How to Make a Voice Over Demo

Voice over demos is something that will either make or break your ability to get new clients and snap some nice contracts. Through the year we will review hundreds of submissions and only a small handful will ever be selected to work with us here at Music Radio Creative. So what makes great voice over demo? What are the actions that create 80% of the success?

You can have the best voice in the world – if your demo stinks, so does your ability to attract new clients.

Variety of Voice Over Styles

When you start recording as a voice over you usually find your comfort zone. That one or two recording styles that you feel always at home with. Friendly next door guy, the happy girl etc. You know what I am talking about! That one delivery that pays 80% of the bills?

In your demo it is important that you demonstrate the whole range of your vocal abilities. Don’t hold back! Whilst there is nothing wrong with sitting in a niche, producer wants to work with highly flexible voices able to deliver more than a box standard. Your demo needs to showcase that well.

Showcase variety of emotions and moods you can get into: anger, excitement, fear, happiness, sadness, sensuality etc.

Demonstrate Raw Voice First

The very first piece of recording on your demo should be a raw voice. This is to demonstrate your recording quality without any music or sound effects to distract. It also showcases the raw potential of the voice. This piece doesn’t have to be very long. It just needs to be friendly, approachable and to the point.

I often hear in the demos the first recording being one that belongs to a huge client. I get that you would like to show that you worked with a big client but in my personal opinion that’s really not something that should be the first item on the menu so to speak. The moment you start looking for the biggest client you ever worked with you are loosing sight of what matters here – and that is your ability to grab attention fast. Please remember that producers are not really that interested in your past track record – they really want to find good, talented and flexible people to work with. Past record is not always a good indication of that.

Produce Material Specifically for a Demo

This really shouldn’t be such a shame point! I don’t see anything wrong with having material produced 100% for demo purposes. As long as you work here with a good producer who can direct you and take the best out of your voice – go for it! Just remember to keep your focus on delivering a variety of styles.

Tag a Custom Message at the Start of the Demo

My favourite demos have a custom recorded message at the start to the producer. Those that do their research and target specific person in our organisation always score brownie points. As a producer I feel that I am then obligated to listen to the whole piece. If somebody made an effort to say “Hey Izabela, hope you enjoy my demo – have a great day” and the start of their demo – what kind of person would I be if I didn’t at least listen properly!? It’s just a nice touch and shows your attention to detail rather than the typical “copy-pasters” we get most of the time.

How Much Does It Cost to Have a Demo Made?

If you are paying more than £300 per 90 sec demo – you should shop around some more. I personally feel that this is about right and represents the right value. There are many services that offer this kind of product – make sure to choose a company or individual who has a good industry reputation and can work with you to deliver demo that will suit your needs and be able to demonstrate the quality. If you need help with this – we do work with voice over artists and can help you with making a voice over demo. Simply drop us a like to help@musicradiocreative.com and we can discuss your needs from there.

What in your opinion works when it comes to a great sounding demo? Looking for inspiration? Browse hundreds of voice over demos.

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