Why Voiceovers Work: 4 Powerful Reasons to Add VO to Commercials and Videos

Voiceovers in Commercials

The power of video, audio, and voiceovers are unmistakable in advertising. With commercials, explainer videos, and social media shorts, audiovisual content is everywhere. And it’s effective, too. According to Hubspot, 92% of marketers say video is an important part of their marketing strategy. 81% of the same survey respondents report video has a direct, positive impact on sales, and 94% agree videos help increase user understanding of their product or service. Those are some powerful statistics!

This means video content is king for advertising, but what about the audio to go along with the video? Audio is an equally powerful tool, and many content creators turn to voiceovers to enhance their video content. A professional voiceover adds several important qualities to your videos that can increase engagement and ROI. Keep reading to learn more about the top 4 reasons why you should invest in voiceovers for your videos and television commercials. 

1. Target the Audience

Adding an effective voiceover to your video content starts with choosing the right voiceover artist for the job. The specific actor and their line delivery can capture the intended audience instantly and make them pay attention. The voice actor’s gender, age, accent, vocal quality, and tone are factors that contribute to targeting your audience.

Let’s say, for example, that your company sells infant car seats. A voiceover delivered by a young woman will grab the attention of your target audience: mothers of young children, or people who know mothers of young children. Conversely, if your company sells car accessories, an energetic male voiceover will target your ideal audience of young to middle-aged men. If you’re advertising walking canes, your voiceover actor should sound like a senior citizen.

Accents and regional dialects are also important to consider with voiceovers. Depending on where your target audience is located, you’ll want a voiceover that matches the regional dialect, accent, or language. Choosing the correct voice lets the audience know you understand them and their needs. It tells them your company is local and you’re one of them. All these qualities are important to building trust with your audience. If they don’t trust you or your product, then they’ll tune out or buy elsewhere.

2. Provide the Correct Tone or Mood

A professional voiceover actor will also provide the correct tone and mood for your video. They are specifically trained to deliver lines with a particular quality or energy. Your product or service will come alive, and your audience will grasp the message more easily thanks to the voiceover actor’s performance.

Think about the overall mood of your video project. Are you producing an explainer video? An energetic, upbeat, and instructive voiceover will inspire your viewers and teach them something. Or perhaps you’re creating an ad for a child’s toy. You’d want a bubbly, youthful voiceover to go with it. A professional actor will be able to determine the right tone to use for the recording, and your audience will respond to it.

Tone also contributes to how trustworthy the narrator sounds, and how trustworthy your product or service is overall. An authoritative, confident voiceover convinces your audience that you are an authority on your product or service. It inspires them to keep watching and to heed your call to action.

3. Play to Emotions

Like tone and mood, the right voiceover can also play to the emotions of your viewers. Sound and audio have a powerful effect on the mood of the listener. Vocals are particularly effective in producing emotional responses in our brains. Have you ever been moved to tears by a talented public speaker? Or inspired to achieve a goal? A trained voiceover artist delivering your script with a particular emotional weight can influence your audience in several different ways.

Perhaps your video is an advertisement seeking donations for a nonprofit. An impassioned voiceover pleading with the audience to act will easily tug on the heartstrings and convince them to donate. Or maybe you’re selling an online course to help entrepreneurs succeed. An energetic voiceover with a can-do attitude will inspire your audience to sign up, as the voiceover will have made them believe in themselves. Professional voice talent knows what lines to emphasize and how to deliver them for maximum emotional impact.

4. Hold Audience Interest

Finally, voiceovers lend incredible power to your videos because they hold the audience’s attention. A simple video with only background music and text may be easy to scroll past. Professional voice actors are skilled at grabbing attention in the first few seconds of their delivery. Combined with visuals, a warm, inviting voiceover will convince the audience to stay and watch the entire video, because they want to know what the narrator has to say. It keeps the audience engaged, and in a world of declining attention spans, this is incredibly important for your product or service.

The right voice talent will know how to deliver your script to keep the audience hanging on their every word. Combine that delivery with onscreen text, and you have a winning recipe for retention and engagement.

Killerspots Professional Voice Overs

So, you’ve decided  you need to add a voiceover to your next television commercial or video project. If you’re not confident in your own voice acting abilities, you don’t have to worry. Killerspots works with hundreds of professional voice actors from all over the world, and we can help you find the perfect voiceover for your project. Old or young, male or female, character voice or straight narration, our library of voiceover artists is unmatched in the industry. Take a listen for yourself to our top talent then contact us with your script idea and we can get to work! Together we’ll create engaging, creative videos with the perfect voiceover for your product.

The Voice Behind the Image: How to Be a Voice-Over Artist

how to be a voice over artist

Has anyone ever said to you, “Hey, you have a nice voice”?

It’s not something we really pay much attention to, especially when it’s our own.

But what if your voice was so good that it couldn’t be ignored?

What if it could earn you a decent living right from the comfort of your own home?

In this article you’ll discover how to be a voice-over artist, the training that’s involved, and how you can find a job doing it.

So if you’re looking to get your voice out there, let me show you how…

What is a Voice-Over Artist?

A voice-over artist is the performer that is never seen. The man (or woman) behind the curtain.

They deliver a narrative that captivates a target audience, and it can take on a variety of different forms.

It could be for an audiobook that is warm and comforting, igniting the imagination of the listener.

It can be for TV or radio advertisements, designed to capture attention and sell a product or service.

Or it could be that voice you hear waiting at the train station, or on the phone while you’re on hold.

While we all have a voice, not just anyone can be a voice-over artist. Some of the best come from a background in acting or radio, where speaking with flair comes naturally.

That’s not to say it cannot be learned and developed by yourself…

Finding Your Voice

To start off, you’ve got to be able to speak clearly and eloquently, so that your audience can at least hear and understand you easily. Many actors have speech coaches and practice reading scripts to create a particular tone, cadence, and quality that truly resonates with the listener.

For many it’ll depend on the job, whether it is to be formal and informative, to drive home a sale, or to bring a character to life, off the page and into the mind of the listener.

A good voice may be heard, but a great voice makes you pay attention. This is one of the many reasons why it is highly effective in advertising media.

How Can I Improve My Voice Acting?

Just as a painter develops their skills through different mediums and regular practice, training your voice in various ways is a great way to practice your speaking skills.

This could be in the form of reading aloud to others, presenting to groups of people, teaching a subject you’re passionate about, acting, or even reading stories to children.

There’s all sorts of different ways to use and develop your voice. So experiment, try things that make you uncomfortable, and your skills will no doubt improve in time.

The more adaptable you are to different scenarios, the more employable you’ll be.

How to Be a Voice-Over Artist

The good thing is that voice-over work no longer needs to be done in a studio, as many artists are now recording from home.

This makes the job far more flexible than it used to be, but it also means that it’ll take a little more time and effort from you.

Aside from a good voice, you’ll need to know a bit about using recording equipment and audio software. You’ve got to be organised, committed, and driven to find the work, complete the tasks and manage your schedule accordingly.

If you’re after some training you can find lots of videos on YouTube or courses on Udemy. 

And if you want to get a good idea of what clients are looking for, check out this guide from Debbie Grattan.

Once you’re all prepared and practised, it’s time to get out there to find the work.

Voice-Over Casting

Most voice-over work is paid per project rather than at an hourly rate. And if you’re good enough, some employers will even provide you with ongoing and recurring jobs.

As a lot of voice-over work can be done from home, you can sign up to an online marketplace where you can apply for all sorts of jobs.

Some of these include:

  • Voices / Voices 123 – both provide a wide range of different voice over jobs.
  • Findaway Voices / ACX – for lots of audiobook and other narration jobs.

If accepted, you will be asked to audition for the role for which you can submit a video voice over or an audio file.

There are lots of advertising and talent agencies looking for great voice-over artists, and you can find out exactly what they’re looking for.

To give you a little more insight, Bunny Studios has an excellent article here on five tips for selecting voice-over talent, which is well worth a read.

Additional Voice-Over Tips

  • Get yourself a good microphone that connects to your PC and download some free recording software like Audacity. Here’s six tips on how to make better audio recordings.
  • Create a dedicated work space at home that is quiet and free from distractions.
  • Contact companies such as film and TV studios, radio stations, and ad agencies directly to find out if they need any voice-over work. Here’s 12 tips on what people are looking for.
  • Branch out on your voice skills and demonstrate the different areas you can work in, such as translating, transcribing, character voices, or singing jingles.
  • Create a website and maintain an active social media presence to advertise your services, showcase your work, and quite possibly be headhunted!

The Last Word

Hopefully you now have a good idea about how to be a voice-over artist and what it takes to really make it.

Remember, it takes a lot more than simply having a nice voice. You’ve got to practice consistently, develop the surrounding skills, and always be professional in your approach.

There are many advantages to starting a career as a voice-over artist that you may not find in most jobs, from more flexibility to new and exciting opportunities.

So if you have the drive, the passion, and of course the voice, it’s time for you to speak up and be heard!

Head on over to Killer Spots Agency now where you can apply to work as a voice-over artist today!