A voice-over is the term used to describe a situation where a voice is heard without seeing someone’s lips really moving in synch with the vocalization. Sometimes a voiceover actor’s job is to replace somebody else’s voice and then the sound technician has to sync the voice in production. Nonetheless, frequently you will hear voice-over work in radio commercial messages, TV commercials and nowadays, increasingly, on the internet. They can be used for industrials, radio and TV commercial messages, broadcast announcements, stories, cartoons, instructional recordings, multi-media, phone message services, etc.

The performer of a voiceover is termed a voice talent or voice actor. Good voice over artists are highly talented people who take you in, interject life into the script and engage your mind. They may only be used to direct your call or to tell you a narrative or to inform you – but they do it with charm, enthusiasm and skill. If you engage the services of a good voice talent, you will find that they take your direction and criticism well as they look at your sales copy or script and transform it into a performance to be proud of.

If you are trying to market a project and decide that the way ahead is to engage the services of topnotch voice talent, then you will obviously be looking for someone with skill and experience. You could go dirt cheap and ask a “friend” to do it, but it will cost you in lost sales compared to a professional voice-over artist who will be a real promote to your selling campaign. Identify and search for the key traits that distinguish top drawer voice over artists from the drab and mediocre.