Moving Forward in the Voiceover Business – Demos and More
(For you if: you know voiceover is what you want to do. You're skilled and know what you're doing, but you need the tools and coaching to put more money in your pocket.)
Commercial Voiceover Demo Production — $1450
The audio calling card of the voiceover business is a commercial voiceover demo, almost exactly one minute long. For me to produce your demo you should:
This price for the commercial demo includes everything:
Demo production includes minor adjustments and tweaks -- reasonable revisions. If you continue in the business, you’ll make other demos, updated with work you’ve done that's been on the air or used by clients. I can put those together for you later, of course; see "Voiceover Demo Compilation," below. (I keep an archive of all demos I produce.) After recording, wait three or four weeks for delivery. Payment: half at the demo recording session, half on completion. You can pay those half-payments through the site; scroll to the bottom of this page. (A page with examples of previously produced demos is available upon request.)
If you're interested in a voiceover demo, please send me mp3s of auditions you've done, work you've done in the past and/or pieces you've recorded in your home studio.
*** If I haven't worked with you before, I may ask you to come in for a free get-to-know you coaching session. And no, you can't just come in for a free session by saying you're all experienced and stuff and I just gotta believe you and oh come on why you gotta be like that? #scammer
Commercial Voiceover Demo Production — $1450
The audio calling card of the voiceover business is a commercial voiceover demo, almost exactly one minute long. For me to produce your demo you should:
- Already be a working professional and want to improve upon the demo you already have, or
- Be able to demonstrate (with recordings you can send me) that you really know what you're doing, or
- Have worked with me in a Voiceover Exploration session, created a home studio and done the free follow-up coaching, or
- Be recommended by someone I know.
This price for the commercial demo includes everything:
- Copy edited/written specifically for you (Never used by anyone previously. Never seen on one of the websites with ancient practice copy.)
- Studio recording with an engineer, and my coaching
- Finished spots, with backing tracks, edited together
- An mp3 file of your demo. Aw heck, I'll send you TWENTY of the same mp3 file if you like! :-D
Demo production includes minor adjustments and tweaks -- reasonable revisions. If you continue in the business, you’ll make other demos, updated with work you’ve done that's been on the air or used by clients. I can put those together for you later, of course; see "Voiceover Demo Compilation," below. (I keep an archive of all demos I produce.) After recording, wait three or four weeks for delivery. Payment: half at the demo recording session, half on completion. You can pay those half-payments through the site; scroll to the bottom of this page. (A page with examples of previously produced demos is available upon request.)
If you're interested in a voiceover demo, please send me mp3s of auditions you've done, work you've done in the past and/or pieces you've recorded in your home studio.
*** If I haven't worked with you before, I may ask you to come in for a free get-to-know you coaching session. And no, you can't just come in for a free session by saying you're all experienced and stuff and I just gotta believe you and oh come on why you gotta be like that? #scammer
DEMO FAQS For general FAQs for this site, go here.
How do I know when I need a demo?
Here's how... You need a demo when you:
If you are just starting in the voiceover business, you don't actually need a fully-produced demo to make money with your voice. This is something I discuss as part of the Voiceover Exploration.
What demo should I have produced first?
The calling card for the voiceover business is the one-minute commercial demo.
When I come in, maybe I should have you produce ALL my demos! Narration, e-learning, audiobook! More!
Sure you should! I need to make a payment on my boat! :-D No, you shouldn't. If you're an experienced talent with a good home studio, you should be able to produce most demos yourself. The exception is for demos requiring a lot of production, for example, promo, videogame and animation. And it's advised to have an experienced producer do your commercial demo, so it's good enough to be competitive with other demos on agency sites.
Why are your demos less expensive that other people?
Because I supervise the entire process, provide scripts and coaching myself and work with skilled but inexpensive partners.
Why are your demos so expensive?
Because I do almost everything myself: find the copy and coach you and then either work with you to record remotely, or ideally work here in Chicago at a great, low-cost recording studio. Once you and I have the initial recording, I painstakingly choose the best takes and pieces of takes, remove breaths, clicks, pops and noise and adjust timings for maximum dramatic or comic effect. I find production (and pay for) the perfect music beds, background ambience and sound effects, making these demos the equal of those costing a huge [expletive-deleted]-load more money.
Well, I've got a home studio. Why don't I do my own commercial demo?
Yeah, why don't you, smart guy? Because you can't listen to yourself and be critical. And you haven't done this enough to know what to listen for anyway. Oh, and where are you going to get good commercial copy that's perfect for your voice, adapted or written by someone who knows what they're doing, someone who has sold himself and others for years? And most of all? Because agents and other talent buyers can hear in nine seconds when a demo is a self-produced piece of junk from someone with no experience. [Toss, toss. Delete, delete. Next...]
But shouldn’t I pay twice or four times as much as what you’re charging? More expensive is better, right?
Sadly… no. Unfortunately, in this business, there are people who have created what I’ll call “voiceover mills.” One of the reasons I was inspired to create my own voiceover demo business was because some of these people charge what I think are stupefyingly high prices for demos.
You CAN ask them what they charge you, a beginner, just getting into this, for a demo... Go ahead, ask them right away what your TOTAL COST will be! Good luck getting an answer. That’s because once you sign up, the price goes up and up and up, class after additional class, extra upon extra upon extra. I’ve heard of $5,000 being paid before the final delivery of a voiceover demo! Holy crap! You can thank them for the fact that I only charge one price for a standard commercial voiceover demo, and tell you exactly what it is. (There's a site out there that actually mentions my price... like how DARE I actually tell you what I charge without trying to sell you a zillion lessons or graphic design or a web site or freakin' LUNCH on your recording day! They're the people you REALLY need to ask that "What's my total cost?" question.)
That having been said, there are expensive demo producers in the U.S. who charge three thousand and up for a demo and (mostly) deserve to. They cater to high-end VO talent who have been in the business for years, people who make six figures year in and year out, and can afford to pay top dollar. I also have friends who charge about twice my price for voiceover demos, and I think they're good at what they do. I have respect for them, I just think you can get what you need (for less) from me. Especially if you're new to the business.
Voiceover IS a business. There should be a cost/benefit ratio. As a voice talent, I net about $250 for a local radio commercial. As a beginner, you’ll make around that for a non-union spot, IF you get the work. This is a tough game, and to start, you may not make that in a month or more. How long do you work before you recoup your $3,000 investment?
Do you include music and sound effects on the demo? That was probably a dumb question.
There are no dumb questions! Yes, for your finished demo, I provide any backing tracks required for the completed demo. The Voiceover Exploration session is just your voice, recorded doing generic copy for assessment and practice purposes only.
A cheerful woman had a very good question for me: I was wondering -- do voiceover demos in Chicago run 1 or 2 minutes usually?? THANKS!
The standard commercial voiceover demo is coming in these days at around a minute, from what I've heard from top voiceover agents in Chicago. There are a few demos (not many) out there that are running longer, in the minute-thirty range, and some (quite a few) which are running shorter, but that's the sweet spot.
How do I know when I need a demo?
Here's how... You need a demo when you:
- Already have a home studio and know how to record and send mp3 files
- Already have a website, even a simple one
- Want to get to the next level by landing an agent or get onto a better pay-to-play website
If you are just starting in the voiceover business, you don't actually need a fully-produced demo to make money with your voice. This is something I discuss as part of the Voiceover Exploration.
What demo should I have produced first?
The calling card for the voiceover business is the one-minute commercial demo.
When I come in, maybe I should have you produce ALL my demos! Narration, e-learning, audiobook! More!
Sure you should! I need to make a payment on my boat! :-D No, you shouldn't. If you're an experienced talent with a good home studio, you should be able to produce most demos yourself. The exception is for demos requiring a lot of production, for example, promo, videogame and animation. And it's advised to have an experienced producer do your commercial demo, so it's good enough to be competitive with other demos on agency sites.
Why are your demos less expensive that other people?
Because I supervise the entire process, provide scripts and coaching myself and work with skilled but inexpensive partners.
Why are your demos so expensive?
Because I do almost everything myself: find the copy and coach you and then either work with you to record remotely, or ideally work here in Chicago at a great, low-cost recording studio. Once you and I have the initial recording, I painstakingly choose the best takes and pieces of takes, remove breaths, clicks, pops and noise and adjust timings for maximum dramatic or comic effect. I find production (and pay for) the perfect music beds, background ambience and sound effects, making these demos the equal of those costing a huge [expletive-deleted]-load more money.
Well, I've got a home studio. Why don't I do my own commercial demo?
Yeah, why don't you, smart guy? Because you can't listen to yourself and be critical. And you haven't done this enough to know what to listen for anyway. Oh, and where are you going to get good commercial copy that's perfect for your voice, adapted or written by someone who knows what they're doing, someone who has sold himself and others for years? And most of all? Because agents and other talent buyers can hear in nine seconds when a demo is a self-produced piece of junk from someone with no experience. [Toss, toss. Delete, delete. Next...]
But shouldn’t I pay twice or four times as much as what you’re charging? More expensive is better, right?
Sadly… no. Unfortunately, in this business, there are people who have created what I’ll call “voiceover mills.” One of the reasons I was inspired to create my own voiceover demo business was because some of these people charge what I think are stupefyingly high prices for demos.
You CAN ask them what they charge you, a beginner, just getting into this, for a demo... Go ahead, ask them right away what your TOTAL COST will be! Good luck getting an answer. That’s because once you sign up, the price goes up and up and up, class after additional class, extra upon extra upon extra. I’ve heard of $5,000 being paid before the final delivery of a voiceover demo! Holy crap! You can thank them for the fact that I only charge one price for a standard commercial voiceover demo, and tell you exactly what it is. (There's a site out there that actually mentions my price... like how DARE I actually tell you what I charge without trying to sell you a zillion lessons or graphic design or a web site or freakin' LUNCH on your recording day! They're the people you REALLY need to ask that "What's my total cost?" question.)
That having been said, there are expensive demo producers in the U.S. who charge three thousand and up for a demo and (mostly) deserve to. They cater to high-end VO talent who have been in the business for years, people who make six figures year in and year out, and can afford to pay top dollar. I also have friends who charge about twice my price for voiceover demos, and I think they're good at what they do. I have respect for them, I just think you can get what you need (for less) from me. Especially if you're new to the business.
Voiceover IS a business. There should be a cost/benefit ratio. As a voice talent, I net about $250 for a local radio commercial. As a beginner, you’ll make around that for a non-union spot, IF you get the work. This is a tough game, and to start, you may not make that in a month or more. How long do you work before you recoup your $3,000 investment?
Do you include music and sound effects on the demo? That was probably a dumb question.
There are no dumb questions! Yes, for your finished demo, I provide any backing tracks required for the completed demo. The Voiceover Exploration session is just your voice, recorded doing generic copy for assessment and practice purposes only.
A cheerful woman had a very good question for me: I was wondering -- do voiceover demos in Chicago run 1 or 2 minutes usually?? THANKS!
The standard commercial voiceover demo is coming in these days at around a minute, from what I've heard from top voiceover agents in Chicago. There are a few demos (not many) out there that are running longer, in the minute-thirty range, and some (quite a few) which are running shorter, but that's the sweet spot.
Voiceover Consultation — $250
You've taken classes and are trying to make some money. But you're struggling to land work. Your auditions are getting little response and most troubling, you can't determine whether or not you're on the right track.
You've taken classes and are trying to make some money. But you're struggling to land work. Your auditions are getting little response and most troubling, you can't determine whether or not you're on the right track.
- OR -
You're a working voiceover professional, but you need ideas and motivation to shake things up.
Come on in. We'll look at your mic technique, record a lot of copy, listen to your reads and see what's going on. Through our one-on-one work together, you'll identify bad habits, make sure you're selling your voice properly in terms of its sound and appeal in the current marketplace and talk about what you're doing wrong and what you're doing right. We'll make sure you know about things you can do with your voice that you didn't know you could do. You'll learn styles that are popular on radio and television right now and how to deliver them. You'll leave knowing that you have the technique and the talent to move forward confidently and put more money in your pocket.
Those who take the Voiceover Consultation receive the same extra benefit that's part of the Voiceover Exploration: coaching on three sets of files recorded in your home studio. Are you uncertain about your sound or whether you're doing things right or wrong? Get the opinion of an experienced pro and know for sure.
You're a working voiceover professional, but you need ideas and motivation to shake things up.
Come on in. We'll look at your mic technique, record a lot of copy, listen to your reads and see what's going on. Through our one-on-one work together, you'll identify bad habits, make sure you're selling your voice properly in terms of its sound and appeal in the current marketplace and talk about what you're doing wrong and what you're doing right. We'll make sure you know about things you can do with your voice that you didn't know you could do. You'll learn styles that are popular on radio and television right now and how to deliver them. You'll leave knowing that you have the technique and the talent to move forward confidently and put more money in your pocket.
Those who take the Voiceover Consultation receive the same extra benefit that's part of the Voiceover Exploration: coaching on three sets of files recorded in your home studio. Are you uncertain about your sound or whether you're doing things right or wrong? Get the opinion of an experienced pro and know for sure.
Narration Voiceover Demo Production — $850
The narration end of the business is where a lot of beginners can best make inroads, because this is an area where it's easiest to market. Those people who say "you have a really nice voice:" do they own companies? Are they local businesses? Do they have telephone answering machines that sound like they were voiced by someone with a grade school education? They're part of your target audience for marketing and getting work. Are you interested in narrating for web sites, PowerPoint presentations, corporate training videos, museum kiosks or anywhere the human voice can be used in the business world? Then you should have a narration demo. Depending on your voice type, this may include technical or medical copy, multi-media scripts and other non-commercial material. (We find all that for you.) If you bring in finished vocal tracks or work you've done previously, the price goes down.
[Other] Voiceover Demo Production — $???
Yes, of course there are many other kinds of demos out there. Character, Multimedia, Promo (different types), Narration (different types), and odd specialties, for example, like Automotive ("BUY NOW BEFORE THE END OF THE MONTH!"). We discuss what you need and what you would be suited for and discuss a price.
Voiceover Demo Compilation — $650 or less
You've booked some great jobs, and you want to add them to what you already have or put them together to make a new demo. If you're making a completely new demo using old spots, I'll charge the full price shown here. If you're just adding a spot or two into an existing demo, it'll cost less, possibly much less. Or perhaps you want to liven things up with a fully-produced spot. Talk to me and I'll cut you a deal.
The narration end of the business is where a lot of beginners can best make inroads, because this is an area where it's easiest to market. Those people who say "you have a really nice voice:" do they own companies? Are they local businesses? Do they have telephone answering machines that sound like they were voiced by someone with a grade school education? They're part of your target audience for marketing and getting work. Are you interested in narrating for web sites, PowerPoint presentations, corporate training videos, museum kiosks or anywhere the human voice can be used in the business world? Then you should have a narration demo. Depending on your voice type, this may include technical or medical copy, multi-media scripts and other non-commercial material. (We find all that for you.) If you bring in finished vocal tracks or work you've done previously, the price goes down.
[Other] Voiceover Demo Production — $???
Yes, of course there are many other kinds of demos out there. Character, Multimedia, Promo (different types), Narration (different types), and odd specialties, for example, like Automotive ("BUY NOW BEFORE THE END OF THE MONTH!"). We discuss what you need and what you would be suited for and discuss a price.
Voiceover Demo Compilation — $650 or less
You've booked some great jobs, and you want to add them to what you already have or put them together to make a new demo. If you're making a completely new demo using old spots, I'll charge the full price shown here. If you're just adding a spot or two into an existing demo, it'll cost less, possibly much less. Or perhaps you want to liven things up with a fully-produced spot. Talk to me and I'll cut you a deal.
Podcasting Consultation for Business — $500
I've produced podcasts for myself and with friends and colleagues. I've also produced podcasts for businesses looking to use a podcasting platform for marketing purposes, to communicate with team members, salespeople on the road and customers. Podcasting is a terrific, low-cost method for delivering messages around the country and around the world.
In the Podcasting Consultation for Business, you and your team will receive:
This Consultation can take place in my professional studio, or I can come to your place of business. I can even purchase equipment for you and and set it up.
Podcasting has exploded as a medium for entertainment, information and for delivering important messages. Dive in and get what you need to set up your company for this valuable area of communication.
I've produced podcasts for myself and with friends and colleagues. I've also produced podcasts for businesses looking to use a podcasting platform for marketing purposes, to communicate with team members, salespeople on the road and customers. Podcasting is a terrific, low-cost method for delivering messages around the country and around the world.
In the Podcasting Consultation for Business, you and your team will receive:
- General information about the medium of podcasting
- Coaching on microphone technique, based on that delivered to hundreds of coaching clients via the Voiceover Exploration
- Information about podcast platforms, hosts and media storage
- Recommended equipment for recording in a home or office (not in an expensive recording studio -- the low cost will surprise you)
- Ongoing expertise at no additional charge. (This is my philosophy here at Voiceover Studio Chicago, and it has never been abused.)
This Consultation can take place in my professional studio, or I can come to your place of business. I can even purchase equipment for you and and set it up.
Podcasting has exploded as a medium for entertainment, information and for delivering important messages. Dive in and get what you need to set up your company for this valuable area of communication.
Commercial demo half-payment
The price for the fully-produced commercial demo is $1450. This is paid for in two parts: one-half at the recording session and one-half after the produced demo is delivered.