2 Methods of Breaking into the Commercial Voiceover Business

There are many avenues that you can travel as a voiceover professional.  You may choose to focus on audiobooks, animation, or corporate style voiceover, e-learning, film/TV narration and so much more these days. Many, though, will choose to do commercial voiceover.  That is the audio that will be used in television-, radio-, cinema-, or web-based advertising.  There are many ways to work your way into this niche of the voiceover industry.  Of course, first you will need to establish your studio, brand yourself a bit – create your website, social networks, business cards, stationary, etc. – and record those demos. Once those initial tasks are completed, you can begin marketing yourself.  This is, arguably, the hardest part of voiceover work, but here are a couple of places to start if you are trying to break into commercial voiceover.

 Voiceover Websites There are several websites, today, that are dedicated to helping voiceover professionals reach the clients who are looking to hire their services.  Some of these are legitimate, and some are less so. It is important to vet the various sites you are considering – check in with the Better Business Bureau, read site reviews, and ask other voiceover artists who you know.  For a beginner, especially, these sites can be a big help.  Often the work procured through these sites doesn’t pay as much, but it is a good way to build up your portfolio and establish some new- and valuable connections in the industry. But some will pay only absurdly low rates. For the good of the Industry, do us all a favor and stay away from participating on those sites. Often, these sites will let you focus on the particular niche that you are most interested in as well, so you can opt to seek out commercial work primarily.

Radio Stations Another way to approach commercial work is to cold call some of the biggest potential clients – radio stations.  Obviously, being an audio-only media, the stations have a great need for vocal talents.  Furthermore, the advertising spots sold are generally the biggest revenue makers for the stations, and therefore are a very necessary part of the business.  Call up and ask for the opportunity to trial recording or to send your demo (whichever they prefer).  If this goes well, you may be able to get yourself listed on their voice roster, which can certainly lead to a boost in your business.