The Art of Voice Acting: the art and business of performing for voice over (61 page)

There is a counter argument to using the economic crisis as an excuse to delay payment, and that is to insist on earlier payment as you don’t even know if they’ll still be in business next week or the week after! The last thing you want to do is take a number and stand in line for your payment should your client become insolvent.

Seriously though, I don’t haggle much on price, if at all. My rate is generally not negotiable… seriously. I’ve found that most will just try it out because they have a certain perception of voiceover artists being there with their freelance, itinerant, gypsy caps in hand, desperately pleadingly in need of work. A polite but very firm, if at times awkward, “no” soon puts an end to that and is also able to invert that perception. Suddenly you become something… special. Perhaps even, heaven forbid… good. A logical explanation as to how that rate was arrived at also helps.

I’m of the belief it’s the quality of the client that matters most. Both rates and terms can be adjusted according to the relationship I have with the client, the frequency of the work and the kind of income that work generates for me. Net 30 is my standard, Net 60 seldom happens and I have generally refused work when told this is their payment policy.

The excuse of not paying me until they get paid is heard all too often, coming mostly from agents and production houses, but again, it’s from the perception of the voiceover needing to be grateful for having got the work in the first place. I find this stance arrogant and patronizing, as they have forgotten how essential you are to their business. A little gratitude and respect would be appreciated rather than their matronly dictating the terms of how they intend to pay. Don’t forget, without you, and others like you, they’re out of business. My response generally is to make it clear that if they can’t afford to pay me they shouldn’t book me. Credit terms are for me to determine, not for them.

Still, I will at times agree to Net 60 for certain clients if only for the reasons already mentioned—frequency of work, how well it pays, not needing to pursue payment, and how well I get along with them.

With new clients my credit terms are the standard 30 days if they are local as it’s unwise to offer different terms to different people who may perhaps meet or know each other and have the opportunity to compare notes. I’ll insist on payment up front, usually before I step in the booth, from clients I’ve had complications with in the past, especially as regards payment.

All online work is delivery after payment. I don’t let anything go until I’m paid first. The client has the opportunity to hear the recording by way of a watermarked audio link but that’s as far as it goes. Once it’s approved and paid for I then fire off the file.

Oh, and I won’t be offering discounts for earlier payments. I’d be surprised if it actually works as an incentive and besides, it’s really going to mess with paperwork that I’m loathe to do, especially toward the end of the financial year.

I’m on the search for perfect restaurant salsa. There’s a nearby Mexican food joint that has darn near perfect salsa. Thin (but not watery), deep red, with some cilantro, a few pieces of onion and some spices. Delicious! No carrots, no fruit, no beans.

And I can’t find anything remotely close in the grocery store. I can’t even find a lesser-quality homogenized, pasteurized, factory-created replica of this style of salsa. Instead, I get bombarded with thick ’n chunky, peach, mango, pineapple, corn, or picante salsa. I don’t want giant pieces of food in my salsa.

I know exactly what I want, but all of these companies offer me what they think I want. Or worse, what
they
want me to want.

This got me thinking. Are we doing the same thing with our clients? Are we delivering what our clients want? Do we know what
our clients want? Do they? To answer that, we need to break down our clients into three different types:

1. Clients who know what they want, how they want it, and don’t want anything but that. This is me as it relates to salsa.
   
2. Clients who know what they want, but are open to other things.
   
3. Clients who don’t really know what they want and expect you to wow them.
   

There’s nothing wrong with any of these kinds of clients. But as a voice actor you need to be able to recognize the kind of client you’re dealing with. You can’t treat a #3 as a #1 or they’ll walk away wondering why they weren’t wowed. And if a client is a #1 and you give them something they don’t want, they’re going to walk.

And this is where the newbie lowballers on the P2P site du jour can’t compete. This is where your value add comes in as a seasoned pro. Let your experience be your guide. Understand your clients and figure out what they need. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. The client will be more than happy to give you an idea of what they want, if they know. Then you can deliver the results.

Those who’ve made crossover from radio to voiceover may know what I’m talking about. If you are a disc jockey, newscaster or otherwise employed by a radio station with on-air duties and are trying to start your own voiceover career, you’ll need to be aware of the “Announcer vortex” and learn how to get around it.

Many on-air personalities want to make the shift into a voiceover career. But, just because you’ve voiced hundreds or even thousands of commercials, don’t assume that voiceover work will be the same as in-house radio station ads. Sure, you have good microphone techniques, you’re used to the sound of your own voice and you probably know your way around a production studio. But you may not be ready to step into the national—or these days “global” arena just yet.

A former radio personality myself, I’ve found that radio attracts some really fun-loving, exceptionally talented people. The same skills that helped you land a job in radio are tremendously helpful tools in the realm of voiceover. You’ll need to pack your impeccable sense of timing, vocal stamina, and most of all your sense of humor when you go to auditions.

When I made the decision to leave radio and dedicate myself to voiceover, I thought it would be a smooth and easy transition. It wasn’t. And if I hadn’t been guided by some great voiceover coaches, I wound not have enjoyed the success that I’ve been blessed to experience.

Through my 11 years in radio, I had developed a default read that I used on almost all of my in-house productions. It was a cerebral template. I read the same way every time. It didn’t matter what the copy was; a spot for the local furniture store, car dealer or restaurant. It was always the same energy and cadence. I’ll admit it now. I could finish the take and walk away not even remembering what I just read. Now how could I expect the listener to believe my words if I didn’t even think about what I was saying?

I had fallen into the “announcer vortex.” I call it the announcer vortex because even if I’d start off with a great read, as I’d start listening to myself, the announcer vortex would begin to suck me in. Inevitably, my read would sound like an announcer and not a real person.

The announcer vortex is particularly important to avoid these days. Ad agencies are shelling out big bucks to sell products and services to people who are bombarded by scores of commercials a day. Agencies want their commercial to stand out from the sea of announcer spots on the air without sounding like they’re selling anything. It’s a trick successful voice talents pull off and they get paid very well to do it.

Almost daily, I see these directions on audition scripts:

The reason voice seekers say that is because many of us give announcer reads on auditions. We think that’s what they want. The old time announcer read is woven into the very fabric of radio. It was virtually the only read that was heard from the dawn of radio until late in the twentieth century. Now, don’t get me wrong. We should all have that announcer read in our back pockets. Sometimes the client will ask for it. But we need to hone better voicing skills in order to read the majority of today’s scripts.

The first thing I suggest to anyone serious about voiceover is to study with a reputable voiceover coach. They can identify areas where you need to improve to sound less “announcery” and more “conversational.” Enrolling in an acting class can also do wonders for your voicing skills.

Those who are still working in radio may be tempted to make a voiceover demo at the station using clips from local spots they’ve done. Please don’t! It’ll sound like a demo you made out of local spots you’ve done! It is much wiser to invest in a well-produced, genre-specific demo. There are several reputable producers who specialize in making voiceover demos. Your demo is the single most important thing you’ll need for your voiceover career. You’ll want it to be the best showcase of your work that you can make. It needs to be made by a professional
after
you’ve studied with a voice coach.

With the right training and preparation, voiceover can be quite profitable for the radio crossover artist.

Today I speak for producers.

Those guys (men and women) who often decide which voice to use… which talent moves ahead in his/her career… who is actually the best voice for their product or project.

And here’s what they want us voice talents to know: It’s not about us.

I was recently in a session with an engineer from one of the production houses I work with. He asked me point blank, “Let me ask you something. Yesterday I was in a session with a talent… the client was on the line… and the talent just went off on how I was handling the session. Am I doing something wrong?”

He actually caught me by surprise because I think he’s one of the best producers I’ve worked with, and I certainly didn’t think the way he ran a session was inappropriate. But what is even more disconcerting is that the VO talent mouthed off in front of the client.

WHAT??? Shut up already!!! It’s not about you!

The more I thought about that the more agitated I got. On the one hand, it just made me look better to the producer and the client, but on the other hand it was an insult to our industry. No matter what you may think, how you represent yourself represents the rest of us. When a voice talent leaves a good or bad impression on a producer or client it affects how they think about voice talent in general.

So with that in mind, here are five things to consider:

1. The most important thing in the world at that time to your client is that project. Not you. Not what you think about the copy. Not what you think about the production. And not what you think about the direction.
   
2. Piss off the client or the producer and you’ll never work for them again. Do me a favor would you? When you decide that the producer or the client is a moron, would you please let me know? I figure they won’t be hiring you again and I might as well get my name in there. I could use the work.
   
3. The producer and/or the client generally know what they want. They’ve been working on that project for a long time—much longer than you’ve been a part of the project. They’ve got the sound they want in their head. They thought you could deliver it. It’s your job to figure out what they want, not theirs to convince you.
   
4. Along with being a voice talent comes a responsibility for professionalism. Unfortunately too many talents have not lived up to that. There is no union, association, or universal criteria that guarantees that. It’s no wonder producers and clients are so hesitant and guarded with us.
   
5. Voicing your unrequested opinion… or even showing an attitude in a session is not only arrogant but ignorant. It just proves how out of touch you are with the process. Shut up already!!! It’s not about you!
   

The good news is that the VO talents who violate these principles are few and far between. To you producers and clients who may read this, know that the vast majority of voice talents get it—we’re just part of the process; one of the tools in your toolbox.

Guaranteed satisfaction. It’s a creed most of us voice talents live by. And it can only happen when we really understand how we fit into the scheme of things, and then make sure the people we work for are happy they used us. It is, after all, about them.