If your voice is the product, your demo is the shop window. A well made demo is the clearest line between a working professional and an enthusiast who's still hoping. Being new is not an excuse for sending agents, casting directors and producers something poorly made. They'll forgive a short track record. They won't forgive a demo that wasted their minute.
Like anything you'll spend real money on, plan it before you walk into the studio. There are three decisions. Think of them as the B, L and T of your demo.
The B L T
- $1,000 to $3,000BudgetA professionally produced demo. More in the big cities or bundled with coaching.
- 60 to 90 secLengthFive or six spots of 10 to 15 seconds. No intro, no sign-off.
- One typeTypeCommercial or narration first. What you can do today, not next year.
Budget
A demo costs money, and it's the first real investment in your voice over business. Even if you eventually build a home studio, a first demo is usually best produced by someone who does it for a living: a demo producer or a coaching programme that finishes with a produced reel. Great equipment in inexperienced hands makes an expensive amateur demo. A professional knows what casting people listen for and how to make your voice sound like the best version of itself.
As a rough guide, a professionally produced commercial or narration demo from a reputable producer runs somewhere from $1,000 to $3,000, and more in the big cities or when it's bundled with a run of coaching. Some producers include the music licensing in that, some don't, so ask. Before you commit to anyone, check their track record, listen to demos they've made, and talk to a couple of actors who've used them.
Questions to ask a demo producer
Before you hand anyone a deposit, ask these. A good producer will have answers ready and won't mind the asking.
- Can I hear three demos you've made for actors at my level?Not their showreel of famous clients. Beginners' demos, and whether those people are now working.
- Who writes the scripts?Custom copy written for your voice, or a library everyone else has read too?
- Is the music licensed, and is that included?A demo with unlicensed music can't be safely published anywhere.
- How many spots do we record, and how many go on the reel?Ten to fifteen recorded, five to eight used, is a healthy ratio.
- Do I get the separate spots as well as the finished reel?You'll want them for profiles that take individual samples.
- What happens if you tell me I'm not ready?The right answer involves coaching, not a refund policy.
Length
Deciding how long the demo should be sounds trivial and isn't. It has to be long enough to show your range, and short enough that no section drags or repeats itself. The sweet spot is 60 to 90 seconds, made up of five or six spots of roughly 10 to 15 seconds each, and commercial demos are drifting shorter, not longer. The people listening know within twenty seconds whether they're interested. Give them your best twenty seconds first.
Don't spend any of that time on an introduction, a slate or your contact details. Your name is on the profile, the email and the file name. The demo is for the voice.
Type, or style
By the time you've trained and practised, you'll know which styles sit naturally in your voice. Your demo should be an accurate reflection of what you can do consistently, today, not a preview of what you hope to do next year. Play to your strengths and record the kinds of script you could confidently deliver if someone booked you tomorrow.
Choose scripts you have the right to use. Write your own, use practice scripts written for demos, or have your producer write them. Don't lift a real brand's commercial and read it as if you'd booked it. Producers can tell, and the brand's agency really can tell. Good practice scripts also tell you the category (broadcast, narration, corporate, phone, radio imaging) and the performance direction, which is useful practice in reading a brief.
Decide which demo you're making, too. A commercial demo and a narration demo are different products for different buyers, and the demo types read explains what each one needs. Most people start with one of those two.
Budget for a professional. Keep it to a minute. Record what you can actually do.
Your first demo is your first big project in a fun, competitive business. Recorded and produced well, it opens doors for years. Put real time into planning these three things, and learn as much as you can from the people making it with you. Next: what actually goes on the demo.
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