How Can You Shape Your Voice Over Brand?
Previously we discussed the importance of creating a brand for your voice over business to stand out amongst other voice over talents in your niche.
What used to be a marketing practice that applies to products and service, branding can now be applied to any business including voice over services. But branding a voice over business is more than just product branding, being a “solopreneur” it is more about personal branding. Because people change, improve and develop as they learn more about their business and experience more work, creating and managing your personal brand requires a lot of concerted time and energy as you build a brand that is flexible and evolves without losing your identity.
So where do you start in shaping your brand?
It can be tempting to use all the great professional attributes that would click in your target market, however you run the risk of overpromising and even overlooking the attributes that would actually best suit you and make you stand out.
Defining your brand is like a journey into self-discovery. To be able to create a truthful and relevant brand, you would need answer the following questions:
What is your vision and mission?
Why did you become a voice over? How do you plan to take your business journey? Your vision and mission is the WHY and HOW of your voice over career. It should represent your original spark in entering the voice over industry and how you would aspire to express that vision.
Why am I here?
What is my purpose?
Your vision and mission helps you understand where you want your business to go. Knowing why you are in the industry beyond the financial aspect, will inspire you in creating your plans, and driving your actions to achieve your goals.
What are your values?
What values do you believe in as a person, as a business? Defining your belief system will guide you on how you would approach your voice over career.
For example, as a professional voice over actor, you value client relationship, timely delivery of work, integrity and confidentiality – these values should then be reflected throughout every aspect of your voice over business, from your marketing to your client and peer interactions.
Your values are vital part of how you want people to perceive you. It is important that any values you portray are genuine and evident in the way you operate your voice over business.
What are your qualities?
Apart from your values, when you are communicating your brand, you are also showcasing your qualities, so examine your skills as a voice over actor and as a business person. These qualities are your promise to your clients – of what you can deliver. Knowing where you are great at will also help shape your brand personality. It will be easier for you to set the tone and style, or attitude, of all your communications.
What personality do I want to express?
What qualities do I want my clients and prospects to associate me with?
The adjectives you associate your attributes should send out a clear message of your brand. Your attributes as a voice over artist should then translate in the look and feel of all your marketing efforts.
Your Vision, Mission and Qualities are elements in creating a strong brand. And once you have defined these elements it should not only conveyed in your technique and craft, but in all aspects of the business; not just through audio “imagery”, but also through visual imagery; online and offline your voice brand should be one and the same.
Even if you change your vision, mission and qualities over time as you grow in the business and gain more experience, stay true and real to who you are. YOU are your BRAND, your BRAND is YOU.
Every voiceover artist wants to be the client’s first and only choice, and developing and managing an effective brand can play a significant role in making that happen. Once you have defined your brand, how do you manage it?