Three Steps to Getting Started in Voiceover
Hello, voiceover-curious friend! Welcome!
If you’re reading this, it’s probably for one of three reasons (or maybe even a combination of them):
You have always been told “You have such a nice voice—have you thought about voiceover.”
You have been practicing your voice mimicry since you were a child, and voicing animation and video games is your dream job…if only you knew where to start.
You want to make six figures easily from home in your pajamas because it beats your current job as a janitor/high school science teacher/punch press operator/corporate attorney/etc.
Well, I gotta tell you—that’s nice and all, but this profession is NOT EASY.
Theres a lot more to it than talking into a microphone. These days, not only do you need to be a talented actor, but you also have to be a passable sound engineer, a savvy marketer, an entrepreneur, and a skilled negotiator.
You will need to invest a lot of time (and way more money than you think) if you expect to compete in today’s voiceover market.
If you want a quick way to make cash, you’d be better off getting a job…anywhere, really. Over the past two years, the market has become oversaturated with people trying to make a fast buck with their USB mic, and it’s more competitive than ever.
But if you’re truly serious about doing this, don’t let the odds deter you. If you’re ready to put in the work, there’s room for you.
Here are the first three steps to getting into voiceover…plus some other stuff I think you should know.
FIRST: GET TRAINING
Just as actors imitate human beings and have to do things that human beings do every day, naturally, without thinking, and make them look NATURAL* and also be interesting, voice actors have to stand in front of a microphone, and say things in a way that is believable, very often saying things one would never say in a million years to another human being—“Oral B toothbrushes just $3.99, through Saturday!”—and somehow sound like you’re saying it to your best friend, but sound like Rashida Jones, but with more energy, and NOT ANNOUNCERY. Cool?
Voice acting IS acting.
If you don’t have the acting part down first, your road is going to be a much longer and bumpier one. Even with an acting background, coaching is important. You might get lucky and book some jobs without coaching (I did), but like with on-camera acting or stage acting, the craft is hiding the craft. And that takes TIME.
You need to learn tricks to making difficult copy sound conversational. You need someone to call you out on your upspeak, or your constant eating of the last words in your sentence that causes everyone to never really get what you’re saying. Or to teach you how to enunciate better, or stop enunciating too much, or whatever habit it is that you have that is going to cause you not to get booked. To correct your fear of breathing in front of the mic (that’s totally a real thing). To give you permission to speak in your natural voice instead of putting on that over-the-top smooth jazz DJ voice that you think everyone wants to hear, but which puts them off because you sound super phony.
So, get training.
As a beginner, I would recommend taking a group class before investing in one-on-one coaching. Solo coaches are pricey (most of the ones I’ve worked with are $175 and up per hour) and if you’re just getting started, some of the stuff they say might go over your head. Better to dip your toes in and get some basics without mortgaging your house, okay? I’ve included some resources below.
SECOND: CREATE YOUR HOME STUDIO
A few years ago when I wrote the first version of this post, I listed this step as optional. This is no longer the case. The world started moving in the direction of home studios over a decade ago. The pandemic cemented the necessity of the home studio in order to compete in this arena.
The space:
Sound treatment is the main thing you need to focus on. Not only do you need a space that is relatively free of outside noise, but then you have to make sure the sound isn’t going to have any weird reverb or other noise issues. Closets filled with clothing tend to make great makeshift studios, but you can also experiment with moving blankets and DIY sound panels. Avoid any gimmicky tools that promise broadcast quality audio while wrapping your microphone in a nice little cocoon. They are a waste of money.
Find the quietest space in your house to create your recording sanctuary. And if you have to, turn off the HVAC, impose quiet hours for your family, or record at night when the planes stop flying.
Your basement may seeeeeeem quiet until you start recording and realize you can hear your cat purring at your feet, your ceiling fan in the other room, the roommate walking around downstairs, and the neighbor mowing the lawn. If it takes you hours to get a clean take of a single audition, you’re going to get very frustrated very fast.
Eventually you’re also going to want to get a professional opinion about the sound quality you’ve achieved, whether it’s still too “live” or “dead.” Whether your noise floor is low enough to do professional work, etc. When should you do this? After some initial training and before you start trying to book paid gigs. If nothing else, ask around in the voiceover groups to see if anyone is willing to listen to a 60-second sample of some room tone and you talking into your mic to get some very basic feedback.
The equipment:
When creating your home studio, don’t spend a ton of money right away, but also make sure you’re making a wise investment. The $100 USB mic isn’t going to cut it for much more than doing auditions for your local agent, but you don’t need to buy $1000 Sennheiser when you’re just getting started either. Do your research.
For your home studio, you’ll need:
a reliable computer
a decent microphone
a compatible interface
cables to connect everything
a mic stand of some kind
a pop filter (maybe, this is debatable)
headphones (the earbuds aren’t going to cut it)
and a recording program (Audacity is free, and there are lots of tutorials online to get you started)
I started with a Blue Yeti USB mic, which I bought about fifteen years ago when I didn't know better and when home studios weren’t yet required. I recorded on my MacBook Air and listened using my ex-boyfriend’s gaming headphones. Two years into starting to do VO, I upgraded to a Sennheiser MKH 416 and bought a Steinberg UR12 interface recommended by Uncle Roy Yokelson of Antland Productions. I do not regret jumping from a $100 mic to a $1000 mic, because now I’m set. The 416 is pretty much standard in LA studios, and I’ve heard from those who know that it’s a tank. Chances are I won’t need a new mic for a VERY long time.
Another note: When buying equipment, I recommend avoiding Amazon. Why? Because there is SO MUCH counterfeit equipment out there, and if you’re spending the money, you need to know you’re getting the real thing, even if it costs $50 more somewhere else. Sweetwater is my vendor of choice, because their customer service team is top notch (you get your own sales person who you talk to every time), and they send you candy with your order. Win-win.
THIRD: GET A DEMO
DO NOT MAKE YOUR OWN DEMO.
I repeat: DO NOT MAKE YOUR OWN DEMO. I MEAN IT.
I don’t care if you just graduated from sound engineering school, or if you have been a DJ for 40 years…hire a reputable demo producer. Invest in your career. Make a great first impression with something that is industry standard, that fits the style that agents and directors and casting directors are used to hearing. This industry is too competitive now for you to not sound amazing.
There will always be exceptions to the rule, but 99% of people who make their own demo will listen to it in a year and flog themselves in shame…if you are new to the industry, you do not know enough about the industry to know what is expected of you.
Your first demo should almost certainly be a commercial demo. If you plan to try to get agency representation—a commercial demo is what they want to hear because that is most of what they book.
Do not make a demo that includes more than one genre. You will need a separate demo for each different genre, which is why most people start with a commercial demo. If you don’t know what other genres you might want to do, then commercial makes the most sense. Even if you want to animation, a commercial demo makes the most sense. (Click here to read Mark Evanier’s great post about why this is)
As you are looking for a demo producer: Be wary.
Tons of places will give you a little bit of coaching, tell you that you’re brilliant and that you’re going to make lots of money, then take your money and leave you with a terrible demo that will not only not help you get started in this business, but may make a terrible first impression with agents and ruin your chances of getting represented.
Good demos these days can range from $1600 to about $3000. So start saving and don’t quit your day job!
A demo should be original copy written FOR YOU and used for no one else. Make sure you have those terms in writing to protect yourself! (I’ve heard stories…)
Once you have a demo, the next step is to use that demo to get work. You can market yourself directly, join some P2P sites, or you can use the demo to get an agent, and then do auditions through them.
But that is a whole other topic for another day. For now, let’s stick to the basics, because you’ve got to nail those before you’re going to start booking work.
GOING FURTHER
There are so many other practical aspects to starting up your voiceover business…
creating your website
learning about SEO for your website
learning how to use your editing software
getting work through networking in person
using social media to promote your business
incorporating your business as an S-Corp or LLC
deciding whether or not to join the union and when
getting a CRM for streamlining your marketing efforts
getting agents in other regional markets or other countries
designing your branding to help you stand apart from other voice actors
going to conferences to continue learning about the industry and its trends
getting national-level agents in New York or LA for access to better opportunities
setting up Quickbooks or other software to streamline your record-keeping and invoicing
getting MORE coaching and expanding into other niches (IVR, radio imaging, promo, e-learning, etc)
moving to a bigger market to pursue certain categories (it’s still hard to pursue animation work outside LA)
and so on, and so on…
There’s a lot to consider past the basics, but don’t let that overwhelm you!
Just take it one step at a time.
COMMUNITY
Another aspect of this business that you should be aware of when jumping into voiceover: talking to yourself in a padded room all day can be fairly isolating.
Joining a voice actor meetup group or practice group will help you find your tribe, bring you opportunities you’d never find on your own, and keep abreast of industry trends and news.
In my almost six years of voiceover, I have found a lot of my opportunities through getting to know other voice actors at conferences, in classes, in accountability groups, workout groups, meetup groups…in my opinion, the relationships you form within your industry matter just as much as those you form with clients. The client relationship is transactional and can be fleeting.
A strong community will help support you and strengthen your mindset.
Below, I share some of the groups that will help you find community as you get started.
INTEGRITY
I have to add one more thing, because it’s important. I IMPLORE you: as you begin in this business, please, please, PLEASE have integrity in your business practices.
There are no “beginner” rates. If you are good enough to book a job, then you deserve to get paid a professional rate.
If you’re not good enough to book a job, then keep practicing and coaching. Though we all have to make our own choices in the end, it is the responsibility of everyone in our industry to help uphold rates at a level where we can all stay in business.
You get to decide if you take a job for forty bucks just to win the job and put something on your resume* or if you choose to uphold industry standards by consulting the GVAA rate guide to quote a reasonable rate.
*btw, you don’t really use a resume in voiceover, so this is a moot point anyway
Certain P2P sites are well known for really shady business practices, and others are just known for really crappy rates. All you need to know is that P2P sites are looking out for themselves, not for the voice talent. YOU have to look out for yourself and for the industry.
It may sound great to record a :30 spot for $100 (“OMG, that’s like $12,000 per hour!”) but once you figure out that it will actually take you an hour on the directed session with the client and you figure in all of the audition time it took to get that ONE job, and THEN the client comes back and wants you to do the whole job over again for nothing because they changed the script and you don’t have a policy about retakes…it very quickly becomes not enough.
Do the math—how many of those jobs do you need to get to make a living doing this? And how much time does it take to get each one? And if the industry rates degrade to a point where it makes more sense to get a job at Chick-Fil-A, then we all lose.
TL;DR: USE THE GVAA RATE GUIDE!!!
RESOURCES (Updated 3/5/2024)
If, after all of that, you are still interested in getting started on this path, here are some great resources to get started. I’m not saying these are the ONLY resources, but I will only post resources here offered by people or organizations I have experience with.
That being said, my experience may not be your experience, so do your own research, ask around, and dip your toes into the shallow end of the pool whenever possible to test the waters before cannonballing into that purchase button.
Many vendors have free consults, but I also recommend listening to people speak on Clubhouse or on a podcast or taking free workshops when they are offered whenever possible, just to get an idea of someone’s personality before working with them.
Caveat to the below resources:
In general, I only recommend people I have direct experience with.
For the demos and classes for beginners sections, I am putting in BOLD the people/organizations with which I have worked directly.
I HAVE NOT done demos or coached with the rest, and have limited experience with many of them so please consider this a jumping off point from which to start your own research before spending any money.
Under the list of coaches for ongoing training, I have worked with ALL of them one-on-one.
GENERAL INFORMATION
A free e-book: The Voice Over Entrance Exam
A pretty complete starter website: I Want to be a Voice Actor!
And a reputable subscription service with a LOT of information and resources: Gravy for the Brain
Information for those mostly interested in Audiobook Narration: The Narrator’s Roadmap
A voiceover event calendar: The Abaton Calendar
Blogs I recommend:
The TL;DR Voiceover Blog, Jon Gardner
Great VO podcasts:
VO Boss: Anne Ganguzza’s podcast about voiceover business strategies
VO Body Shop with Dan Lenard and George Whittam: THE go-to tech professionals
All Over Voiceover with Kiff VH: Great interviews about life and VO work, and the artists’ journeys into VO
Everyday VOpreneur Podcast: Short, sweet, and to the point. Marc Scott’s podcast is a great kick in the pants!
VO Buzz Weekly with Chuck Duran and Stacey J. Aswad
Voice Over Marketing Podcast (years of archived episodes)
The VO Meter with Paul Stefano and Sean Daeley
DEMO PRODUCERS
Demos with Chops, Jordan Reynolds
A-Mazing Demos, Cliff Zellman
JMC Voiceover Demos, J. Michael Collins
Killer Demos, Uncle Roy Yokelson
TRAINING
Classes for Beginners:
Atlanta Voiceover Studio (Atlanta/Virtual)
The VO Dojo (Los Angeles/Virtual)
One-Off Workouts
VO Weekly Workout: For twenty bucks, you can send in your audition for critique by an industry pro (usually a casting director, engineer, agent or manager) and get to hear the auditions and see the critique of other working voice actors. For forty dollars, you can sign up for the live feedback session. I love VOWW!
The VO Dojo Pro Fight Club: It costs money, and you have to qualify as a pro to compete, but you can participate in a VO fight club moderated by industry pros live, or audit for a smaller sum, if you just want to check it out.
Atlanta Voiceover Studio Pro Workouts: Just like the Pro Fight Club at VO Dojo…only no one is declared the winner. Pretty much the same format though!
Coaches for Ongoing Training
Hugh P. Klitzke (Conversational VO)
Mary Lynn Wissner (Commercial VO)
Thom Pinto (Documentary/In-show Narration, Promo)
Richard Redfield (Movie Trailer/Promo)
Tom Dheere (Marketing Coaching/Business Consulting)
COMMUNITY
Facebook groups:
Voiceover Pros: A long-running Facebook group filled with professionals who aren’t going to BS you
The Global Voice Actors Network (GVAN): This group is like a warm, supportive hug from your most positive friend
VOPreneur: Marc Scott’s group is a place to discuss all things marketing and working on the business side of VO
The Voice and Accent Hub: Information specifically related to vocal training and health and accent/dialect work.
Audacity Voiceover Users Group: If you’re starting with Audacity’s free software, this group is a great resource
A Pro Tip for Beginners: PLEASE DO NOT post "starter" questions on professional Facebook groups. Pros get annoyed at answering the same questions from beginners over and over. Don’t be lazy! Do your research first via the resources above to get the info you're looking for and search the groups for recent posts about the same topic, BEFORE becoming the 800th newbie this month to ask which mic they should buy.
There are loads of other places to find community, but most of them you will pay for. As a newcomer to the industry, I recommend dipping your toes in as much as possible to see if the water is bath-temp or icy cold before you spend money to join any community. Get a sense of the people. Ask around. Do internet searches to see if there are dozens of bad reviews. Personally, the places I’ve found community in voiceover have been through my Minnesota meetup group, reaching out to mentors through WoVO, blogging, and taking classes and programs with Atlanta Voiceover Studio and the VO Dojo.
INTEGRITY
The BEST guide to industry standard rates for non-union work: The GVAA rate guide
The professional organizations that you should join: WoVo: World Voices Organization and NAVA (National Association of Voice Actors)
*If you do a general Google search for more info, be diligent about your research before shelling out money—
there are a lot of not-so-legit to flat-out-scammy places out there that will pump up your ego in order to get you to open your wallet.*