Knowing how to hire a voice actor online can make or break your project – so choose wisely!
Whatever your project’s budget for the voice over, it’s important to hire the best you can afford.
Whether you are hiring a versatile voice actor for an entertainment project, like an audiobook or video game, or need an eloquent voice for a business explainer or IVR telephone messages, there are generally 4 different types of voice-over websites to choose from.
This guide is intended to help you narrow down which option is best for your project based on your requirements and restrictions.
Or, watch our quick video guide here:
The triple constraints of a project
Managing the process of hiring a voice actor is much the same as managing any other creative project. There are three constraints – quality, time, and cost that all directly impact your approach.
There’s a lot already written about the relationship between the project scope (what you need to produce) and the triple constraints, so we won’t go into that here. However, it is worth bearing in mind when casting for your project.
Of course, it’s only natural to want everything cheap, fast and of high quality!
So, take the golden triangle with a pinch of salt. Its primary use is to demonstrate that increasing the importance of any one of these constraints will have a knock-on effect on the others.
First, let’s consider what we mean by ‘cheap’, ‘fast’ and ‘high quality’ concerning voice over work because these terms are very subjective.
Cheap
How cheap are we talking?
‘Cheap’ means different things to different people – a freelance animator already working with a low budget will think of a much lower figure than a marketing manager at a fortune 500 company.
Our rates guide is a good reference for the average rates for different types of voice-over projects. Rates can vary a lot depending on the individual voice talent selected, where they are located, and what the recording is for.
Take into account where your budget sits in the rates spectrum and label it as below or above the average rate.
Fast
The fastest voice-over services link you directly to voice actors with professional home recording studios. If you want it all produced in less than 24-48 hours, choosing a service that offers voices with its own studio is best.
However, you should always allow a 1-day minimum for casting & scheduling. Whether you are using an agency or a marketplace, it will take time to check availabilities, agree on payment terms and review Demos or auditions.
And if you want to record on location, so you can attend a specific studio in person, or because the actor has no home studio, this will need even more lead time to book.
High Quality
A high quality voice over is not only recorded in an acoustically treated environment, using professional studio equipment; it is also one that uses an experienced voice talent, engineer and director.
Of course, you don’t necessarily need an external studio, engineer or director to achieve high-quality results, but it will be a lot easier to get there if you do!
Many amateur voices will use low-quality studio gear and not treat their room environment correctly. This leads to poor quality, reverberant recordings that they will try to fix by over-processing the audio, making it sound unnatural. This is the main problem with finding voices in a marketplace site. Voice-over is just one of many services being offered, and the marketplace doesn’t vet or approve the studio equipment being used. This is something we are changing here at Voquent.
Now you have an idea of what we mean by ‘cheap’, ‘fast’ and ‘high quality’. Deciding which two constraints are most important to your project will help narrow down the type of service you require:
a) Priorities: Cheap & Fast
You have a below-average budget, and need the audio quickly (under 48 hours).
First, always remember, there is potentially a hidden cost to getting a cheap voice over.
If you’re looking for the cheapest voice over options, general freelance marketplace sites are a good choice. You can either buy a pre-defined voice over gig or post a project to invite proposals from freelance voice actors – careful though, these generally get a lot of applications and can be time consuming.
Be sure to check what’s included in the price, such as turnaround time, number of revisions, and script length, as additional needs may increase costs. Many beginner voice actors on these sites may lack professional equipment, so quality can vary.
However, even a cheap human voice over is generally better than a synthetic one.
If you have specific performance or language requirements, these sites may not be ideal, as voice actors are just one of many job types available.
b) Priorities: High Quality & Fast
You need a high quality voice over quickly (in under 48 hours).
If you have a higher budget, there are plenty of options for hiring a voice actor online. Your choice of platform depends on how much time you want to invest and your team’s skills.
c) Priorities: Cheap & High Quality
You need a cheap voice over recorded at a high quality.
Long-form content like audiobooks and eLearning usually comes with lower rates, but high-quality audio is still essential. Voice over agencies often handle these projects and know which actors are suitable for this work.
You can also use a voice over marketplace to connect directly with specialised voice actors, who can meet technical standards like ACX for Audible. At Voquent, for legitimate projects like audiobooks, we facilitate direct contact with the voice actor.
For other projects, some voice actors might accept lower fees if there’s added value, such as being featured in a blog, tagged in a social media campaign, or using the content for their marketing.
However, many experienced voice actors are frequently asked to work for minimal fees with promises of exposure. It’s important to respect their professionalism and ensure they are fairly compensated for their time and the value they bring to the project. Offering a fee that reflects their contribution is crucial.
FAQs
Need a specific accent or dialect?
YES: Go to a dedicated agency.
Need more than one language?
YES: Go to a dedicated agency.
Need auditions of your script fast?
YES: Post the project on a voice-over marketplace or go to an agency.
Need a voice-over service in a specific location?
YES: Contact a voice-over service provider in the region – either a production company or exclusive agent.
Need other services, such as translations, audio editing or music mixing?
YES: Contact a voice-over agency or production company that offers these services in addition to voice-over.
Need it cheap as possible?
YES: Go to a general marketplace site but prepare to compromise on quality.
Want it produced quickly with an average > high budget?
YES: Contact a voice-over agency or post the project on a voice-over marketplace site.
Want high calibre, experienced talent or celebrities?
YES: Contact a voice-over agency or exclusive agent. You won’t find this talent easily on marketplace sites.
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