How to Get a Voice Over Job with No Experience (The Complete Guide)
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There is nothing more intriguing than walking in your vicinity and hearing your own voice being played on the radio or the TV. That’s you getting closer to celebrity status. And the only way this can happen to you is by becoming a voice-over artist.
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However, for every job out there, you need the right guide to get started; voice-over is no exception. So in this post, I’ve taken my time to prepare this guide to help you secure your first voice-over job.
Maybe this(voice acting) is your talent, but you don’t know how to make money off it. Perhaps you’ve heard people say that you need to set up a studio and buy a microphone and other tools used by voice-over professionals before you can start this work. Is that true?
How much are you likely to earn working as a voice-over artist? What platforms are best for securing voice-over gigs? If you want answers to these and many more – don’t click away yet, read till the end.
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Even though you are here for the voice-over guide, you may want to check out other easy ways to make money used by our readers. These are easy apps you can install to make money:
Who is a Voice-Over Artist?
So a voice-over artist also known as a voice actor is someone who talks behind the scene without showing his or her face for projects such as documentaries, audiobooks, announcements, commercials, toy stories or animated movies, educational videos including presentations and academic tutorials, video games, and many others.
A voice-over artist is able to work remotely without having to be physically present where a project is taking place – with a microphone and other needed tools, he or she is able to record the voice clip required for the project and get paid afterward.
How Much Money Does a Voice-Over Artist Make?
According to Zippia, Voice-over artists earn an average of $28.06 per hour. That’s about $58,364 per year.
Image Source: Zippia
So when you’re starting, expect this amount of money($28K – $114K per year). But over time you can earn more money. There are voice-over artists who make millions of dollars – Matt Stone, Seth MacFarlane, Trey Parker, Dan Castellaneta, and many others.
How to Get Started In Voice-Over Work
You don’t need to attend the University or get formal training to become a voice-over artist. If you can master your voice technique, securing a voice-over job won’t be difficult. Moreover, you must learn much about your genre and spend time creating demo recordings – also known as demo reels.
Some of the genres you can hone in on are;
- Commercials
- Narration
- Animation
- Trailers
- Announcing
- Promo – etc.
Creating multiple demos can help you demonstrate to clients your abilities. You must also have your demos handy just in case potential clients make requests for them.
Tools Needed For Voice-Over Jobs
If you’re going to start working from home as a voice-over actor, here are some of the tools you need to accomplish your work:
1. A Computer
Although some people use their smartphones when they start voice acting, you need a computer or a laptop for this work. Having a computer will make an audio recording and editing very smooth. If the storage of your computer is small, try getting an external hard drive to store all your voice demos.
2. Microphone
Voice acting is all about your voice so you need a microphone that can capture your crisp voice without the interference of any background noise. The Rode NT1A is the best choice for voice actors.
3. Headphone
Getting a headphone will allow you to listen to your recorded voices to make necessary corrections before you send them out to your clients. The best choice for voice actors is the Sony MDR7506 headphone.
4. Voice Recording and Editing Software
Professional voice actors use voice recording software to get high-quality recordings. Therefore, you also have to get one. Some of the best voice recording software used are Adobe Audition, Audacity, and Pro Tools.
5. Soundproofing
For voice acting, the acoustic of your room is pivotal because it determines the quality of voice recordings you make. So you have to create a studiolike environment. You can pick one of the rooms in your house, and soundproof it with acoustic foam to make your voice recordings high in quality.
Best Voice-Over Course You Should Take
Even if you have the talent, you still need to go through training to start your voice-acting journey. It’s always better to follow a blueprint to fast-track your process rather than subscribing to trial and error.
If you’re looking for a voice-over course or training, I recommend Julie’s free mini-course. Julie is an Audible Approved Producer, she has been voice acting for more than 10 years, and has so far recorded over 100 audiobooks. Her course has been taken by thousands of voice-over artists, who are now making money with their voices.
You can click here to register for Julie Eickhoff’s Voice Over Free Mini Course.
10 No Experience Voice Over Jobs
If you have no experience, here are some of the platforms you can join to get voice-over gigs:
1. Voice123
Image Source: Voices123
One platform on which you can get voice-over gigs with less experience is Voice123. The platform was launched in 2003, and so far has completed over 250,000 projects with its voice actors.
If you sign up for Voice123, you can get the chance to create voice projects for many big brands including – Airbnb, 21st Century Fox, 3M, NBC, The New York Times, and Coca-Cola.
Joining Voice123
Voice123 allows new voice actors to sign up on the site for free. After signing up, you have to complete your user profile. This is very critical because it helps Voice123 to recommend you to clients based on the service they’re looking for.
You must indicate information such as your skills or expertise(commercials, narration, video games, etc), and your background. Also, you must upload some of your voice-over demos or reels so that clients can go through them to see if you’re the right fit.
Even though Voice123 has a free plan, you can upgrade to a paid plan. The most recommended is the one that charges you $395 per year. Of course, you can be on the free plan forever but upgrading will help you get many clients.
Getting Paid On Voice123
You must set your own rate – it’s a negotiation between you and your clients. But expect between $40 and $120 per hour. Once a client agrees to work with you, you can receive payment via any of the following methods;
- PayPal
- Checks
- Wire Transfer
- Credit Card
- Voice123’s Secure Payment system.
2. Voice Crafters
Image Source: Voice Crafters
Voice Crafters is on the list because it’s one of the best platforms for voice actors but you must have some experience in order to get approved. The platform works with big brands like Siemens, Google, UBS, HP, and Taboola. Apart from English-speaking voice actors, Voice Crafters has professionals for 80+ languages including Spanish, Hebrew, Thai, Danish, and Korean – just to name a few.
Joining Voice Crafters
To join Voice Crafters as a voice actor, you must have a minimum of 5 years of voice acting experience. Moreover, you must have your own working space or studio that can make it easy for you to work from home.
If you meet these requirements, then you shall get approved to offer your services on the platform. On Voice Crafters, you can offer services in a wide range of voice-over categories – including:
- Explainer Videos
- PRAM
- Audiobooks
- IVR
- Corporate Videos
- Commercials, etc.
However, at the moment if you’re a voice actor from the U.S. or the U.K., you can’t sign up for Voice Crafters – the platform is accepting only non-English voice actors.
Getting Paid On Voice Crafters
How much you shall get paid depends on the budget of clients that hire you, as well as the kind of projects you complete. Nonetheless, you can make around $100 for smaller projects and $1,000+ for bigger projects.
3. Voices
Image Source: Voices
You can get projects from reputable brands like BMW, Hulu, Microsoft, Shopify, and Cisco – if you sign up as a voice actor for Voices. The platform has more than 2 million voice-over artists across more than 160 countries worldwide. Since 2005, Voices is known as one of the best voice-over sites for voice actors.
Joining Voices
Signing up for Voices is free but on this free plan, you don’t get matched to jobs available – you only get private invites from clients who search deeply to find you. So obviously, if you want to become more visible to clients and get matched to jobs, you have to upgrade to the Premium membership – which comes at $499 per year.
After signing up, make sure you complete your profile stating your background, and work experience, and also including voice-over samples to show clients what you can offer them.
Getting Paid On Voices
Earnings may vary depending on the projects you complete for clients. But you can make $100 to $2,000+ per project. After 14 days of completing the project, you shall get paid to your PayPal account. Voices has a secure payment system that protects your money – it’s called SurePay. With SurePay, you don’t have to worry about late payments.
4. Bunny Studio
Image Source: Bunny Studio
Bunny Studio is another platform that gives the chance to voice-over artists who have experience under their belt. Bunny Studio has voice actors who offer services in more than 100 languages. After joining Bunny Studio, you can get the chance to create voice projects for brands like Atlassian, Hotjar, Airbnb, Sonos, etc.
Joining Bunny Studio
Bunny Studio works just like the other platforms: you just have to sign up and complete your profile to help you get in front of clients who come to the platform to hire voice actors. One cool thing about Bunny Studio is that not only voice actors are on the platform, but there are also graphic designers, translators, transcriptionists, proofreaders, and many more. If you have such skills, you can make extra money on top of voice acting.
Getting Paid On Bunny Studio
Even with no experience, you can charge at least $31 per hour for your services. Bunny Studio allows you to set your rate so clients who contact you may be already prepared to work with you. With over 3 million projects completed and still counting, working for Bunny Studio as a voice-over artist is an obvious way to make some cool money with your craft.
5. Filmless
Image Source: Filmless
Filmless is always looking for freelancers to fulfill tasks like voice acting, animation, photography, graphic design, video production, and many others. Freelancers must have at least 5 years of work experience and must have the basic tools needed to work from home.
Filmless works with brands including Google, Toyota, AT&T, Apple, and Amazon. Therefore, working as a voice-over artist for some of these brands will be worth it.
Joining Filmless
Filmless accepts voice actors worldwide. So you can sign up for free from any location. The platform requires that you have your own studio for voice recording because mostly, their projects have a 24-hour turnaround. In all, if you’re capable of delivering on time, then you can make enough money on Filmless as a voice actor.
Getting Paid On Filmless
Enough money can be made on Filmless if you’re willing to take on big projects and complete them before the deadline. There are clients who will be ready to pay 100% of the money upfront, but some also make half payment before the project and pay the other half after you’re done.
If you’ve been voice acting for more than 5 years, Filmless is a platform you can join to amplify your earnings.
6. Snap Recordings
Image Source: Snap Recordings
Another voice-over platform you can join to take gigs is Snap Recordings. Snap Recordings has been around since 1997 and has more than 100 voice-over artists. There are many big brands that come on Snap Recordings to hire voice actors. Some of these brands are Pepsi, Costco, TD Ameritrade, UCLA, Salesforce, John Hancock, and Taco Bell.
Joining Snap Recordings
To be successful on Snap Recordings, you must be an English, French, or Spanish speaker. Being bilingual or multilingual will even broaden your scope. Once you have been approved, you can take voice-over gigs.
Snap Recordings is popularly known for creating voice-over recordings for business telephone systems – so you will be creating projects on phone greetings and voice prompts, music and message on hold, and everything in between for clients on the platform.
Getting Paid On Snap Recordings
For a single project, the minimum amount you can get paid is $50. In fact, you can earn around $220 for big projects. So if you’re good at what you do, and can record projects very fast – you can make good money after every week. Every so often, Snap Recordings has job openings for voice-over artists so you can apply to join the platform.
7. Amazon ACX
Image Source: Amazon ACX
Amazon ACX accepts voice-over artists to convert books into audiobooks to be listened to by book fanatics. If you love reading, this should be a very interesting way to make money while gaining knowledge and entertainment. The audiobooks you create are hosted on platforms like Amazon, Audible, and iTunes.
Joining Amazon ACX
You can sign up as a voice-over artist on Amazon ACX for free. The only things needed are your name, email, and a secure password. After signing up, you must complete your profile by uploading voice samples you have recorded previously. Once this is done, you shall be matched to voice gigs on Amazon ACX – which you can complete for money.
Getting Paid On Amazon ACX
If you have no experience, you can earn $50 to $100 per hour creating voice projects for clients on Amazon ACX. Nevertheless, as you become an experienced voice actor you can earn up to $500 per hour.
But one thing you should know is that you receive 40% of the deal if you distribute your recordings exclusively to Audible, iTunes, and Amazon. On the other hand, if you distribute your work non-exclusively, you only keep 25% of your earnings.
8. FlexJobs
Image Source: FlexJobs
FlexJobs is a job-hunt website that was launched in 2007 by Sara Sutton. The site is mainly known for getting remote jobs from across the globe – so you can search on FlexJobs to get many voice-over gigs.
Joining FlexJobs
Joining FlexJobs to secure voice-over gigs is not free. The minimum amount you have to pay as a member is $6.24 per week – that’s $24.95 for one month(this is the popular plan on the site). For me, paying such money is fair if you look at the number of voice-over jobs you can secure on the site within that 30 days.
But in order to secure a voice-over gig on FlexJobs, you must have at least one year of voice-over experience.
Getting Paid On FlexJobs
Voice-over gigs usually pay around $100 per project. There are situations where you may earn more than that amount – for instance if your project is bulky. All the same, at all times you have to negotiate with your clients for better deals.
9. Upwork
Image Source: Upwork
Upwork is one of the well-established freelance websites out there. The site has many voice-over job openings you can apply for. As a voice-over artist on Upwork, you can apply for voice-over gigs related to audiobooks, video games, commercials, animations, etc.
Joining Upwork
The good thing about Upwork is that it is available globally – so you can join from any location. Also, you don’t have to pay any subscription fee when signing up for the platform. However, you have to pay commissions with 20% of your earnings after every gig you complete.
Register today on Upwork, and complete your profile. After that, browse the site and apply for voice-over gigs that have been posted by clients. Once a client accepts your application, you can negotiate the pay and continue from there.
Getting Paid On Upwork
On Upwork, you can get paid an hourly rate or a fixed rate – it depends on each client. All the same, for the hourly rate – expect an average of $30 per hour. But for a fixed rate, you can earn up to $400 per project or even more than that. Upwork is an excellent freelancing platform so it’s one of the best sites to get voice-over jobs.
10. Fiverr
Image Source: Fiverr
You can also take voice-over jobs on Fiverr. Fiverr is one of the best online freelance marketplaces out there. The platform was founded in 2010 and it is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel. With freelancers making money every month on Fiverr, you can join the site to get your share of the cake.
Joining Fiverr
Joining Fiverr is simple: create your seller account and select voice acting as your gig. You can offer voice services in English, Spanish, French, and many other languages if only you have a good command of the language.
Moreover, it is important to complete your profile by giving a brief description of the kind of voice service you offer(it can be commercials, audiobooks, promo, and many more). The good thing about Fiverr is that creating a seller account is totally free.
Getting Paid On Fiverr
You are in control of your rate on Fiverr. So once you complete your account, set your asking rate. The minimum amount you can charge per gig on Fiverr is $5. Depending on the quality of your voice-over services, you can charge more than $120 per gig.
So there is more money to make on Fiverr. However, Fiverr deducts 20% of your earnings as commission. Several payment methods you can use to withdraw your earnings are;
- PayPal
- Bank Transfer
- Direct Deposit.
Manuelo is an entrepreneur and a personal finance nerd. He is the founder of Dollars And Freedom. An expert in side hustles, online gigs, and everything about making money. His works have been featured on major financial publications, like Business Insider, GoBankingRates, Investopedia, Entrepreneur, and more. When he’s not busy with his blog or writing for others, you’ll catch him hanging out with loved ones or reading books on stoicism and self-development.
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