Why Hire a Professional Voice Actor for Your Business?

As more and more people are getting wired and connected online, we see the increasing switch from paper advertising or marketing to audio and visual marketing.  People are moving away from reading flyers, brochures, or sifting through the yellow pages, and focusing their attention on what they see and hear.

For a business to stay on top of their industry, they need to invest in developing and maintaining their online presence and provide their target audience the content that would attract their attention.

Case in point is the increasing popularity of explainer videos.  As shared by Voice Over Herald, the use of explainer video helps improve several aspects of the business.

• Improves SEO of the company. Explainer videos have more chance of being found on search engines, thus improving online visibility.
• Improve Conversion rates. Explainer videos placed on the home page can turn more visitors into customers, by up to 65%.
• Decrease Bounce rate. The average time spent by a visitor on a website increases from the initial average of 8 seconds to 2 minutes if the site has an embedded explainer video.
• Increase in the Click-through rate. Marketing emails with video content are more likely to be opened.
• Increase in ROI. Marketing professionals attest to an increased ROI when marketing videos are used as online content.

As much as video content is important (whether animated or live action) in getting the attention of the consumers, the quality of audio content is just as crucial. There is much power and effectiveness to be had when using audio whether in conjunction with a video or as a standalone medium. The operative words are POWER and EFFECTIVENESS, and this can only be delivered by a professional voiceover actor.

The risk of using an amateur voice

Imagine your business taking the alternate route of employing an amateur voice actor or even one of your team members to be the voice of your campaign.

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John happens to have a great voice… he sounds very friendly and fun. Perfect for the image you wish your company to project.  However, once you got to listen to his recording, you noticed the following:

• Very audible breathing, especially in between sentences
• A loud “poof” sound is heard when he pronounces the letter P
• Hissing sound when he pronounces words with S
• He stumbles and hesitates on long words
• His tone is friendly but not natural… you can sense he was reading from a script (plus the obvious rustling paper)
• Slight echo of the voice, and some “office” noise
• And when he delivers his closing line, he has lost all enthusiasm

The end result is a not very professional sound, hence not a very professional impression of your business. Once your clients hear it, they would feel the same way and then walk away straight to your competitor.

Matching the voice to the project

It is important to never settle for an inexperienced voice, no matter how great they sound, as it will jeopardise your campaign.  Sounding great is one thing, but being a voiceover is another.  A trained, professional voiceover artist would have working knowledge of the voice’s basic components: firmness, tone, tempo, volume, and pitch. A professional voiceover actor too would be aware of the different projections, styles and approach that would be appropriate for your project.

Television Commercials / Radio Commercials

For commercials, business requires a professional and persuasive speaker.  Whether you require a boy-next-door type, soccer mom, sexy vamp, movie trailer style, the right voiceover actor who fits your requirements will be able to deliver a natural read. They are aware of the dynamics needed for commercials that can help project the message across to your audience.

Web Presentations / Explainer Video

With the right script, a professional voice actor can ensure that narration is perfectly done, lively and engaging, keeping the viewers glued to your video from start to finish.

Long-Form Narration

Long-form narration is one of the hardest forms of campaign as the speaker requires the right skills to keep the listeners interested. When done by an untrained talent, consistency in keeping the interest will be difficult. Apart from the consistency in the voice, enunciation and clarity are also imperative for narration. A professional voice would be able to deliver all those.

Voice Mail / IVR

The right tone and pacing on IVR, voicemail and on-hold greetings is imperative so as not to sound robotic or disinterested.  Even in this medium, the voice should reflect the personality of your business. A professional voiceover can keep your clients and prospects engaged.  They can encourage callers to stay on the line and also deliver a quality and professional marketing message.

Four kinds of project, one common thread: a trained voice © The Voice Realm

What a professional voice actor brings

There are many reasons why a business serious about starting and keeping their audio and visual presence online should hire only a professional voiceover talent.  To sum it up:

Vocal and Communications Skills

A great quality read requires great communication skills: good knowledge of grammar, perfect enunciation and ability to read words clearly and with proper phrasing. It should also have the type of voice that is pleasant to your target listeners. A professional voice artist has all these qualities and understands the dynamics and components of sound and voice.

Technical Skills

A professional voice talent will only record using high-quality recording equipment to produce clear and noise-free recording. An experienced or professional voice talent would either own a home recording studio or have access to one.  They may also either have working knowledge in editing or sound engineering, or work closely with an expert.  They know how to use their microphone and other tools to deliver a clean, clear, quality sound.

Information retention

Research has shown that listeners are more likely to retain information when delivered by a professional voice talent. This is because a professional voiceover talent will not just read off a script.  They study what needs to be conveyed so that they can deliver your message correctly.

These qualities put together would mean creating a very POWERFUL and EFFECTIVE message for your audience. A professional voiceover actor knows that this is your end goal and can work along with you to deliver the results.

Hiring a professional voiceover need not be exclusive to big companies. Small or start-up businesses too can join the audio and visual trend by using voiceover platforms that can offer them reasonable rates and be assured of the services of experienced, professional talents. One such company is The Voice Realm.  The Voice Realm has a “professional only” roster that can provide voice seekers with professionally recorded voice in a style and format that fits the company’s campaign.