Agents: Why Should A Voice Over Agent Represent YOU? Six Ways To Matter, by Rob Marley
VOICE OVER AGENTS
Why Should A Voice Over Agent
Represent YOU? Six Ways To Matter …
April 8, 2016
By Rob Marley
Voice Actor
It
seems like right after the question, “What is the best microphone to use for VO?” the most
often asked question by new and aspiring voice artists is, “How do I
get an agent?”
Recent
advances in technology have made things a lot easier for voice artists,
but the digital nature of the business has also made it more
challenging.
While there is a ton of work out there, the competition for
that work has quadrupled, making it harder for everyone to land the
gigs. Having an agent can help.
NEED AN AGENT, REALLY?
Do
you need to have an agent to get voice over work?
Absolutely not. But
they can be a very useful tool to open doors that you may not have even been aware of. Agents can get you jobs that
are not posted on the online casting sites.
There’s
also a “status thing” about having representation. It shows that
someone believes in your skills enough to want to represent you to the
big name companies. And that can convey a certain level of
professionalism and commitment on your part that is implied, rather than
just being said.
And some production companies and advertising agencies simply won’t work with anyone who doesn’t have representation.
So if you want to get into the major leagues of commercial work, an agent
might be the only way to get there.
SIX WAYS TO MATTER …
With all that in mind, here are six points to remember when courting your first (or second, or fourteenth) voice over agent.
1. Be Good
This should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway. Have the skills to deliver copy the way it needs to be read, and have a demo
that shows off those skills in the best possible way.
Your
demo is your calling card – your headshot for voice over. It needs to be
the absolute best it can be to show off your skills. Even if you have
the skills, if they are displayed poorly, your email will be deleted
with barely a blink of an agent’s eye.
Having a professionally produced demo
is crucial.
Yet even with a solid demo, you’ll only get a brief listen by an agent. You have an incredibly short
amount of time to impress someone before they move on to the next
voice.
Talent agent Jeffrey Umberger suggests that the first seven seconds
of your demo present the absolute strongest material you have. Seven seconds – that’s all you get.
If the demo is REALLY good, perhaps 10 seconds, but
don’t hold your breath.
And
if your demo is particularly bad, it will get saved in a special file
that agents share with each other to laugh about.
I originally thought
this was just an urban legend, but it’s been confirmed to me by multiple
agents. You want to be remembered, but definitely not THAT way!
2. Be Constantly Improving
So
you’ve had some acting experience, enjoyed some voice coaching and have a
professionally produced demo.
So what? So have 50,000 other people who
call themselves voice artists. Receiving some training
doesn’t mean you know everything about voice over.
Always work to improve
your skills. This shows the potential agent that you’re serious about
VO as a career.
3. Be You
Don’t
think for one second that being able to do a great impression of
someone makes you qualified to be a voice artist.
Dr. Seuss once said,
“There is no one alive who is you-er than you!” (and that line is truly
truer than true.)
An agent wants to hear how YOU are going to interpret
the copy. Not someone else. Just be yourself and perfect THAT.
4. Be Persistent
The only way to get an agent to sign you is for that agent to know you
exist. Don’t just send an email to an agent and leave it at that. You
have to follow up.
Touch base with the agent every 3 to 6 months to make
sure you are still a blip on their radar. This is called “being top of
mind.” Even if they’ve said “no” in the past, their opinion may change in a
few month’s time.
Show agents work you’ve done since the last time you
contacted them.
Just
keep in mind that there is a fine, and barely visible line between
being persistent and being annoying. Know where that line is and never
cross it.
5. Be Flexible
While
attending the VO Atlanta conference this year, I had the opportunity to read for a top
talent agent.
The script was a hard-sell car commercial. I delivered
the script exactly how I knew most car spots sounded. In my mind it was a
solid delivery.
But immediately, the agent said, “Don’t try to sell it to
me. Instead, talk to me as if you were trying to convince a close friend
they needed to go to the hospital.”
In my mind, I was thinking, “It’s a
freakin’ car commercial!”
But that wasn’t the point. The point was to
see how well I can adjust my voice when thrown a curve. Your ability to
take direction and how well you can adapt your style to that direction
are important features to a potential agent.
6. Be Fearless
If
you’ve worked in VO for a while, you know that rejection is par
for the course. More people will say “no” to you than say “yes.”
It’s just the nature of the business.
After a while, this can weigh on
you. You start feeling that you aren’t good enough. Or that no matter
what, you think they’re going to say “no,” so you stop trying at all.
Giving up should never be an option. If you want to be a voice talent
with representation, you need to thumb your nose at all the things that
would normally paralyze you.
It’s OK to be nervous, but don’t let it
push you into inaction. Acknowledge your fears and do it anyway. Remember: an agent doesn’t get paid if you don’t get paid, so you have to
convince them that by signing you, you will help make money for you.
Focus on things you bring to the table that will
make an agent want you. Sell yourself. Convince them that they would be
foolish not to sign you!
——————-
ABOUT ROB
A
Los Angeles native, Rob Marley is an accomplished voice talent,
producer and writer, now living in the hill country of Austin TX.
Web: www.MarleyAudio.com