There are plenty of voiceover directories worldwide but here owner and project leader Guy Michaels explains the ethos behind Voiceover Profiles®.
Rigour. Graft. Meticulous attention to detail.Â
(yes Americans that’s graft as in ‘hard-graft’ – graft is used informally to describe working hard)
In the lead up to our launch, we had around 120 applications from voiceover artists at various stages of their careers. Just 14 made it through.
Every qualified voiceover artist you’ll find on Voiceover Profiles® has gone through a detailed and demanding application process. All have committed to ongoing professional development and have proven themselves at every stage of this process. This means that for you, the client, you can rest assured that these voiceover artists can deliver professional quality audio for your project. They can take direction, successfully interpret your brief and, ultimately help you to achieve your goal when booking a qualified voiceover artist.
How do you ‘qualify’ a voiceover artist?
This is difficult because seemingly anyone with a microphone, headphones, and laptop is calling themselves a voiceover artist these days. But there are tangible benchmarks that all of our voices have met or exceeded. Each of the VOs with a profile here has proven their understanding and application in the three areas that come together to create a professional experience for you: VOCAL, TECHNICAL, and BUSINESS.
VOCAL
Some voices you’ll find here are ‘actors’ in the traditional sense and some are not. Some come from a theatre background and others from radio or beyond. The one thing that these profiles have in common is that all of them are expert communicators.
These VOs can take your copy and bring it to life. They can handle difficult technical language and give a nuanced performance, expertly applying subtle shifts to convey the meaning using techniques to engage the listener. All of our approved voices are equipped with highly developed voices and ears, that enable them to successfully guide the listener to understanding and acting upon your message.
TECHNICAL
A major differentiator between an amateur or ‘hobbyist’ voiceover and a true professional is the ability to deliver flawless audio from their own purpose-built recording studios. There are thousands upon thousands of VOs worldwide who claim to achieve ‘broadcast quality’ when their final product audio is far from it. All VOs on Voiceover Profiles deliver this flawless audio, free from pops and clicks, hisses and hums, background noise, dynamic inconsistencies, and anything else which potentially detracts from the listening experience.
‘Home Studios’ are not all the same but all the voices on Voiceover Profiles® meet the highest standards.
BUSINESS
All of our voices run their own professional voiceover business. This is what they do. They have not just decided this week that they want to speak into a microphone and expect to get paid for it. They professionally run their business and are comfortable and confident when dealing with large corporations, family-run businesses, or fellow freelancers.
Voiceover Profiles® acts purely as an introductory service that has done the groundwork of filtering the good from the not so good. Voiceover Profiles® takes no fees or commission for any project.
So what makes Voiceover Profiles® different from other voiceover directories?
Apart from all the reasons above, in terms of the voice actors and their proven abilities, the other major factor is that we will never have hundreds of thousands of voices. There are certainly plenty of directories out there that claim to have ‘thousands of voices’ to choose from. As a client myself, I do not view this as a good thing. In fact, why would I want to sift through thousands of untrained, inexperienced voices who (and I’m talking from experience) cannot deliver pristine audio? Most directories will simply accept anyone prepared to pay up to join. There are exceptions of course but for you, instead of wasting time on endless choices, opt for a professional. Opt for Voiceover Profiles®.
Voiceover Profiles® will build each quarter, accepting applications from experienced and qualified voiceover artists but NEVER lowering the standards.
Find a qualified voiceover artist
Guy Michaels – June 2020