Friendster’s Professional Voice Overs

No matter how badly you think you need to save money, it is never a good idea for a merchant to read his own commercial—unless, of course, he has a talent for it. The truth is, however, that most people don’t. They may succeed in giving their commercial an air of originality, but that isn’t a good thing if it results in people laughing at your commercial. And people are less likely to purchase your product or service if they don’t respect you.

Many people mistakenly underestimate the importance of the voice over talent they use when approaching the public, because many people mistakenly believe that all they have to do to sell their product or service is to let people know that it’s there. As long as they do something memorable, people will buy from them, right? Wrong. They may remember the guy with the funny voice or the guy who read in a monotone or tried to act out a little skit with his brother, but they’ll buy from the guy who hired a professional to do his commercial.

And that is the heart of the matter. There is a purpose behind buying airtime and creating a commercial—you are trying to convince people to do something. You’re trying to talk them out of their hard-earned cash, to come and give it to you in exchange for what you have to offer. You are trying, in other words, to impress them. If they sense that you didn’t care enough about your marketing to do it correctly, then they will not be impressed. In fact, if you attempt to convince them using a very bad commercial, they may even feel as though you are insulting their intelligence, and that is definitely something you don’t want.

When your commercial airs, it should sound professional. This makes you look professional. It may be the first contact a potential customer has with your business. In this way, your commercial is like your clothing. You wouldn’t wear something sloppy and poorly assembled to go meet a client, so why would you present them with a sloppy and poorly assembled piece of advertising? Even though the voice telling the world about your service has nothing to do with how well you do what you do, in the same way the state of your clothing has nothing to do with how good you are at your job, you want to make the best impression possible with that voice, just as you would with your suit.

So what are the elements of a well-read commercial that a professional voice over artist can give you? Professionalism is one very important thing that you will get. Your brother-in-law can’t give you that in reading your commercial, because he doesn’t know how. Just because he’s been speaking all his life doesn’t mean that he does it well. In fact, most people don’t speak well. Speaking well is partly about pronouncing the words clearly so that people can understand, and partly about doing that so that it sounds natural.

Everyone in need of a commercial has to do it in the way they think is best, of course. For some it actually may not matter if they put out a professional-sounding commercials. Some customers may truly not care. However, someone who wants potential customers to associate his business with a voice that sounds professional, then it is vitally important that he hire a professional to do the talking.

Reaching your buying audience effectively is the primary goal of your marketing plan, but knowing which channels will work can be a bit of a crap-shoot. Now that webinars, online advertising, and podcasting are opening new channels of communication, more businesses are working on high-impact slogans and messages to boost their brand. Television and radio advertising still offer a lot benefits, and all of these marketing avenues are enhanced with the use of voice overs.

Combining voiceovers to your advertising campaign helps to differentiate your brand and create a unique message. Whether you are intending to persuade your customers to purchase something, deliver news, or just entertain an audience, voice overs can help you deliver your message in a memorable way. An effective delivery of you advertising message helps to create a strong brand presence for your company; consider how often a slogan, a jingle, or just a single sentence can become a part of pop culture. Placing the right voice behind your message will literally make or break your sales and marketing strategy.

The 1st thing to think about with voice overs is what your current target market looks like. Consider profiles such as age, ethnic background, and location. If you are selling to customers in the South, for instance, you might want to choose voice talent and advertising themes with the components of Southern culture and a Southern accent. When your customers resonate with the tone and message, they’re much more likely to remember the message, slogan, and most importantly, your enterprise.

The second thing to ponder is how to hire the right voice artist. Voice over actors can be represented by an agent, or they may have developed their own webpages and profile online. Some voice artist directories will also help you focus your search; these can be searched by age, type, background, or keyword so you can locate a perfect match with less effort involved. If you do decide to work with a talent agent, you may be paying a fee for services. Still, the agent can help you to track down a pro voice over artist with experience in the field, and maybe even a strong list of recommendations.

The 3rd thing to think about is how long you will need to hire your voice artist for. If you are developing a marketing tactic that involves different sales messages and advertising for extended periods of time, you will want to write a

contract with your voice actor. Since you don’t want to keep switching voice actors and ruin the true “voice” of your image, think of how you will negotiate payment for the long-run, and plan on hiring the voice actor for more than one project at a time. In most cases, fees can be negotiated, and you can research current rates online so that you can devise a compelling offer.

Voiceovers are an excellent way to enhance your image and extend a professional image with your sales campaign. From radio-advertising to podcasts, voiceovers play a essential role in delivering the best communication to your customers.