’s doing than deal with nine unpaid people who can make things difficult.

And no matter how many unpaid voice-over actors you may go through, results may still fall flat. Then you have to add in the time, effort and additional resources it takes to seek out and hire an experienced, versatile, professional voice-over talent who would have done it right in the first place.

Your company can end up with lots of bad karma.

Finagling free work out of people is an unethical practice that can even be illegal in certain situations. While voice-over actors can often be legally classified as independent contractors that exempt you from federal and state labor and wage regulations, the definition of independent contractor is a hazy one.

And karma does tend to come around. You may not notice the negative effects right away, but you can rest assured they’ll be on their way.

While the karma idea may sound philosophical, it also contains a major dose of common sense. Bad karma can create a massive drag on your profits:

Abuse customers and they’ll flee as soon as they find a competitive deal
Abuse employees and they’ll jump ship as soon as they can get another job (while the really talented folks will avoid you entirely)
Abuse the community and you’ll end up with protests, boycotts and court cases
Abuse the law and you’ll end up getting caught and punished, no matter how long it takes

It’s tough to be profitable when you’re stuck with fleeing customers, disgruntled employees seeking escape, boycotts and court cases, and monetary penalties or prison time.

One final reason to steer clear of free voice-over talent was mentioned by voice actor and audio producer Chris Mezzolesta. He pointed to the extraordinary feeling you get when you create something fantastic and watch it come to life with an equally fantastic voice-over talent, a creative partner that knows his or her job. Finding that kind of creative partnership with someone with no real stake in the game may not even be possible.

Remember, the voice of the actor is the voice of your business. Treating the talent well will not only make you sound better, but feel better for the long haul.

If you are in need of quality voice-over services at very fair prices, please contact me today for a free voice-over quote or custom audition. Or give me a call and we can discuss the details of your project.

You might also enjoy reading these related articles:

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

“Five Reasons to be Wary of Cheap Voice-Overs”

“The Downside and Dark Side of Hiring Voice-Over Talent on Fiverr”

The Most Annoying Speech Patterns You Hear All the Time Now

November 28, 2016 by Debbie Grattan

So, you probably already know about vocal fry, valspeak and uptalk, right? I mean, everyone has heard plenty of examples of those speech patterns that have made perfectly well-educated college grads (mostly female) sound like Kardashian wannabes.

Vocal fry refers to a low, glottal, animal-like sound that speech pathologists consider a vocal disorder.

Valspeak is, like, short for the way Valley Girls talk that was, like, you know, so big Frank Zappa sang about it in 1982.

Uptalk, a subset of valspeak, is the habit of producing a rising inflection as if you’re asking a question – even when you’re not?

Here’s a new video we created to demonstrate some of the more common patterns you hear today…

To say that all these fad-driven speech patterns are kinda, sorta, well… I don’t know, annoying may seem a bit harsh. But it’s also absolutely true.

The Harsh Reality of Speech Patterns

The use of such patterns do more than annoy the listener. Even if the people indulging in these patterns have an incredibly high IQ, the patterns work against them by making them:

Sound less intelligent
Appear less professional
Seem like a nitwit or airhead
An embarrassment in front of mom, dad or the general public
Unfit for any position that pays more than minimum wage

Despite all the detriments of allowing those patterns to unconsciously creep into your own conversational lexicon, people are falling prey at rapid rates. Some are even doing it on purpose.

One of the reasons the patterns become so widespread, particularly with the current trend of vocal fry, is the feeling of belonging it gives young women. A video on Today explains how it makes the women feel part of a “macroculture.”

If you ask me, I’d rather join a gym.

If you ask me again, I’d also predict the tide will turn and people who drop these phrases will come out on top in the long run. Drop the phrases now and you can think of it as an easy, inexpensive way to outshine 85 percent of your competitors in that next job interview.

The Up-and-Coming Most Annoying Speech Patterns

Being a voice-over talent makes me extremely sensitive to not only the sound of voices I hear on TV, radio and the internet, but also to the words that are chosen. None of these up-and-coming phrases ever appear in scripts that I read for actual voice-over jobs or auditions. They are typically found in unscripted, more extemporaneous speech.

These five speech patterns have become rampant in interviews. My husband listens to a lot of podcasts, particularly enjoying them while out driving or working in the yard. He started tracking the pervasive use of these five patterns of speaking that are appearing in virtually every interview he listens to lately, including on cable news and business channels.

Of course, once he shared them with me, I started hearing them, too.

I’ve already used all five patterns in this post, did you catch them?

1. You know – This phrase is increasingly being used at the beginning of the sentence as a lead-in. This one has been around for ages but, you know, it’s been given new life with a new use you can’t help but constantly hear if you listen for it.

“You know, the best way to find out the answers is to just Google it.”

2. So – So, you’ll also find this one at the beginning of a sentence, namely as a way to “manage” the conversation and sound fairly authoritative (or condescending). It’s become hugely common, even among expert speakers during formal interviews (just listen to NPR while various experts are interviewed). More on that idea here.

“So, what we’ve found in our research is that people tend to add this word as a way to sound informal yet still be an expert.”

3. I mean – This completely unnecessary phrase seems to just be a habitual way to start sentences for many people. I mean, where did this one come from anyway?

“I mean, if it really was a problem that I say that phrase whenever I’m trying to make my point, what difference does it make?” Whatever!

4. … right? – This one comes at the end of sentences, apparently to encourage or sometimes subtly force agreement on the listener. It reminds me of the French who often tack on a oui or non at the end of a sentence, non? It’s hit the English language strong in just the past year or so, right?

“It wasn’t just that the election campaign this year was ugly, right…? It really became a battle of negative personalities in a race to the bottom of common decency.”

5. Kind of (or sort of) – This tidbit is used anywhere in the middle, as a way to not say what you really mean. It’s sort of a way to soften, to be kind of… vague, imprecise and uncommitted.

“Well, if you look at the data, you’ll kind of notice that there’s a trend that sort of jumps out at you.”

You can even mix them all together in infinite combinations:

“Right, so… you know the best way to find out answers is to Google it, right? It’s kind of like way better than going to the library. I mean, how did people even get through the day before the internet was invented! We really owe a lot to the guy who invented that, I mean, really…

I understand these may be hip ways of speaking these days , but they actually detract from the message. They also make the speaker sound less intelligent and sometimes even manipulative.

On those rare occasions when I hear an interview with someone who is profoundly lacking all of these five patterns, it is such a breath of fresh air! I can focus and absorb what they are saying so much more easily.

More common, is hearing someone speak with various combinations of several of these patterns appearing in just one sentence! It’s kinda crazy, right?

Yes, I understand that my fixated attention on these patterns is what is causing me to be distracted. And, like a highly contagious virus, it is possible that by simply reading this post, you too will become afflicted!

Sorry about that, but it’s the only way to bring awareness to this type of conversational disease in hopes that it can be eradicated very soon.

Pay attention and I promise you’ll start noticing these patterns in nearly every casual conversation you listen in on. Even interviews with people you’d think would be trained to avoid patterns like these are using them.

It’s mildly disturbing to me. I hope you’ll be disturbed too. At least enough to curb your own use (and maybe the usage by your kids, spouse and/or significant other).

Oh, and yes, I know I left off many other annoying speech patterns. Like things like “like” because it’s just, like, beyond ubiquitous and you already know about it. Now that you’ve become painfully aware of my top five annoying speech patterns, please share your own speech pattern pet peeves.

Feel free to share in the comments! And please read through the comments for some very interesting insights and observations from other readers.

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