Will Voice for Cash: How to Earn a Living as a Full-time Voice Actor

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Money money money… moooooney!

(You better have sung that out loud or so help me…)

Money. It’s not the sole motivation for my work, but it’s a lot easier to enjoy my job when my bills are paid and my belly is full.

It’s not easy making a full-time income as a voice actor, but it is doable. Everyone’s different, so this may not all apply to everyone, but here’s some general advice based on my experience as a full-time voice actor for the last two years.

Don’t sell yourself — or the industry — short

Full-time freelancing goes hand-in-hand with an often unpredictable income, and with that comes the fear that every job may be your last.

The problem with this attitude is it breeds two nasty temptations:

  • Undercutting the industry

  • Undercutting yourself

You can perform these both knowingly and unknowingly.

You knowingly undercut the industry when you quote well beneathe industry standard, either on P2P sites, via direct contact, or — most dubiously — when you bypass the official casting channels for a job and pitch a lower rate directly to the client.

Ultimately, you lower the standard for the entire industry and encourage clients to pitch increasingly unlivable rates for EVERYONE.

Don’t be that guy… nobody likes that guy.

Furthermore, you uknowingly undercut yourself.

You may think you’re real smart, securing the client at a lower rate, but you’re ensuring you’ll never earn a living wage with that client. You’re working at a tenth of the price so now you need to find 9 more clients to supplement your income.

In this economy? Good luck, pal!

‘But Rhe, I’ll just earn their trust and then bump up the rate’ you cry! Too late, kiddo; you’ve established for this client just how cheap it is to go and find someone else.

If you’re prepared to undercut your fellow voice actors, there will always be someone prepared to undercut you.

Now, I was careful early on to ensure I didn’t undercut my fellow voice actors.

However, I was knowingly undercutting myself.

I used reputable rate guides, but I worked at the lowest end of the pay bracket provided.

Guides like:

I figured, ‘I’m new. I’m nobody. I have no right asking for more’.

This sounds harmless, but I was producing a high quality of (time-intensive) work at bargain prices, and I didn’t adjust my rates as I continued to work with long-term clients. This meant I had to take more jobs to fill the deficit and I had less time to improve my studio/craft/resources.

Clients value people who value themselves.

When I finally started asking for more money, I was suprised to find I was offered more jobs. Commerical and corporate clients were especially more likely to employ me when I pitched higher rates.

Now here’s the terrible part. At times, I unkowningly undercut the industry, and I’m not proud of myself.

I trusted certain production companies to pitch fair rates for projects, and I didn’t question them about those rates or the usage.

(FACEPALM)

Not everyone in this industry will treat you fairly, and they’ll happily take advantage of your naievity.

So here are a few red flags to look out for and ensure you’re paid correctly:

  • Vague or no mention of usage

    If they don’t imediately offer when, where, and for how long the audio will be used, ask. If they then skirt around the subject or ‘keep forgetting’ to check with the client, that’s sus. Don’t record anything until you have the usage in writing.

  • Agression or condescension when you question the given rates

    If the rate is below industry standard, be brave and bring it up (you can send them the rate guides I mentioned earlier). If they come back with something along the lines of ‘this is what we pay all of our talent’ or ‘this is the acceptable rate, trust us’, walk away.

    I queried one company after I found out they’d cheated me out of my usage on a commerical, and they demanded an immediate skype call where they berated me with ‘who told you that? They’re liars!’

    They also attempted to intimidate and guilt me into taking another heinously underpaid job.

    Needless to say, I didn’t work with them again.

  • A lack of engagement from other VA’s

    If you see a seemingly awesome casting on a social or P2P website, and there’s very litte interaction, there’s probably a reason. We have an amazing community with a wealth of experience — if a casting looks off, ask your fellow VA’s.

  • Rosters and freelance websites with extremely low ‘set’ rates

    Folks will often ask you to share your rates. They may also offer their rates and encourage you to match them. Always check their rates against the industry standard, and if they’re below that, don’t match them.

    One website said that if I matched their rates they would feature my profile more prominently; meanwhile they had a flat fee for televsision commericals…

    So, dear reader, I did not match their rates.

Basically, if you want to thrive financially, don’t undercut yourself.

And if you want to thrive finacially for the long haul, dont’t undercut the industry.

DIVERSIFY THAT INCOME

I know we shouldn’t play favourites, but we all do… don’t we?

Some of us love commercials, while others love anime dubbing! I, myself, adore voicing games. However, I work everywhere that will have me — and geniunely LOVE the variety.

You got a corporate explainer that needs narrating? I’m here.

How about an eLearning module about fractions? I’m all over it (and below it).

A Kickstarter promo video? I’ll kick its butt!

There is work EVERYWHERE.

If you limit yourself to one field — whether that be commericials, games, animation, narration — you are limiting your income.

Now, this doesn’t mean it can’t be done, and some people do very well hyper-specializing in one field. Good for them!

However, I find my work ebbs and flows nicely across multiple genres.

When I’m having trouble finding video game auditions, I can always pick up a cheeky corporate gig or two to pass the time. Sometimes I lose myself in a long-form narration job for a couple of weeks, and resurface to find a lovely little eLearning module (compliments of one of my long-term clients).

You can voice everything from:

  • Medical explainers

  • IVR (automated phone systems)

  • Educational materials for children & adults

  • Corporate case studies

  • Mobile games

  • Escape room narration

  • Toys

  • Meditations

I’m always delighted by the range of auditions out there. You never know what the next day will bring!

If you’re starting out and focusing exclusively on training in anime dubbing but you’re hoping to make full-time career out of voice acting, please consider training your commerical and corporate skills too.

Learn to love as many types of voice over as you can, and there will always be work for you.

Repeat clients are your best friends

Make yourself so re-hirable it’s disgusting.

How do you do that?

Deliver High Quality Work

Make sure your audio is clean, quiet and as error-free as possible. You can do this by investing in quality equipment, and getting into the habit of checking your work before you send it off.

If you’re performing long-form audio, you may consider investing a little money in a proof-listnener or editor to ensure you don’t miss anything.

Even if they don’t mention it, clients remember quality.

Fast Turnarounds

Always establish a dealine with your client for clarity, and then do your best to deliver BEFORE that dealine, if you’re able.

This will exceed their exptations and establish you as a reliable voice to call on when they’re in need of an urgent turnaround.

Polite and Efficient Communication

Check your emails regularly and do your best to respond to your clients within 24 hours (during you working hours). Use clear, concise, and considerate language; they’re on the clock and don’t have time to decipher paragraphs.

Once you’ve been with a client for a while, you may get more comfortable sharing little jokes and personal details like holidays and weekend plans, but always read the room — not everyone may appreciate your penchant for spicy language. (That is very much directed at me).

Keep them updated on the progress of a project if necessary. For example, let them know if you fall ill and need a couple of days to recover. Most are happy to give you the time, but you MUST keep them in the loop.

Clients are busy and we are a small part of greater projects — make their lives easy by responding quickly and courteously, and they will hold you in high esteem.

Be Confident

You are the specialist in your field — clients come to you because you are the expert — so act like it.

When they ask a question, answer it confidently. If you don’t know the answer, google it!

And make sure you social media and wesbite refelct that professionalism. Keep your materials and links up to date.

Present yourself as a professional, and clients will respect you as one.

Follow Up

After a project, ask the client for a testimonial. Encourage them to give you feedback on your performance.

This is great material for your website (if it’s positive lol), and shows the client you genuinely care about the service you provided.

You can then shoot them an email a few months later and ask:

  • How are you going?

  • Did the project go well? Is it released?

  • Do you have any projects coming up that I can help with?

Another wonderful way to keep in touch is via their socials. Comment on their projects and celebrate their wins…

Clients remember voice actors that genuinely engage with them and care about their work.

Now, not all clients need voice over all the time — don’t harass an indie dev to cast you in their next project when they’re still working on their first game.

A corporate video production sutdio however, may have regular need of your services, so do harass them (politely).

Be a grown up

I’m aware the heading here is a little condescending, but it’s mostly for myself.

Set Those Goals

If you’re hopeless with money, invest in an accountant or finacial advisor.

If you can’t afford one, or prefer to manage it yourself, take responsibility and LEARN how to manage your money.

Be realistic and set serious financial goals — make sure you can cover your monthly bills AND save with whatever number you set for yourself.

Make sure you can cover:

  • Rent/Home repayments

  • Utilities

  • Insurance

  • Food

  • Entertainement

  • Ongoing Training and Equipement Costs

  • Loan Repayements

  • Sick Pay

It’s worth ensuring you have a decent chunk of savings before you go full-time, or at least a healthy collection of regular clients to ensure a baseline income.

Tell people what you’re doing

If you live in a multi-income household, make sure the other earners understand and are okay with you taking on the risk of full-time freelancing.

If people are relying on you for financial assisstance (such as dependents), have an exit strategy for if everything falls apart.

I still ocassionally take on background work in TV and films to boost my wages in quieter months.

It’s not the dream, but back-ups save lives, and money woes can destroy valuable relationships.

the boring stuff

Once I was earning well, I had to get my head around managing regular pension contributions, paying off my student debt, and keeping a nice chunk of change aside for tax time.

It’s not sexy, but facing these financial realities is important.

Keep it all monitored in spreadsheets or accounting software and check in REGULARLY!

The urge to ignore my spreadsheet when the money is looking a little low can be overpowering, but I detach my emotions and self-worth from the whole conversation and just get it done.

Because I’m a grown up, dammit.

Now Go out there and get rich!

Or get by comfortably, that’s what I do.

This is by no means an exhaustive or exclusive collection of advice, but I hope it helps.

Going full-time is scary. You have to have a lot of faith AND a good head on your shoulders.

Don’t shy away from the anxiety-inducing financial side of things. Read up. Learn how to run your business. Get excited about it.

You’re going to kill it!