Making Your Voiceover Demo Stand Out

Going back through numerous emails and CD’s of voiceover demos recently, I realized that many of the names I did not recognize. In fact only a hand full rang a bell and only 1 or 2 did I use regularly. I reviewed those individuals demos again as well as some of the others that I did not recognize. It became apparent quite quickly why I had chosen the ones that I had based on their demos and why I produced voice demos for actors the way that I do.

In most cases, it was not necessarily the voice (although sometimes it was) that prompted my call, but more often it was the fact that there was a wide range of material displayed in a very short amount of time. Almost none of the ones that I selected sent me separate demos displaying different styles, but one short demo displaying the best of the best across the spectrum. There was almost always a humorous section and in all cases they made me smile. The demos that were selected all evoked an emotion in me of one kind or another and made me feel a genuine connection with the artist. None of the demos that I selected contained an intro or exit that gave me the artist name or booking information, but the demos that were selected all contained the artist name in text on the file itself.

One of the most memorable demos that I remember hearing was from a voice actor that was very good with many dialects. He performed a roundtable discussion with each of his voices playing a different character. It was well written and was absolutely hilarious. I still refer him to studios to this day and submit his demo for him.

Demos are subjective to anyone listening to them, I am simply sharing what “sells” me on the voice actor. Some of my likes are different than what is considered the norm, but I’m sure that I am not alone in some of my demo preferences. Here is a list of what I consider a standout demo:

• Quick and to the point - I receive many demos and want to get the most from them in the shortest amount of time possible. I generally prefer no longer than 2 minutes maximum.

• Establish an emotional connection – Demos should be done in a fashion that the person listening to it is really getting to know the voice actor. After all the hope is that you will work with the person you are sending the demo to, they need to like you.

• Make them smile – Whether it’s cute, cuddly or funny, the listener needs to smile when they hear the demo.

• Use a music bed – Don’t go overboard, but music helps create the emotion. I especially liked the ones that felt well thought out in music selection for each section. Don’t just throw a generic sound bed down for the sake of having one there.

• Don’t oversell yourself – I don’t know why, but when I hear demos that say the artists name more than once (or at all), it turns me off. A good cover letter should cover this aspect. I’m not writing down the booking information from the demo itself.

• Use Metatags if sending mp3s – This will display all of the information needed about the artist in text in most computerized players. Many of the demos I received as mp3s simply said “voice demo.mp3”.

Finally, of the ones that I selected that might not have initially caught my attention, I realized another fact; they had all called me over a period of months and built a relationship with me before I had ever used them. They made me know them before I used them. I knew that they wanted to work, they were serious about their craft and really had an interest in the type of work that I was doing. This speaks volumes about marketing yourself and branding yourself as a voice actor. In many cases, I didn’t even go back over their demos before calling them to work on a project with me.

The craft of voiceover is truly a beautiful one and one that does a lot for many enterprises in today’s world. Demos are the entry point into any project or studio and need to be as strong as possible. Please feel free to share your comments as well below.