Questions You Should Ask Before Hiring a Voiceover Professional

There is a great deal of value that can be added when you employ the right voice for your voiceover work.  The right talent can infuse life into your videos, website, social posts, commercials, correspondences and more.  The wrong voice, though, can be costly, in many ways. 

Why is it dangerous to select a voiceover talent at random?

ü  Inexperienced, unprofessional voice over artists can drastically slow your production time.  That means it takes longer to get your message to the customer, client, or employee. 

ü  There are some voices, whether because of a monotone nature, because of tone, or pitch, that are perceived as unattractive to many listeners.  You can imagine how quickly such a voice would cause a person to stop listening.

It’s not just about avoiding the wrong voice, it is also about finding the right one.  So, here are some questions that you should be asking before you hire anyone for the job.

?         What sort of message am I trying to get across to my audience?  There are certain voices that are better for certain types of messages.  For instance, most people believe that male voices better evoke force.  On the other hand, a female voice may be the better option if trying to sell a feeling of comfort, as they tend to be perceived as more soothing.

?         Who is your intended target? Obviously, the message is going to be different if directed at a new employee than if you are reaching out to a potential customer.  However, you should be even more specific than that.  If you are speaking, for instance, to a region of the country that has a noted accent, then you may want to consider a voiceover artist who shares that accent.

?         What do you know about the voiceover artist’s background? It can be tempting, when hearing a voice that sounds perfect for your intended message, to hire as soon as the demo has finished playing.  However, there are a few things that you should know about the artist before hiring.  How long has this person been working as a voiceover artist?  How many jobs of this nature has he or she done?  How long does he or she expect it to take to put together a great, finished recording?

Ask the right questions and you are much more apt to get the finished product that you desire, complete with excellent voice over.