VO Pro: The Business of Voice Over and Voice Acting

Voice actors are petrified of marketing their services. 

Today, we’re going to get into what those fears are, why they exist, and why they’re complete and utter B.S. 

We’ll talk about some of the misconceptions around sales and marketing your voice over business, and what sales and marketing really are at their core.

And we'll kick it all off with a story....

Takeaways:
Voice actors often have fears and misconceptions about marketing their services.
Sales and marketing are vital for the success of a voiceover business.
The fear of annoying people and being seen as salesy or manipulative is common among voice actors.
Overcoming the fear of reaching out to potential clients is crucial for business growth.
Refusing to change and grow is a fixed mindset that can hinder success.

Chapters:
00:00 Unraveling the Fears and Misconceptions of Voice Actors in Marketing
07:16 The Importance of Sales and Marketing in the Voiceover Business
08:41 Overcoming the Fear of Reaching Out to Potential Clients
11:21 The Fixed Mindset: A Barrier to Success in the Voiceover Industry
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The voiceover industry is experiencing significant changes due to the rise of AI and ongoing strikes. 

However, there are still opportunities for human voice actors in certain genres. 

Audiobooks, e-learning, animation/video games, and commercials are hot genres that continue to rely on human narrators. On the other hand, telephony/IVR, simple narration, and audio description/localization are not as in-demand and are being taken over by AI. 

To navigate this changing landscape, voice actors should diversify, continuously learn, embrace technology, build relationships, create their own content, and stay adaptable.

Takeaways:
The demand for audiobooks and human narrators is high, despite AI's presence.
E-learning and educational content offer plenty of voiceover work.
Animation and video games still rely on real human actors for character voices.
Commercials value authenticity and trust, making human voice actors essential.
Telephony/IVR, simple narration, and audio description/localization are being taken over by AI.
Voice actors should diversify, continuously learn, embrace technology, build relationships, create their own content, and stay adaptable.

https://voiceoversandvocals.com/podcast/

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Carin Gilfry, founder of Voice Actors of New York City and co-founder of the National Association of Voice Actors, discusses the Vocation and eVocation conferences, whether Voices is listening to voice actors, the impact of AI on the voiceover industry, and the work of NAVA in advocating for voice actors. 

She points out the need for legislation to protect voice actors' biometric data and right of publicity, and highlights the importance of authentic representation and casting practices. 

Carin also shares her passion for voice acting and her desire to explore more opportunities in video games and animation.

Takeaways:
Vocation and eVocation conferences provide voice actors with valuable information on running their businesses and learning from industry experts.

The voiceover industry needs legislation to protect voice actors' biometric data and right of publicity.

Authentic representation and casting practices are important for creating diverse and inclusive voiceover projects.

Voice actors have limitless potential and can continue to grow and explore new opportunities in the industry.

NAVA: https://navavoices.org

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To be a successful business, you have to have great clients. What are great clients? They are ones that understand the value you provide, pay you well, and send you a lot of recurring work. We’re not talking about getting one-off jobs here. Any trained monkey can do that.

That means strong relationships with great partners. Obvious, right?

But not so obvious is HOW to get great clients, HOW to build strong relationships with great partners.

Today, I’m going to give you my Top 6 Ways to Get Great Clients and Keep Them.

Go For No, by Richard Fenton and Andrea Waltz: https://amzn.to/3WAeydD

Takeaways
 Great clients value what you provide and are willing to pay you well.
 Start more conversations to attract great clients.
 Look, sound, and act like a professional to build strong relationships with clients.
 Make it easy for clients to work with you.
 Charge professional rates to attract clients who value your work.
 Occasionally surprise and delight clients to exceed their expectations.
 Show gratitude after every job to strengthen client relationships.

Chapters
 00:00 How to Get and Keep Great Clients
 03:10 Looking, Sounding, and Acting Like a Pro
 05:55 Making the Process Easy for Clients
 07:15 Charging What Professionals Charge
 08:40 Surprising and Delighting Clients
 10:21 Showing Gratitude to Clients
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Thom Pinto is one of the most accomplished voice actors of the last 30 years. In a rare interview, Thom sits down with me and discusses his experience and success in various genres, including commercials, promos, in-show narration, and movie trailers. 

He talks about the importance of versatility and the ability to adapt to different genres and shares insights into the challenges and strategies for each genre, such as storytelling in promos, tailoring the voice to the network in in-show narration, and capturing the essence of the drama in movie trailers. 

He also discusses the joy he finds in teaching and helping others succeed in the industry.

This is our interview with the great and kind Thom Pinto.

https://www.thompinto.com/copy-of-styles

Takeaways
Versatility is key in voice acting, allowing actors to work in different genres and adapt to various roles.
Understanding the purpose of the project, the network's brand, and the visuals is crucial in delivering effective in-show narration.
Movie trailers require capturing the essence of the drama and telling a story in a short amount of time.
Commercials demand finding the balance between being memorable and not dominating the visuals, while also representing the brand.
Teaching and helping others succeed in the industry brings great joy and satisfaction.

Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Thom Pinto's Accomplishments
05:11 Success Outside of the Promo Genre
12:31 The Art of In-Show Narration
22:20 The Work Tom Pinto Enjoys Most
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Today’s episode is brought to you by the letter N - 9 Networking No-Fail Nuggets for Non-Assertive Narrators and Voice Actors

Let’s face it, the vast majority of the marketing you do to grow your business is online. We live in an age where it’s completely normal, NAY natural, to start and frow relationships digitally through social media, LinkedIn, and so on.

That’s exactly why networking, yes, live and in real life, is especially relevant in today’s digital age. 25 years ago, live networking was the only way to grow your network, now it is simply one method, but it’s still the most effective way to grow your network and your business, and ultimately to enrich your life buy making new friends.

There is no better way to start and grow real, human relationships than in-person networking. There is no better way to leave a lasting impression and that’s true for both positive and negative impressions, so let’s get into my Top 9 Networking No-Fail Nuggets for Non-Assertive Narrators and Voice Actors.
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I'm so happy today to chat with my friend, Mark RIder, as he shares his journey from radio to voiceover and his experiences in the industry. 

Rider stresses the importance of having a diverse skill set and not limiting oneself to one genre and discusses the need for passion, talent, action, associations, and faith in order to achieve success. 

He also highlights the significance of evaluating and communicating with agents to ensure a fruitful partnership. The conversation concludes with a funny story about a plastic duck. 

Bet you didn't see that comin'.

https://volifecoach.com/about/

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Today we welcome voice actor, head of UVT Coaching, and my one-time coach, Terry Daniel. Terry discusses his journey in the voiceover industry and his experience as a coach. He shares how he got into coaching and the importance of training with coaches who are still booking voiceover work. 

Terry also talks about the obstacles people face when starting in voiceover, including fear and impatience. He emphasizes the need for patience and hard work in building a successful voiceover career. 

We also touch on the challenges of navigating the abundance of information and misinformation in the industry and Terry shares his experience with amusement park work and his goals for the future, including directing commercial sessions.

Takeaways:
Training with coaches who are still booking voiceover work is beneficial

Patience and hard work are necessary for success in voiceover

Navigating the abundance of information in the industry requires discernment

Amusement park work can be lucrative and enjoyable

Directing commercial sessions is a potential growth area in the industry

UVT Coaching: https://www.uvtcoaching.com/

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There are metric tons of bad mistakes you can make in voice over. You can have no training or be undertrained. You can have a bad recording space or bad equipment. You can do your own demos. You can have a bad website.

All of those are fixable. No training? Start training. Bad recording space, bad equipment, bad audio? Totally fixable. Call Uncle Roy, George The Tech, Jordan Reynolds, or Tim Tippets. Bad demos? Work with a reputable demo producer. Bad website, work with a pro designer.

But there’s one mistake that is not nearly as fixable. Make this mistake and it will derail your voice over career for years.

What is it?

Takeaways:

Working for low-ball rates devalues your work and attracts demanding clients.

Voiceover is a service, and clients should value the collaboration and the end product.

Choose value-driven clients and build a business based on quality and professionalism.

Beware of coaches who promise quick success; building a successful voiceover business takes time and dedication.
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GVAA Rate Guide: http://vorateguide.com

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Stop doing this dumb shit on your voice actor websites! 

Today we’re going to talk about the nine engagement killers that after you watch this video you should be tripping over yourself to get the hell off your website. They’re like people repellent and you either need to remove them or I will hunt you down with a giant butterfly net and send you off to a special padded room with no microphone.

These website blunders will KILL any chance of prospects, producers, casting directors, the people who we want to hire us from engaging with your site, listening to your demos, and putting you in the “good” pile when it comes to hiring time for their next project.

So here are 9 engagement killers to remove from your voice actor website immediately.

Takeaways

Showcase demos on the homepage instead of having a separate page

Focus copy on the client's needs and challenges

Use shorter paragraphs for better readability

Remove dates on blog posts or keep them updated

Use downloadable MP3 files for demos instead of WAV files

Sprinkle testimonials throughout the website in context

Use contact forms instead of email links

Avoid linking out to other platforms from the website

Invest in custom branded email addresses for a more professional image
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The VO Pro Podcast: https://vopro.pro/podcast

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The VO Pro Shop: https://vopro.pro/shop

Say Hi on Social: 
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My voice over website: https://paulschmidtvoice.com

GVAA Rate Guide: http://vorateguide.com

Tools and People I Work with and Recommend (If you use these links to buy something I may earn a commission.): 

Recommended Book List with Links: https://amzn.to/3H9sBOO
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As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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