VOICE-OVER CAREER

As Voice-Over's Wild West Landscape

Gets Wilder, It's Survival Of The Savviest

December 11, 2018

By J. Michael Collins By J. Michael Collins Voice Actor & Coach

A few weeks ago, Red Dead Redemption 2 was released to the world, featuring the voices of roughly half of our friends and colleagues (and much congratulations to them for their amazing work.)



This Old West-themed video game takes place across a stunning landscape where law and order is more theory than fact, and where those who don't keep their wits about them often find themselves in a pine box.



The VO industry is a bit less cutthroat, thank goodness.



We tend to support each other rather than fire our Smith and Wessons into our competitor's backs, and identifying the guys with the black hats isn't all that tough.



LOTS OF FOOL'S GOLD



The evolution of our business, however, bears a lot of resemblance to a world where there are few maps, fewer rules, and a lot of fool's gold.



It seems like we've been waiting for the better part of a decade for some order to emerge from the chaos, like ...

The union taking a firm guiding hand and imposing structure on the industry.

A major Internet-age player consolidating the online space to create a dominant clearinghouse, hopefully operating on a meritocratic and transparent basis.

Someone to lead us out of the wilderness and establish order. But those things aren't coming. The union remains too focused elsewhere, and too sclerotic in its processes, despite the best efforts of some of the leading lights in our industry.



It's been demonstrated that even with millions of dollars, consolidating the online space is too much for any industry company to bite off.



And the business is saturated with gurus and messiahs ranging from the truly career-shaping to purveyors of the foulest snake oil, but none of whom have a one-size-fits-all answer for everyone.



TODAY: A WILDER WEST



The West is getting wilder. In the new VO landscape, one gun won't keep your career safe.



If all your eggs are in online casting, with a single agent or three, relying on SEO or strictly your own self marketing, you're at a disadvantage.



Agents are under pressure due to declining broadcast rates and an over-saturation of talent in the LA & NYC markets in particular. They are still the gatekeepers of the best work, but competition is fierce.



ONLINE CASTING BASKET



Online casting is morphing into an ever-more-diverse space featuring everything from honest matchmaking-only sites with numerous great jobs, to corporate profit-centers, to start-ups, fly-by-nights, and gig-economy soul traps where you trade your voice for beer money.



Figuring which is which is no easy task, especially if you don't follow the constant buzz churn on social media.



To effectively gain traction through online casting, mastering at least two or three sites is essential. No single site will sustain a career, and the risk of having your income heavily weighted in a single marketplace that may fail, run into reputational/ethical issues, or experience other shocks is to be avoided.



SELF-MARKETING & SEO



Self-marketing and cold-calling are the answer for many, but cold leads by definition pan out less frequently than hot leads, and not everyone has the personality or constitution to pick up the phone and sell themselves while experiencing mostly rejection.



Cold-call clients can be loyal and lucrative, but it can take dozens of approaches before landing one, and discipline is key.



The growing number of curatorial-minded buyers forsaking both traditional hiring avenues and online casting is a great source of walk-in work through your website, but SEO is a fine art that usually requires hiring a pro, and even the best-SEO'd sites only lead to a handful of walk-in jobs per week.



It's enough to give a gunslinger fits.



WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING



Things aren't going to change, folks, at least not for the time being.



Unless and until the union or a much bigger online beast (think Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc.) invests the dozens or even hundreds of millions necessary to structure and dominate the voice-over industry, the West will continue to grow wilder.



We're a friendly lot, but we are playing at survival of the fittest and savviest, and if you want your career to be as strong or stronger five years from now than it is today, it's time to saddle up and make sure you keep your wits about you.



The VO world will only continue to change.

Stay diversified.

Keep your eyes three to five years down the road.

Anticipate what's next.

If you see the entire industry moving one way, see what might be down the opposite road, or at least off a side path. Change is the only constant. Are you ready? ---------------------------

ABOUT J. MICHAEL

J. Michael Collins is a multi-award winning voice actor, coach and demo producer with over 20 years of full time experience. Renown for his business savvy, J. Michael has helped hundreds of voice talents develop careers ranging from the classic LA/union path to the ever expanding world of online casting. With a keen eye for the latest trends, and a deep sense of community spirit, teaches how to find success without compromising your value.





Web: Email: jmichael@jmcvoiceover.com Web: www.jmcvoiceover.com



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