A video takes shape through communication and voice over talents give life to a video. Using a voice over talent is a production method. The voice over talent reads from a script, and in some cases, a translated script that used to be spoken by another person, either an actor or another voice over talent.
When using voice overs, the speaking parts are typically prerecorded and later inserted into the video or film. The type of delivery, language and accent of voice overs depend on the requirements of the videos.
Importance of voice overs
There are videos that are only accompanied by a specific soundtrack and on-screen texts. This type of video can be quite effective, but that depends on the purpose of the video. More videos, however, use imagery, music and voice overs, where the elements make the entire video come alive.
Why are voice overs important? You might think that being a voice over talent is an easy task and that anyone can do it. That is far from the truth. Many processes are involved in the video production and choosing the right voice over talents is part of the process. Here are a few reasons why they are important.
- A good voice over aids in giving an easily recognizable imagery that fits the story a very strong visual appeal to any video.
- It helps you pre-plan your video’s voice over talent. Once the storyboard and the script are finalized, you have the time to find the consummate voice for the video.
- The combination of voice over and imagery provides an awesome emotional sensation to the viewers. The theme of the video helps you to choose the right voice over talent to give justice to the project.
- You’ll be able to elicit the right emotion from your viewers. Voice over talents can either be offbeat, dramatic, endearing, light-hearted, serious or funny.
- Voice overs give life to your videos. Why have a boring video when you can give it more zest. Using a voice over helps you avoid slowing your video and using filler texts. Make your video more appealing by giving it the right ’emotional voice.’
- You should find the right voice to match the character. For every video project, it is essential that the voice over matches the character, which should also match the character’s physical and outward features. For example, if the character is tall, muscular and tough looking, it will be good to find a voice over actor whose voice is rich and deep, to give the typical impression of a strong and manly person.
- A voice over actor gives sense to your video. A good voice over talent delivers the script correctly, ensuring that the audience understands the true purpose of the video. It could be due to the delivery of the message or because the message is spoken in a specific language with the right tone and accent.
Current trends
In the past, several of the voice over talents were legitimate actors in the movie and television industry. Most of them did voices for cartoon characters and various characters in video games.
Who can forget Mel Blanc, who provided the voice for a variety of characters including Daffy Duck, Wile E. Coyote, Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird, Dino, Heathcliff, Porky Pig, Barney Rubble and so much more? There’s Dan Castellaneta (Homer Simpson, Grampa Simpson), Tom Kenny (Spongebob Squarepants), Charlie Adler (Starscream, M.O.D.O.K., Super-Skrull, Dr. Doom, etc.) and Casey Kasem (Shaggy, Cliffjumper) just to name a few.
The trend for the voice over industry today includes an increase in the demand for their services, the need for more real-sounding voices and personification.
Here are some of the things you should know:
- Generally, clients demand more real sound from voice over talents.
- There is an increase in the demand for voice overs for online videos.
- Voice overs should include ‘acting’ in their voice over skills.
Voice overs are used almost everywhere but audiences do not pay too much attention to them unless they are grossly bad. Hiring a talented voice over talent can push your video towards success.
Today, so many changes and positive developments are happening in the voice over industry.
Did you know that the demand for accents is increasing? Moreover, the need for non-English voice overs today is far greater than the need for voice overs in English. Based on job postings, the demand for non-English voice over talents has grown to 60%, overtaking the demand for English-speaking voice over talents, which only reached 43%.
Right now there is still a gap between the male and female voice over talents, which favors the men. However, since four years ago, the demand for female voice over talents has increased. 2018 acts like the incubation period, as the industry predicts that by 2025, the demand for female voice overs will far exceed the demand for male talents.
Voices.com released a report for the 2018 voice over trends in advertising and marketing, which is very interesting.
Here are some of the highlights:
- About 78% of marketers prefer voice over talents who closely match their target audience, including by age group.
- National and international markets increasingly look for localized and nuanced voices such as those who speak regional dialects and the right accent for target languages. This is due to the preference of video audiences for voice overs who sound like they do.
- According to the report, the demand for Australian English accent is 22%, the highest among the language accents. British English accent received 12% while Spanish received 11%. There is a separate demand for Latin American Spanish accent, although it is quite low at 3%. This is followed by Canadian French accent at 3%
- In random order, the most requested languages are Spanish, Latin American Spanish, French, German, Canadian French, Parisian French, Arabic, Japanese, Italian and Chinese. Among these, the fastest growing languages are French, Japanese and Italian.
- Gen X (54%) and millennials (39%) are still the core targets of videos with voice overs. For better audience engagement, talent casters are choosing voice over talents who sound the same age as the videos’ target audiences. While the focus on the two main generations will continue, there is also movement in the senior and baby boomer sectors.
- Video creators and owners are more concerned with audience reactions rather than budget. The focus for this year is on engagement and connection. Therefore, creative people work hard to see to it that their messages resonate well with their target audiences. Casting agents consider various factors, including:
- Talents should be able to form an emotional connection with the audience
- They should be able to add personality to the video
- The talent should match the voice of the brand
- They should manifest the sound of the target audience
- They should be able to awaken the desires of the audience
- In 2018, the client and audience preference is for natural voices. Just like human translators who are able to provide the most accurate translations, the human voice has more potent effect than a computer-generated or synthetic voice.
Trend influencers
If you are a voice over talent, marketer, advertiser, video creator/producer, website owners, talent casters and other individuals or organizations needing voice over talents, there are several things you should know regarding what influence the current trends in voice overs.
- Advertising materials are designed to connect with differ genders in different ways, such as how the ad sounds and looks. Voice overs are essential to tie up all the ad’s elements in a powerful and seamless ad message. Nearly 90% of creative and advertising professionals concur that even if the video project’s elements are perfectly put together, a bad voice over can keep them from achieving the project’s objectives.
- Local feel. The increasing preference for local languages and accents comes from the desire of clients to present a super-local feel to their videos. This move is needed to connect closely with the intended audience. It is also due to the big demand from other countries for English-language tutorial videos. Other companies hire voice talents for various products for teaching English to non-speakers, such as games, toys, programs and apps.
- Need for emotional connectivity. Emotion is one of the factors that can drive a person to make a purchase. It’s the reason why many marketers are capitalizing on this consumer behavior. They want to connect to the audience through voice overs, text or imagery.
- Advertisers no longer ‘talk’ to their audiences; they ‘communicate.’ They want voice overs who sound authentic and real, not a voice over talent who just acts the part.
- Securing the services of an excellent voice over talent is more important than the budget. Clients want a talent that can emotionally connect with audiences, versatile, professional, experienced and knowledgeable in superior production methods.
- Age. This does not mean the real age of the voice over talent but their ability to fit their voice to the targets’ specific age group.
Remember these trends as they will help you heighten your advertising and marketing efforts. Choose the right voice over talent and keep in mind that to engage deeply with your consumers, use natural voices instead of computer-generated voices. Work with a professional language services company that will help you with localization and choosing voice over talents.
Day Translations, Inc. offers voice over services. Our company handpicks the talents for specific projects. Ensure that your video fits your purpose perfectly and satisfies the needs of the target audience. We also provide localization services. Our linguistic experts are native speakers and located in-country, assuring that cultural differences and the nuances of the language are fully considered. You can get in touch with us any time of the day, wherever you are located by calling 1-800-969-6853 or sending us an email at Contact us for a quick quote. We are open every day, 24 a day all year through, so you won’t miss any deadline.
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