Branding Your Voiceover Services: How to Market Yourself in the Industry

“Oh no! Not that word again, I thought I escaped all of that when I finished school!”

Ah, but yes! It’s back, and you may find that your 3rd hour marketing classes were, in fact, useful! Marketing is the only element that BRINGS MONEY to you! All of those other investments required spending money…. Do I have your attention now? Proper marketing is the code to the safe my friends. Or should I say e-marketing?

In fact, you probably engage yourself in marketing your services everyday, and don’t even know it.  Every post you put online, every demo you send to agencies and telling your friends are good starts on spreading the word. But how do you brand your voice? Well, you need to get good at marketing your voice! There are many ways to market your voice, but choosing the right methods can make a big difference!

Thanks to the innovations of technology, you don’t have to spend tons of money on your marketing strategy. The internet alone can help you out! What you need to know now is where to go and how to get attention. AudioLinks, a website composed of sound experts, offers tips for the marketing voice actor.

Take note that marketing requires good publicity. Obtain everything you need to show and present it in the best way. To maximize your budget and minimize your expenses, you can either:

• Record a Demo Reel
• Build a Website
• Approach your Market Personally

A demo reel is your ticket to landing a project. It will represent everything about you and your skill. If you don’t have a home studio, don’t sweat it, find a recording studio (there are plenty out there!) and record a sample. It is important that your demo reel captured the attention of your listeners! Not sure how to make a capturing demo reel? NO worries, click here for advice on how to make a superb demo!

A website called the Houston Chronicle, published a helpful write-up in terms of branding your voice. The key elements of branding are technique, craft and range wherein it captures the whole persona of the voice actor.

Apart from submitting a demo reel, you must deliver the rest of the package! This simply  means you must market your skill as one that breaks your voice apart from others. Don’t be shy, really weasel your way into any nook and cranny that comes your way! Think about what you want to portray as a VO talent, and do everything you can to let people know it! Are you more fun and bubbly or serious and professional? No matter what attitude it is, you must show this through whatever means of marketing you use!

Voiceover services also require a specific location on where to contact you. This is where a WEBSITE comes in handy. A few quick tips, when making a website just keep it simple and straight to the point… remember people can access your website by many means (e.g. tablets, smartphones, phablets…) so don’t make it something super flashy with loads of nonsense that will take ages to load. Read more about how to perfect your website here.

In terms of marketing, think of your website as a shop, you need to get people to come in and fill up to full capacity! So give a good impression, always keep your display fresh and up to date. You also need to expand and contact people, so use social networking to your advantage in order to seek attention!

A web developing company called Smart Internet Business Solutions, lays out the advantages of having a website and these are:

• You get to have your own domain name. A great marketing label!
• You have multiple web pages to organize where your content should go.
• You can place any form of media you want.
• You can optimize it and be more visible online.

Last but not the least, build a presence in the industry personally. Go outside your shell and socialize. Build as many connections as you can. Whether you attend various workshops or seminars or hand out business cards to the right people, as long as you build a certain presence so as people to remember you and your voice. I said socialize, this is obviously about social media. You need to build up a presence in LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, just open an account and be active with your colleagues, exchange information and learn about the latest trends. Maybe you will not e-socialize with the client, but the client will find you if you are active enough. But social media for voice actors is becoming an interesting universe that deserves attention in a another post.

Branding your voiceover services is a process and may include some trials and errors along the way, but with the right means of marketing and a great voice to back it up, it’s only a matter of time until your reaching your goals!

Any more advice? Comment below!