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voice over narration

Narrator’s Voice App Proves How Valuable Voice Over Can Be

Narrator's Voice App Proves How Successful Voice Over Can Be

From ghost hunting to finding where you parked your car, there seems to be an app for just about everything. Thanks to the Narrator’s Voice app, this also includes adding a narrator’s voice to your messages or online videos. While the Narrator’s Voice app appears to be mainly geared toward having fun, its huge popularity still proves how useful voice over narration can be.

What’s Up with the Narrator’s Voice App?

Created by Escolha Tecnologia, the Narrator’s Voice app lets you create and share amusing messages using a narrator’s voice of your choice. Simply speak or type a message into your smartphone or other digital device, then choose the language, voice and any special effects for the app to use.

The end result is a customized narration of your original message, which you can share as desired. And people are sharing it in droves. The Narrator’s Voice app boasts more than 5 million installations, along with more than 375,000 five-star reviews on Google Play alone. The app is also available at the Apple Store.

Millions are using it, and many are thrilled with it, confirming that voice over narration can be a phenomenal addition to any number of projects.

Voice Over Narration Projects

Videos are one of the hottest projects for voice over narration, letting the narrator explain or comment on whatever’s happening on the screen. In fact, many people have been using the Narrator’s Voice app to add audio to their YouTube videos, giving them a distinct voice that enhances the overall video’s vibe.

Voice over narration can be equally successful when used with still images, slide shows, e-learning projects, or anything else that could benefit from useful commentary or clarification.

Using a Narrator's Voices has many benefits with videos

Voice Over Narration Benefits

Voice over narration is ideal for a number of projects, and it likewise can bring on a number of benefits.

  • Provide additional details: Pictures may be worth a 1,000 words, but they may still sometimes need additional clarification. Voice over narration can not only provide additional details that may not be readily apparent on screen, but it can direct a viewer where to look or what to look for in any given scene.
  • Enhance the mood and tone of the project: A happy video or project can become even happier with a peppy, energetic voice, while the seriousness of a somber project can be fortified with a solemn one.
  • Entertain the audience: Voice over narration containing amusing opinions, humorous observations, and thought-provoking comments can add another layer of enjoyment to the project.
  • Maintain your overall company style: Brands are built by sticking with a distinct style, and voice over narration can help maintain that style by featuring just the right voice that embodies your brand.
  • Bring the project to the next level: While videos on their own may be intriguing, you can double their impact by adding audio. Voice over narration, either on its own or accompanied by appropriate background music, can make a project truly shine.

Narrator’s Voice App (Narration App) vs. Narration Human

Even though the Narrator’s Voice app is meant for fun, it may be able to provide some of the same benefits. Yet it still couldn’t bring the personal touch to a voice over project that only a real live human can do.

Unlike apps, humans can instantly and seamlessly provide subtle changes in tone, pitch, volume and other nuances that add unmistakable finesse to any narration project. Hiring on a human also gives you a chance to incorporate any feedback or suggestions a professional voice artist may have for further improving the overall project.

That doesn’t mean people shouldn’t have loads of fun with the Narrator’s Voice app, but it does mean you may want to look beyond the app for the most professional voice over narration results. It also means we voice over artists probably don’t have to fret that an app will soon be taking over our jobs.

Looking for a real live human for your next voice over narration project? Please contact me today!

7 Biggest Voice Over Narration Mistakes that Clients Make

Voice Over narration mistakes can be very costly to clients

With projects that include everything from e-learning courses to corporate videos, voice over narration is hot. What’s not so hot, however, is the lineup of mistakes some clients make when creating a voice over narration project. Voice over narration involves using an off-camera narrator to provide information or commentary on what’s happening on the screen. While the concept is fairly straightforward, there are a handful of ways it can go wrong. Check out the biggest voice over narration mistakes I’ve seen during my 22+ years in the industry.

Trying to DIY 

Some clients may feel voice over narration can’t be all that difficult. After all, the person speaking doesn’t even have to appear on camera. All the narrator has to do is say a few words and it’s done, right?

While that could be the case if the company just so happens to have the proper production equipment and experience, it’s usually not. A DIY voice over narration project typically sounds, well, like a company tried to do it themselves. The audio settings and timing may be off. Editing may be choppy or nonexistent. The file may not even be in the proper format for use with the overall project.

Hiring a professional voice over talent comes with professional production assistance, a surefire way to end up with professional results.

Putting Low Cost ahead of High Quality

Trying to cut corners by using your own voice is another faux pas. Even if the receptionist sings in the choir or the CEO gets premium payments for speaking gigs, attempting to save money with an inexperienced narrator can end up costing you big time.

The voice in your project does more than just relay words. It becomes the voice of your company. Those that opt for anything less than a pro may not understand the importance of branding and the first impression using a professional voice over artist can make.

Choosing the Wrong Voice

Even when a client goes with a professional voice over talent, the voice can be totally wrong for the project. Not every professional voice will align with every single project. Annoying voices can be a turn-off for any project, while others may not be suitable for a particular topic or use.

You don’t want a loud, booming voice talking about a delicate or sensitive subject, for instance. A perky, high-pitched voice is probably the wrong choice for a project related to serious matters, while a monotone, flat voice is likely to put your e-learning audience to sleep.

Narration voice over pacing is critical to keep audience engaged

Not Setting the Right Pace

The pace of the narration also needs to match the project at hand. Certain projects, such as medical narration or e-learning, typically require a slightly slower pace to give the audience time to absorb the information. Yet it still needs to be fast enough to retain interest. Pace is an integral component in voice over narration projects, and experienced actors tend to know how fast or slow to go for your target audience.

Using the Wrong Tone

Would you trust a happy, peppy voice that’s explaining a serious medical procedure? Feel like hopping on a plane to a travel destination if it’s being explained by a ho-hum voice? What about enjoying your e-learning experience that’s narrated by a haughty, snarky voice? All three are just a small sample of examples of using the wrong tone.

The tone of voice contributes to the overall mood of the project, and you don’t want one that turns off or offends your audience.

Failing to Ready the Script

Just because a voice over narration script is written doesn’t mean it’s ready for action. Before the script lands in the hands of the voice over artist, it needs a final review. This includes proofreading for copy errors, grammar and potential timing issues. It also includes specifying pronunciations of numbers, unusual proper names, words with more than one pronunciation, and unfamiliar or highly technical words.

Not Providing Proper Direction

While the most experienced professional voice over artists may be able to discern the ideal way to read a script, you still want to make sure her ideas align with your own. For best results, clients need to give proper voice direction as to style, target audience and usage.

A phone patch session can be extremely useful to allow clients to direct voice talent in real time and make 100% certain they get exactly what they want in the final recording. This avoids costly re-records which usually waste time and money for both the client and the voice talent.

To ensure your voice over narration project makes the greatest positive impact on your audience, it’s crucial to avoid the biggest mistakes. And avoiding those mistakes is certainly easier with a professional voice over artist by your side. Contact me for a quote or to request an audition today.

What is Voice Over Narration? How Much Does it Cost?

Voice Over Narration: What is it and how much does it cost?

Voice over narration is the process of using an off-camera voice to explain something to the audience. While voice-over narrators typically remain unseen and are not part of the action you may be witnessing, they do provide important commentary pertinent to what’s happening on the screen. Voice over narration falls into a different category than commercial voice overs used for advertising or broadcast, but it can still be used to sell, market and promote. It can likewise be used to explain, instruct, teach or otherwise provide information.

Web videos are one of the most common projects that use voice over narration, particularly videos created by companies to achieve any number of goals. Corporate narration can include videos produced to provide information about:

  • New products or services
  • History or philosophy of an organization
  • Using a specific product, service or internal company process

The narration can be geared toward company employees, volunteers, vendors, contractors, clients, customers, prospects or the general public.

Corporate Examples of Voice Over Narration

The popularity of online videos continues to surge, accounting for 73 percent of all consumer internet traffic in 2016. Cisco predicts that number to grow to 82 percent by 2021. That makes videos an ideal medium for content marketing.

Videos offer content that’s both naturally engaging and easy to absorb, providing the audience with a quick and interesting way to learn more about a specific company or topic. Examples of voice over narration in videos include those used to:

Other types of voice over narration can focus on specific niches, such as medical, health and technical narration, e-learning narration, and explainer videos. I’ll definitely get into more details on these types of voice over narration in subsequent blog posts, so we can keep the focus here on a general overview.

Understanding Voice Over Narration Costs and Pricing Considerations

How Much Does Voice Over Narration Cost?

 As with any other project in the voice over industry, voice over narration rates take multiple variables into account. While there’s no one-size-fits-all rate for voice over narration, the standard rates for corporate or educational, non-broadcast voice over narration range from $275 to $1,700 for a project that’s up to five minutes long. The price typically includes editing of the dry VO, for a clean audio narration, but does not include mixing with music, video or other sound effects, unless the VO talent has facility and library to offer such services.

Non-broadcast means the recording is not going to be used for radio or TV, which is where web videos would be classified.

As you can see, there’s a notable difference between the high end and the low end of scale. That’s because each project is different, with a number different factors to consider.

When I’m pricing a voice over narration project, I typically start with my standard rate per finished minute (pfm) of recording, along with the minimum a project would cost.

  • Starting point: $50 per finished minute, with $275 minimum

Voice over actors charge a minimum rate for each project, regardless of the length, to cover the time and effort involved in setting up the session, script and performance preparation, file export, clean up and delivery. These efforts are the same for each project, no matter how long the session lasts.

Voice Over Narration Sample Quote 

The below chart can help you see all the different factors that go into pricing a non-broadcast voice over narration project.

  • Minimum project price: $275 for 5 minutes or less
  • Price for each additional minute of recording: $50 pfm

 

Minimum project price for 5 minutes or less $275
Each additional finished minute of recording $50 pfm
Usage, or where finished project will be played More prominent the use, higher the rate
Audience size, based on traffic to site where video will be played Bigger the audience, higher the rate
Length of usage, or how long the project will be used, such as one year, two weeks, etc. Longer the usage, higher the rate
Length of project, based on word count or finished minutes of recording Longer the project, higher the rate
Pick ups, or rewrites and re-recordings Sometimes minor round of pick ups can be included in rate, otherwise pick ups can be billed separately if needed
Phone patch May have additional charge
TOTAL Combination of all of the above factors

A few other factors that may come into play include the company’s overall budget, the rates the competition is charging for the same type of project, and the experience the voice over talent has with the specific type of work.

Additional places you can find more information on voice over rates include:

Hopefully you have a pretty good idea on what voice over narration is and how much your project may cost should you decide to move forward with it. If you’d like a more detailed quote for your voice over narration project, please contact me and I can send one your way.

—

SOURCES:

http://www.globalvoiceacademy.com/resources/voice-over-industry-standard-rate-guide/

https://www.theguardian.com/small-business-network/2014/jan/14/video-content-marketing-media-online

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/collateral/service-provider/visual-networking-index-vni/complete-white-paper-c11-481360.html

Top 7 Qualities to Look for in eLearning Voice Over Narration

Top 7 Qualities to Look for in eLearning Voice Over Narration
Whether you’re aiming to teach healthcare professionals how to use a new medical device, clients how to use your cloud services, or students how to excel in mathematics, e-learning can be the ideal way to do it. Voice over narration in E-learning, instructional and tutorial videos can be extremely effective as an educational tool, provided you choose a narrator who is supremely suited for the task. You’re likely to find a good match if you find a narration voice over artist who possess the following seven qualities.

Voice Quality

It’s tough to listen to and learn from a recording if you can’t stand a person’s voice. E-learning voice over typically involves extensive listening, which means you want a voice that is pleasant, likable and free of breathiness, crackles and twangs. The voice over narration quality should be crisp, clear and agreeable to the ear.

Female voices are often better received than male voices for e-learning projects, as our culture has a history of women teachers. Female voices are also viewed as softer, more easygoing and more trustworthy, as we note in our article about Male vs. Female Voice-Over Talent, but even more important than gender is the overall like-ability of the voice.

Pristine Audio Quality

It’s likewise tough to listen and learn if a recording is full of pops, white noise and other distractions, making it essential to look for pristine audio quality. This is especially important since many e-learning recordings are listened to using headphones. Good, solid recording equipment is a must, as is a narration voice-over actor who is highly adept at using it.

Fast Turnaround Times

E-learning projects tend to be fairly lengthy, and they often require a massive amount of editing. That means not only does the initial recording have to be completed in a timely manner, but you also need a way to efficiently and quickly edit the project. Whether you outsource the editing to a competent and skilled editor, or the voice-over artist has the skills and ability to edit the recording herself, speed and efficiency are critical.

Narration voice over talent should be adept with handling technology

Ability to Handle Audio Technical Specs

The audio format for e-learning files can vary greatly, depending on different preferences and programs used. The ideal e-learning voice-over narration talent will know how to handle them all. Your narrator should have the ability to save the audio in the format needed at the levels needed in the specs required. Even the most pleasant and pristine voice recording won’t do you any good if you don’t have a way to access or incorporate it into your finished project.

  • Common Types of Audio Files (wav, aiff, mp3)
  • Common Sample Rates Used (44.1 kHz, 48kHz, mono or stereo)
  • Common Ways to Deliver Audio Files (via Hightail, Dropbox or similar file delivery service, Filezilla, FTP file server, etc)

Proficiency with the English Language

A strong command of the English language is another essential component for e-learning narrators. Look for a voice-over actor who has exceptional pronunciation and enunciation abilities and skills. Voice-over actors who are well-versed in the English language can not only ensure your script is read immaculately, but they may also be able to help with troubleshooting any grammatical or other errors within it.

Experience with Voice Over Narration Projects

Choosing a voice-over narration talent who has experience with e-learning projects can help immensely on multiple levels. Since they’re experienced in this type of work, they’ll know the ins and outs, including common issues that may tend to crop up and the type of finished product that needs to be delivered.

Network of Connections

A voice-over artist who is well-connected within the industry helps in two major ways. One is automatically letting you know the person has history and experience in the field. The other is having the ability to offer resources and referrals.

Perhaps your script calls for more than one voice-over artist, with role-playing scenarios, the need for another actor of a different age group, sound or gender. A well-connected voice-over artist will be able to tap into her network to find you additional voices or resources as needed or desired.

Find a voice talent with these seven qualities, and chances are you’ve found a pro who can deliver exactly what you need for your e-learning projects. Can you think of any other voice over narration qualities that are essential for highest quality e-learning projects? Please share in the comments section.

Feel free to check out my lineup of e-learning, instructional and tutorial videos or contact me directly for a complimentary audition or quote today.

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Professional Narration Voiceover Has Many Advantages

This is Part 2 in a series on the advantages of hiring professional narration voiceover talent for your business narration projects. Please also read Part 1, “Voiceover Narration: Do It Yourself or Pay for a Pro?”

No one wants to lose the audience for their corporate video after only a sentence or two, so a pleasant, listener-friendly voice is a must for effective narration. It is also the top reason to hire a full-time VO pro outlined in part one of our series.

Reason #2, also discussed in the previous article,  is the ability to produce a vocal style that meshes with your company vibe. Whether you need an authoritative and serious tone, or a voice that reminds listeners of a trusted friend, professional VO talent can deliver it each and every time.

That covers the first couple of reasons to hire a professional narration voiceover talent for your corporate video narration projects. Now we move on to the last three.

Keeping your professional narration voiceover style for the long haul

3. We can keep your style for the long haul.

Once we’ve mastered your company’s style, professional narration voiceover actors can do two very important things with it:

  • Maintain it
  • Reproduce it

Holding an accent, keeping up a specific tone and otherwise maintaining a consistent vocal style through an extended narration is no easy feat for the untrained voice talent. Experienced professionals, however, have what it takes.

Reproducing the exact sound of a vocal style used in previous projects is another big plus with VO pros. This especially holds true for medical narration or e-learning narrations that may regularly update information or change facts that need to be inserted into the video at a later date.

You want any additions or changes to blend seamlessly with the existing content, with your audience not even being able to tell that that any additions or changes even took place.

Choosing a seasoned professional voice talent means you’ll have consistency, getting the same style that matches the original recording whether you need the voice three weeks or even three years down the line.

If you have a few changes in your narration but your voice is out of the business, or was never really in the business in the first place and is now nowhere to be found, you’ll probably be stuck having to re-record the narration for the entire project. A few quick changes suddenly turned into an extensive and expensive project.

This generally doesn’t happen when you hire a professional narration voiceover talent with a long and sustained track record. I often still have the original recording that I may have completed several years ago for a client. When they contact me to make changes or redo a portion of their audio file, I can usually search my archives and retrieve the original recording, making it much easier to match whatever script changes are needed.

You’ll keep your narration projects more affordable and efficient by always hiring an experienced, professional voiceover talent straight out of the gate.

The ability to take direction in a professional narration voiceover session is very important

4. We can quickly and easily take direction.

Tell a novice voiceover actor to add more gravitas or to pull the energy back 10 percent, and you may get a series of retakes or, worse yet, a totally blank stare. Tell an experienced VO talent the same and you’ll get, well, more gravitas or slightly less energy in the narration.

Quality voiceover actors are skilled at quickly taking direction. Our overall goal is to give you what you want, and the quicker and more effectively we can do that, the happier everyone will be.

Voiceover talent that’s really on the ball will offer a phone patch that lets clients listen in to the remote recording session in real-time, while the actor is actually recording it. I’ve found the phone patch is immensely helpful for allowing clients to direct and give feedback right on the spot.

This allows me to make needed changes as we move through the narration project, eliminating the risk of the client getting a finished recording and realizing it’s not what they wanted at all.

Experience is a key advantage when using professional narration voiceover talent for business narration

5. Professional narration voiceover talent can provide direction (and script help!).

Thanks to reading thousands of scripts over a career, an experienced voiceover actor has a keen eye and a natural sense for copy. We can edit on the fly, make suggestions to improve the flow, or even offer up different word choices that could better express your message.

Since many voice over pros also have acting experience, we can also offer input on the most effective ways to connect with your audience.

Refining copy comes with the VO territory, and many of us can spot a run-on sentence or grammatical gaffe about 100 miles away. Hiring a full-time VO actor gives your company a professional voice and a professional script editor in a single, comprehensive package.

The Bottom Line

Even if recruiting Jane from reception or a member of your in-house production team for your corporate video narration may seem like a good idea on the surface, if you dig a little deeper you’ll quickly see it’s probably not. Full-time, professional voiceover actors have the experience, skills, equipment and know-how to give you what you want in a fraction of the time, and without any of the novice hassles.

“Why didn’t we find you in the first place!” is one of the most common phrases I hear from clients who come to me for help after they’ve been stuck with a substandard narration they can’t even use. While it feels great to be able to save the day, it feels even better to get the job done right the first time around.

 

 

Voice-Over Narration: Do It Yourself or Pay for a Pro?

Voice-Over Narration: Do It Yourself or Pay For a Pro?

Your corporation could have one, two or even dozens of video ideas in your lineup, from how-to instructional videos to those providing a description of your company or a rundown on specific services or products. You may also have an in-house team that typically takes care of all your production needs.

But, is that team using a voice that can really “cut it” when it comes to keeping your viewers fully engaged?

If you’re tempted to tap the smoothest-sounding voice from your staff to narrate your corporate videos, you may think you’re saving time, money and the hassle of searching out a full-time voice-over pro to hire for the job. But you could instead end up wasting time, money and creating an even bigger hassle when the smoothest-sounding voice doesn’t necessarily produce the smoothest final result.

As a longtime professional voice-over actor, I often get contacted by clients who have already completed their narration with someone that just didn’t work for them. The companies have already shelled out money as well as enormous amounts of time and effort – only to be saddled with a video they couldn’t use – due to shoddy and substandard narration.

The shoddiness may have come from any number or combination of problems. These are problems you simply won’t face if you hire an experienced full-time voice-over pro.

5 Reasons to Hire a Pro to Narrate Your Business or Corporate Videos

Reasons to Hire a Narration Voice-Over Pro - We've got the pleasant sounding voice down pat

1. We’ve got the pleasant voice down pat.

Just because a voice is smooth or distinctive doesn’t necessarily mean it’s pleasant for the listener. And a grating or irritating narration can make people turn off your video within the first few sentences.

Human beings get annoyed by a variety of things they experience through their senses, as this article explains: “You Bug Me, Now Science Explains Why.” When you are competing for your audience’s full attention, you cannot afford to have anything that could be seen or heard as annoying.

Full-time pro voice-over actors generally have years of training and experience that allows them to produce the pleasant voice listeners enjoy and trust. Listeners want someone who sounds knowledgeable on a topic without sounding arrogant. They need fluidity in the presentation of the material so it’s easily understood.

They want someone they can relate to, similar to a coworker or immediate supervisor. Voice-over pros can deliver all of the above, which is especially important in longer e-learning or instructional videos where viewers are tuning in for an extended period.

Here’s an example of a pleasant sounding voice-over narration for a corporate video:

And, here’s a type of voice that could turn off a few people:

While the brilliant Gilda Radner’s character, Roseanne Roseannadanna is an obvious exaggeration, the truth is that even a slightly annoying voice can quickly turn viewers off while watching your corporate videos.

In general, people are very picky today. They have short attention spans but no shortage of distractions (both worthwhile and time-wasting) constantly pulling on their attention to focus elsewhere. It is imperative that you do everything possible to ensure that your video has a narration that is pleasant and engaging all the way through to the end.

For a very interesting article about the current and future “abundance of content” which is driving the need for better and better quality of business videos, check out “The Age of Abundance: How the Content Explosion Will Invert the Media Industry.” Thanks to CourVO for bringing that one to my attention!

Reason #2:

Voice-Over Narration: We Get Your Style

2. We get your style.

Full-time voice-over actors typically come equipped with an arsenal of different vocal styles they can produce, along with the capabilities to adapt them as needed to suit your own company’s vibe. Your corporate video narration may beg for an exciting, vibrant style; a serious, professional and responsible style; or a style that gives off a sophisticated and intelligent air.

The voice of your video narration is, in effect, the voice of your brand. Choosing a voice over artist carefully is a must. Picking a voice that doesn’t align with your overall brand could have the same jarring impact as picking a misaligned color scheme for branding materials. Not only can it clash with your existing materials, but it can derail your entire message.

Pros can serve up a variety of different styles, with many able to automatically produce what you’re looking for by simply reading the script or getting a bit of background on your company. Our voices are an effective tool for helping to position your company with the status you want. And once we know the audience you want to target, we can shape our voice to hit the bull’s eye.

Here are a few style examples from my Portfolio . First off, for CareNotify, we needed to create a Friendly, Reassuring and Uplifting feeling for the viewer:

The target style for this next video for the Child Check System was Responsibility and Compassion:

For a more Serious, Concerned read:

Finally, when narrating for technology-related videos, it is often important to convey Sophistication and Intelligence while still sounding very Friendly and Approachable:

You can see dozens more examples on my Narration Voice Overs page, across a wide range of types of narration.

Read Part 2 of this article, “Professional Narration Voiceover Has Many Advantages” to see 3 more reasons to hire a professional voice-over talent for your corporate narration projects.

Please share your comments and questions below. Thanks for reading!