REBECCA HAUGH Female Voice Actor

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Rebecca@lovethatrebecca.com

310-584-7379

ASAP Voiceover Quote

Reigniting Old-Fashioned Thank You’s

business, celebrate, creative professionals, small business, voiceover

bright lights spelling Thank You

Optimism in a Tradition

I re-started a company tradition in November 2019: Hand writing thank you notes to first time clients. People don’t do that much anymore, with our keyboards and computer devices. Saying a formal ‘thank you‘ to new clients after delivering excellent voiceover continues a new relationship graciously. Anyone else write real thank you notes in today’s world besides me? Tell me. Relatively, I think I’m safe to say I am in a small group doing this.  Based on the fun replies, my clients notice.

This tradition exists for several reasons. One, it’s good for business, sealing new relationships  memorably. Two, it’s fun to write with my hand using a real pen on real paper. (I used to have a thing for calligraphy too. There really is a visual artist within me.) Three, it’s a positive celebration of collaboration (and celebrating achievements is also a company goal). This tradition gives me great joy.

How’d this all start?

Early in my voiceover plus on-camera career, there was a lot more person to person meeting up. Thank you cards were extra effort, but, were appropriate and recommended. Some years into my career, my focus became solely voiceover. Everyone evolved as business morphed radically with the internet expansion. In person meetings fell away, with email and on-line activity replacing them.

Even if it’s an extra effort, I like writing cards and saying thank you. The personal touch of new meetings via Zoom isn’t the same either. Physically putting pen to paper, and for a moment, switching from digital devices to physical implements is tangible goodness. So in November 2019, I decided to bring back my old tradition.

Printing branded cards, I was set and haven’t looked back. My hands always write them. I don’t care if it’s cursive or some mix in between. Fetish or not, I like the touch of a smoothly rolling ballpoint pen on real card stock paper and it’s matte surface. I fondly consider the collaboration as I write, noting something specific that was special. It is physical creation in the end, another creative expression.

Do I go to the post office every time?

Fortunately or unfortunately, no. I take a simple photo of the card on a good background, cleaning up lighting and composition with a photo editor. Next I send it digitally in email, through the internet to my newest business collaborator. The idea of going to the Post Office when the pandemic started was a safety issue, being what we knew then. It’s either closed or crowded, now that it’s safe, so – still a hassle.

Regardless, I want immediate gratification for my client. The US Postal service speed of delivery has been hammered in the last couple years, which makes digital delivery expedience and avoiding crowds at the local postal office preferred. *Thank you Internet of things... who do I send that card to?

Overall Positive Impact

Sending thank you notes is sharing optimism. It sets the stage well, showing appreciation for being selected in a competitive market. Each time my very special, unique, thank you card, I consider this.

Sending the note as quickly after voiceover audio has been approved has more impact. Send it as soon as possible. In a way, it’s like sealing up my VO with a professional, congenial, unique, memorable bow.

I have a stack containing every single thank you card that I write. It’s a kind of a visual metric for my effort. It’s hard to take a photograph and help you see what that looks like. There are over 100 cards. Below is my best attempt at a pic.

The big picture?

It’s creating optimism in new relationships. Looking forward and back at the same time. Looking at what was done, how it felt and how it went. I feel a sense of accomplishment and appreciation with every card I write, and it grows with the stack. And that, my friends, feels great. I think my clients feel it too.

thank you cards spread into a u shape, showing quantity

 

Filed Under: business, celebrate, creative professionals, small business, voiceover Tagged With: improv, improvisation, thank you, voice actor, voice talent, voiceover

Make a Fortune in your Pajamas?

business, celebrate, creative professionals, small business, voiceover

The State of Voiceover Fortunes in Pajamas: 2021

So many people were jealous of remote workers – working from home – in PJs no less!! That’s the silly concept anyway. Maybe that’s true for some people. For me, I do like to get dressed for my day. Comfy clothes – that’s a story for another blog!

Pajamas aside… Can you make a fortune as a voice actor?

Back in 2017, there was public information about the global voiceover market, touting it to be $4.4 billion USD with $800 million of that in North America. This was based on 2015 data and includes the full scope of money put into voiceover spending, not all of which lands in the voice actor’s bank due to production companies, managers, talent agents, etc.

What’s some real workforce data about being a voice actor?

Voice actors independently choose their path and, even if we know our own statistics, how do we compare to a larger swath of voice actors? We already know that the big money is in animated TV and film and that some of us may get there. We also know that corporate videos, advertising, audiobooks and eLearning are where most of the work is, overall.

Voice actors do chatter about not having data, in social media groups and amongst ourselves at conferences. But it’s all anecdotal. And as we turn the corner into the 2020s, technology is growing up and disrupting some of the human work of voiceover. So probably there have been lots of changes since 2015 data. Personally I can buy current voiceover market data as it was presented in 2017, but I would have to pay at least $3000 for research data access. Not gonna happen.

A group of voice actors conducted a survey to get real, present-day overall statistics of the voiceover acting workforce.

It’s a beginning, and it’s exciting. The data was gathered Jan-Feb 2021 regarding activity in 2020. Mid-2021, their first free, public report about “the state of voiceover” was released.  I want to give a roaring shout-out to the folks at Voice Actors of NYC and their associates who showed excellent initiative and created this framework as an extraordinary view into our individually stitched-together world.

Being the first assessment of its nature that I’m aware of, I think they started with the correct fundamental approach and topics about the voice actor profession. Additionally, the data collected seems good. Here’s what they said about the data collection process: “The most encouraging trend we saw in the data collection process was that the results stayed roughly the same after we reached 250 responses. From the 250th response to the 1244th response, the data was nearly unchanged. This tells us we have a fairly representative sample of voice actors.”

I’ve highlighted these key results here: Annual Income, Expertise Level, Genre of work, Union impact, Covid19 impact, Locations, Auditions, Talent Agent impact.

Gross Income of All in 2020

The majority of respondents, 48%, earn $8K or less, with less than 2% earning over $350K.  (K=thousand)

  • 37% earn between $8-40K
  • 10.3% earn between $40-75K
  • 9% earn between $75-150K
  • 5.6% earn over $150K with 1.9% earning over $350K
graph of overall income in voiceover
Overall Income, courtesy Voiceover Survey

Gross 2020 Income by Experience Level

You have to be a professional level to earn at least living wage, overall.

  • $8K or less per year: 94% Beginner, 72% Intermediate, 20% Pro
  • $75K+ per year: 0 Beginners, 0.8% Intermediate, 27.4% Pro

Experience Level & Union Status

The majority of respondents are non-union.

  • 52% Pro. Of these, 49% non-union
  • 32% Intermediate. Of these, 81% non-union
  • 16% Beginner. Of these, 89% non-union

Type of genres voiced most often

  • Commercials
  • Narration
  • E-Learning
  • Explainers

Union Work

  • 75% full union earned $75K or less
  • 15% tried to convert work to union, more than half of these found it challenging and confusing

Covid19 Impact

  • 41% of voice actors had increased income in 2020 vs 2019, regardless of Union status. By experience level, Intermediate and Pro also saw the majority of income growth.
  • 74% already had a home studio.

Voice actor locations

  • Los Angeles area (17%)
  • New York City area (30%)
  • 53% live outside either area

How many auditions typically submitted per day?

  • 70% do zero to four auditions
  • Only 3% do 15+

Note: By experience level, Pros generally do more auditions on a daily basis.

Overall daily:

Percent Income from Talent Agents

  • 41% respondents receive 0% income from Agents
  • 18% receive 1-10%
  • 7% receive 100%

Note: 64% have Talent Agency representation; of these, 56% have more than one agent. A majority of Pros have agents, whereas only a quarter of Beginners have agents.

So, can you make a fortune in your pajamas by being a voice actor?

Pajamas? Easy. Fortune? Define that. Can you earn “a very large sum of money”? Can you be rich? According to this survey, less than 2% earned $350K+ in 2020. The majority earned $8-40K. The median household income in the USA for 2020 was $67.5K (statista).

Of course, you can make a fortune – somebody is! But can you make a fortune too? The odds are: no!

According to TheRichest and CelebrityNetWorth websites, the top 10 voice actors, who are uber-talented Hollywood level actors from top TV animated shows, have a net worth between $6 million going up to $500 million. Only if you’re in the top percent, maybe top 0.001%, can you earn a ‘fortune’.

A better question: Can you earn a decent living as a voice actor?

Yes. And, not so many people are even doing this. The majority of respondents in this 2020 data earned from $8K-40K, which is less than the median household income for the USA in 2020.

What is a decent living? That depends where you live, if you are also sharing a life with others, have dependents…. Again, define that and then look at the data. Yes, working from home is lovely and has it’s perks and drawbacks.

I think the most important thing is to look at the priorities of life, and how you want to live it. Can you run your own business by putting in the time and energy to develop your skills while you do what you can to build a clientele?

Feel free to contact me with specific questions or thoughts. I look forward to it.

You can find all the data from the survey here: https://www.voiceoversurvey.com/.  Many thanks for the graphical images courtesy of this survey.

Filed Under: business, celebrate, creative professionals, small business, voiceover Tagged With: business building, Trends, voice actor, voice talent, voiceover

Celebrating Client Gems of Wisdom

business, celebrate, creative professionals, production, small business, voiceover

 

10 Years!

I’m celebrating my tenth year working from home as a female-owned small business. I have wonderful clients whom I’ve learned a lot from. They hold a variety of positions, from producers at digital production companies to ad agency creative directors to eLearning instructional designers. I have a wonderful time collaborating on their projects and keeping in touch over the months and years. These long-term business relationships bring insights and gems of knowledge. This blog post celebrates the gems of wisdom that I’ve learned from my dearest clients.

Ask for Auditions

All clients on most continents can ask for a free audition prior to finalizing which voice actor is hired. Listen to your shortlist of voice actors with a few lines of your script. Like me, most voice actors appreciate the audition opportunity – it’s my way to show you how I fit your brand! Fun fact: Before the internet, auditions were actually paid for, and managed via talent agents.

Let’s Share All Details

There are simple but important details associated with hiring voiceover services to ensure everything runs smoothly. Ask for a brief overview when either considering me or having selected me from an audition. Things like audio specs, usage, copyright, timing and invoicing are important. I have a checklist so we can review and finalize all expectations and parameters in writing with full transparency.  Most importantly, no surprises!

Pay How You Want to Pay

I’ve learned it’s important to accept payments from you in a variety of ways, and not frustrate you with mysterious online systems that feel cumbersome. I’ve had to jump through some hoops and get around obstacles, and I’m able to handle most every request. Paypal, Checks, Direct Deposit, Wire Transfer, etc. A client from my old home town, Doug, asked me to share this with VOs:

“Please accept my payment with a plain old check or credit card. I don’t need to sign up for ACH or any esoteric invoice processing system du jour.”

Discuss Relevant Script Background

As appropriate, I’ll ask lots of questions to help qualify what you’re hoping the outcome will be and take suggestions. Many times you can benefit from the broad range of experience that I have, which might improve the piece. Two wonderful clients told me:

“Writers love to talk about their work, and there will be takeaways about the character or scenario that you might not have otherwise got from just the script.” – Anthony

“Every brand, company, etc. has its own ‘voice’. Sometimes, they don’t even know it. But I think a great VO actor will learn what the voice is and be better able to adapt their delivery to match that voice.” – Matt

Communicate When Stuff Goes Wrong

There are moments no one, you or VO actor, can control… weather, technology, personnel changes, and so on. Mother nature can sometimes wreak havoc on a local level, either for the VO or your location. It can also feel like havoc when technology fails us, either through the internet or within local electronics. Layoffs or management turnover can mean my ‘person’ is no longer working for your company. In any of these situations, patience and professionalism are the best recovery systems from small changes to large disasters. This includes everyone doing the best to communicate directly, appropriately, and earnestly.

Some Clients Only Work with a Voice Actor Once

For certain clients, every project is so unique that a new voice is found for each one. It’s a bit dismaying to voice actors like me, who want to cultivate an ongoing relationship and develop recurring work with you. Regardless if the project was super fun, creative and energizing, it doesn’t always mean more work. So, I’ve learned to enjoy the experience within the journey.

“As a small production company, we make an effort to use a variety of voice talent so our website/work doesn’t get repetitive. As much as we would like to find one person to work with and stick with them, it just doesn’t make sense. The unfortunate reality is that every project is unique and we almost never reuse a voice talent unless it’s an ongoing series.” – Scott

No Client-VO Relationship is Forever

Many of my clients have worked with me for many years. And there are client relationships that last only a few years or are based on a finite advertising campaign or branding strategy. I accept the transitory and subjective nature of the work that I receive. I’m also confident and work on my craft, knowing there are new clients on the horizon.

Some Clients Work with a VO Actor Consistently

Let’s end this list on a high note for me! My returning clients are fun because of the personal relationships that develop, and the success of creating voiceover recordings that consistently meet or often exceed my client’s expectations. As we work together, I learn a lot about your needs and deliver accordingly. It’s a professional, mutually collaborative and creative partnership, enjoyable personally and professionally. This is what I strive for.

 

Recently I had a fun conversation with a partner company’s new employee. I shared insights about the VO industry and what it’s like to run a VO Actor business. My history in video production, advertising, cable tv operations sales and marketing all prepared me to run an owner-operated business in voice acting. I’ve learned, stretched, grown on all counts, from audio engineering or VO acting skills, to marketing and all the administration. I started with a dream and continue with lots of support from loved ones, mentors, virtual teams and wonderful clients. Thank you!

Filed Under: business, celebrate, creative professionals, production, small business, voiceover Tagged With: business building, Celebrating10yrs, golden nuggets from 10yrs, producer, production, tips for hiring voice actor, voice actor, voice talent, voiceover

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