By Stephanie Ciccarelli
September 13, 2006
Want to know how we picked the voice for our telephone system?
On July 19th, 2006, we posted our telephone system script for the launch of Voices.com.
The key reasons why we needed a voice-over recorded were:
- A new voice for our company
- New branding for Voices.com
- New script for Voices.com
We posted the job looking for a female voice between the ages of 25-45 with a clean, crisp voice, similar to a Canadian accent or neutral US accent.
Over the first few days, there were less than 40 auditions submitted, which was a bit of a surprise. I'm certain that will be a breath of fresh air to some of you, though :) By the time I had closed the job posting on August 23rd (after our set deadline), there were 70 auditions total after over 30 days of receiving applications.
Each proposal was reviewed and every audition was listened to.
I really liked reading proposals that were addressed to me personally. After reading a personalized proposal, I was excited to listen to the demo, and even more so if a custom demo was referred to in your notes.
Everyone who included custom interpretations of our script impressed me. Your professionalism in many cases resulted in being added to our 'favorites' list to listen to again when final casting decisions were being made.
I have to admit that talent who submitted custom demos and personalized notes were ingrained more clearly in my mind over talent who did not submit custom demos.
On a related note, demos that were of higher quality won favor with us when we were reviewing. Quiet demos or demos set at a lower bit-rate were harder to hear and more difficult to discern talent by.
When it comes to quoting, the main objective of our casting was to find the perfect voice, not a competitive price. We were actively looking at prices between $175-$200, going on the voice alone and paying close attention to dialects.
And, the talent awarded the Voices.com Telephone System was... Kim Somers!
Click here to listen to our auto-attendant and to hear Kim's voice.
A special thank you to everyone who auditioned and grateful thanks to Kim for all of her hard work :)
Best wishes,
Stephanie
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Way to go Kim!
Posted by:Nice job!
Petee
Posted by:Kim,
I agree. You did a very nice job. Very nice. Good for you.
Be well,
Posted by:Bob
What?
No other female VO talents are congratulating Kim? ;-)
Nice Job, Kim! Very clear & smooth, sounds great!
And Stephanie, thanks for the Case Study! It just emphasized the importance of professionalism, following direction and friendliness!
Peace!
Liz
Posted by:Liz de Nesnera
"Voice Tracks Voiced Right!"
Reservoir Road Productions
973-610-2019
lizden@gmail.com
Go Kim Somers!!! Ultra Clear and Beautiful!!!
Congrats!!!
Posted by:Thanks for all the kudos! I just wanted to say that Stephanie and David were great to work for. Clear instructions and good feedback. Thanks for the opportunity!
Kim
Posted by: