How Voices.com Works and the Best Ways to Get Started - Tips from a Pro Voiceover Artist

A quick rundown on how Voices.com works so you can get started on the site and set yourself up for success right out of the gate. Is this video exhaustive? Not by a long shot. Will it help you? Only you can answer that, but I can say it would've saved me a couple months of confusion.
Buy me a coffee:
➡️www.buymeacoffee.com/jaymyers...
Voiceover Coaching:
➡️www.jaymyersvoiceover.com/coa...
My Recommended Starting Gear:
➡️Rode NT1 Bundle: geni.us/jYq4A
My Interface:
➡️Apollo Solo: geni.us/LXbkB
My Favorite Mics:
➡️Neumann U87ai: geni.us/WmJI2
➡️Neumann TLM 103: geni.us/NvigA
➡️Earthworks ETHOS: geni.us/lFBYg
➡️Sennheiser MKH-416: geni.us/1Hh4c
➡️Shure KSM 32: geni.us/lFBYg
Other channels and talents I've found helpful:
➡️ / podcastage
➡️ / @audiouniversity
➡️ / boothjunkievo
➡️ / @inthemix
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Music provided by Epidemic Sound
#microphone #reveiw #VoiceOver #tutorial #howto #Voiceacting #professional #audio #audioengineering #audiobooks #recording

[@ZimCrusher]

This was literally the best video on how Voices works, and what to expect. thanks for this.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Glad to hear it was helpful!

[@kojoprince3572]

I've been at this for a little over a year and I watch this video periodically and I STILL find that I learn things from it each time. Thank You!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

So glad it’s been helpful!

[@TommyFresh521]

Hey, thanks a lot for this video. I am just getting started in VO work and need all the advice I can get. Great Stuff!

[@maltefriedrichspricht6085]

So well and excellent explained - again! Many thanks 🌟

[@cesarbrasilator]

Thank you so much for your great content, I've been considering joining the premium version of the website and looking exactly for that, an honest and straightforward video with pro tips from someone who actually knows the website 🙏

[@mikelleighton6440]

I appreciate the help and encouragement. As a newbie to the industry it is a bit daunting trying to know what is reputable for sites or what are the best practices to be successful. I'll definitely be following closely on the future!

[@Fortune-favours-the-bold]

I can't thank you enough for this series. I was SO intimidated and overwhelmed before I found your videos, and now I'm not either of those things. I appreciate you, and thank you again :)

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That makes me so happy to hear! Precisely why I set out to make them, so thanks for letting me know. :)

[@Fortune-favours-the-bold]

@@jaymyersvoiceover I can’t wait to work with you as my coach ❤️❤️

[@jeffstewartauthor]

Thanks for this video, Jay. Extremely well done and informative. 🔥

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Thanks Jeff!

[@RaymmanVO]

Nice insight, thank you.

[@BrucePSquirrelOfficial]

Thanks for the info!

[@user-mb5kp1jt8p]

Great information for a novice like me just starting out on the Voices platform.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Glad to hear that!

[@ryvlaw]

Voices is cool and I use it too BUT I feel like having an annual fee +20% is.. well... an interesting business model. Either get 20% OR take an annual fee but both is a bit much I think.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Yeah, there are certainly a great many VOs that feel the same. I go back and forth myself. I just chalk it up to, I wouldn't have access to the job otherwise. What I appreciate over other pay-to-plays is that they give access to ALL auditions regardless of your track record on the platform, which gives folks starting out many more opportunities to get their feet wet and build a reputation on the site. I also like that your profile isn't penalized for auditioning for stretch jobs. Is all that worth the 20%? Depends.

[@80club45]

Great video. I'm really thinking of giving this voice over thing a go thanks for the info 🙂

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@80club45]

@jaymyersvoiceover if everything works out and I put in the hours, is it possible to make a living doing this full time?

[@jaymyers5010]

@@80club45well I do!

[@Alexandra-Rex]

The thing you said about the bidding is the main thing that has kept me from replying to anything yet. And also just thinking that it won't be liked anyway. I'll definitely reply to anything from now, just to see how it goes.

[@EmmanuelNjidda]

I'm interested in this

[@voices]

Thanks for the overview Jay! Also, do I spy a Studiobricks?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

My pleasure! And you do indeed spy a good ole bricks. 😊

[@luffy57322]

Absolutely loved this video! Super informative and clearly conveyed. I do have a bit of a follow-up question about Voices, I have been on VDC for about 3 weeks now and the amount of auditions being sent to me has absolutely dwindled. I am now often having days in which I receive no auditions at all and I have 13 fleshed out demos on my profile with all the tags filled out. Is this normal or is it possible I'm doing something wrong?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

It’s possible that the kinds of jobs being posted just don’t match with your demos or your profile. It’s also possible that your demos are all labeled/categorized similarly-ie three tagged as ‘conversational’ won’t present more auditions for you. I’d recommend continuing to add to your demos and making sure that they’re labeled and tagged uniquely if you can, and that might help.

[@luffy57322]

@@jaymyersvoiceover Thanks so much for the advice! Will do and just wanted to say once again how awesome your videos are :).

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@luffy57322 Aw, thanks! That means a lot to hear. :)

[@MikeDoernerProVoice]

Jay, great information! I do pay attention to the profile match percentage, and I like that VDC doesn't punish you for auditioning for everything (like V123 does...). On VDC, when you are looking at the number of auditions already submitted to a project, how many is "too many" to bother auditioning yourself? If I see over 40 auditions, I figure I've missed the boat, but still see 70, 90, and even over 100 submissions on projects. I understand auditioning for a project that already has lots of submissions could be seen as practice, but from a booking probability perspective, do you have a specific number that you will not go over when selecting projects to audition for?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Good questions! I don’t really have hard and fast rules, but generally if the project has lots of submissions (40-50+) and the budget is under $500, I’ll pass unless it’s something I’m excited about. Often larger budget projects ($1k+), the creative team will listen thru to most if not all auditions-at least in my experience-so submitting late isn’t necessarily a bad idea.

[@MikeDoernerProVoice]

@@jaymyersvoiceover Thanks Jay. I'll incorporate your advice into my project selection process.

[@KWNelsonVO]

Hey Jay! Great info here. One thing I wanted to ask was about using auditions as demos, is this really okay to do (if there's no NDA)? I had thought about doing this for my character demoes using my auditions from CastingCallClub, but heard on the voice over subreddit that this is a no-no. Could have just been their opinions, but I'm always looking for more info and advice from all over the VO community lol.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Great question! I’ve never run into issues with it personally, though I haven’t used character demos outside of roles I booked or wrote myself. For other gigs if you were concerned you could simply change the copy slightly and make up a brand name. All to say, for my money it’s not a huge issue as you build out a portfolio.

[@KWNelsonVO]

@@jaymyersvoiceover bro thanks for such a quick and thoughtful answer!! =D This has been a major sticking point for me because I suck at writing scripts especially for characters lol, so taking your advice and making slight tweaks should help me get unstuck on those demos.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

You bet! Good luck out there

[@desertsavagery]

I had been wondering why my auditions had not been listened to, but I have zero demos and most of the jobs I see have a 50% match rate because of this. I guess I need to stop auditioning and start recording some demos asap.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Sounds right!

[@jackie.hendler]

Thanks for the tips! I am a voice over talent from Uruguay ans starting.... It is not clear to me if when applying first I should send my demo for evaluation or the requested work and then wait until if it is accepted or not?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Great! Good to meet you. So on your profile, before submitting proposals to any jobs, you’ll upload demos that represent you and your talent/voice well. Based on those demos, Voices will match you to jobs. Those jobs you will apply to with customer samples. Hope that helps clarify!

[@juliomaldonado7979]

Hey I am new at Voices and can you tell me how to find voiceover jobs ther? I am trying to use it on my phone

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

I’d recommend using a computer if you can. A phone will be pretty limiting and the site works best on a computer in my experience.

[@piasan1652]

Hi Jay, what advice would you give: I want to start. But where and how and what is the first thing? I am a fulltime traveler and start from zero with no equipment. Is there a way I can start with less tools and in the beginning with not to expensive tools? What about you phone or the little klick mics where you can put on your clothes? Could I start like this? I feel a bit lost because I don't know if it works when I living in a van and different apartments with less luggage. Thank you for your help 🙏🙏

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That sounds like a great setup! I have a few videos on just that. “Getting started in voiceover” or something like that and I have one covering Equipment, and another your ‘booth’ I’d start by watching those. For the moment, you can get started with an inexpensive mic, but I’d use something like a nice USB or inexpensive/used XLR. Both of those videos go into depth on those subjects :)

[@piasan1652]

@jaymyersvoiceover thank you so much. I will have for sure a look on more videos from you. And you can start VO on any age? Is VO and Voice acting for movies etc. different? I even don't know if I have talent for this ^^ but since I can think I was always interested to do it but I only heard that it is mostly only for actors/when you had an actor education. What I did in my Wellness Job was speaking like dream meditations for relaxing (don't know if this is the right english word ;) ). That's the only thing I did. And voices would be the best plattform for beginners? Can you do something with the free plan or you have to choose the 500$/y membership? Thank you for your help 🙏

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@piasan1652 Of course! To answer your questions briefly: -Any age works! -It's all similar yet different. -You won't know till you try -I got started doing meditations too. -I liked Voices, but there are lots of other great places too. (Check out some of my other videos ;) ) -To get real traction on Voices, yes you're pretty much required to be a paying member.

[@ghazalyahya70]

Thank you for your beautiful and interesting explanation But I have a problem with the site, they are asking me to pay so I can get the job Can you help me with that?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Glad you found it helpful! Unfortunately, that’s part of the deal there. You have to pay for a membership which gives your profile visibility on the site. Not ideal, but it is how it is.

[@ghazalyahya70]

@@jaymyersvoiceover Fine, thank you 🤍

[@dreamer5426]

I have just signed up into the voices, here for the genuine review, is this actually works ? can we earn via voices, without premium and all & what hindrances we could face while hiring ?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Hello! Could you clarify your questions a bit for me? I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. For the moment though, I'll give it my best shot! Without a premium membership, it's difficult to earn money and book jobs on the site.

[@guerreravelez2458]

So do I post demos by snippets not one entire demo at a time?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

You CAN post one longer demo, but because potential clients will really only listen to the first 5-10 seconds of any demo AND because you'll benefit from more diverse tags/keywords on your demos it's advised to post smaller snippets or break longer demos up into individual ones.

[@McMilesE]

What if I have no demos at all, i.e. I've never booked one gig. I've been taking classes... I am ready to start auditioning or to continue down the path of VO... but how do you have all of those demos I thought they cost $$$? So like how would I even book even one gig if I have no demos?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Great question! I’ll probably do a video about this soon, but in the meantime…Fortunately you don’t need to book a job to get your demo game started. There are lots of places online to find free sample scripts for lots of different genres, including on Voices. I’d recommend recording several of them that you feel like you might be cast for and start with those. Then as I mentioned, while you’re auditioning save auditions you felt good about and use those as demos. After you get more comfortable and have booked a bit of work, you can produce more refined demos yourself, and then finally once you get a feeling for what your voice and talents fit you can seek out a professional to produce demos for you.

[@McMilesE]

​@@jaymyersvoiceoverI am JUST seeing this. Thanks so much for your reply because I didn't know these options existed! You kind of touched on it later in your video I missed that. Thank you so much

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

My pleasure! Happy to help. @@McMilesE

[@user-wx5kh2oo5q]

May I know if you need a professional microphone?? Or with the laptop is ok ?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

You’ll definitely need a professional microphone.

[@jaxbarnettprice]

Hey buddy, you do not need a professional microphone or professional equipment right away to start. I’ve known and seen so many people over the years start out with literally a $20-$30 microphone from Amazon, a laptop and get some work in. Then eventually, they work there way up to buy a professional microphone and other equipment. So the idea of having to have an expensive microphone to start, please don’t let that stop you. And this message is not just for you, this is also for anyone!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That’s a good point, I should’ve been more clear! You’ll need more than your laptop’s internal mic, but “professional mic” doesn’t mean expensive. 😊

[@marcobattaglia7508]

@@jaymyersvoiceover So I'm assuming that recording an audition and demos in general on your Iphone's microphone is not really the best right? 😅

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

@@marcobattaglia7508 yeah. Probably not.

[@AdmiringChess-dk5zf]

Hello,I'm called Bless I'm from Cameroon, I'll like to know more about this voice and would like to work on it in others to start earning

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Welcome!

[@AdmiringChess-dk5zf]

@@jaymyersvoiceover would you mind teaching me sir?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Of course. I have several videos on this channel to help get you started! And if you’re interested in working one on one you can book time via my website 😊 if you have specific questions feel free to ask here.

[@inayaali1437]

Can I work without paying the 500 dollar fee ?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Not realistically unfortunately. I like to treat it like a workshop or class though. Often you’d post $300-500 for a weekend seminar 🤷‍♂️

[@pdc398]

Can you make money before going premium?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Not in my experience unfortunately.

[@pdc398]

@@jaymyersvoiceover Thanks. That’s what I figured. Perhaps the Fiver Or up works method may be the first route to gain some income and invest into the premium subscription after?

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

That’s certainly one way to go about it, though I might consider it an investment in learning on your feet to go for the premium. The quality of auditions and pay you’ll get on voices will be higher than the other two sites, so if/when you book something it’ll get you closer to breaking even financially with a bigger gain (in my opinion) of just practical skill. Thinking of it almost as a ‘class’ was helpful for me. So unless you don’t have very much experience and/or have an undeveloped portfolio of work you might stand to gain more from voices. If however you’re just getting started and want a lower stakes investment, the others are good bets.

[@pdc398]

@@jaymyersvoiceover Definitely on the beginning end of things. I mainly do music production as a hobby so I have all the gear and a professional background in sales and marketing meetings so articulate communication and delivery is a strong point so I thought Id give this a try. It does seem like you could make your money back very quickly. You’ve definitely given me so much to think about. You have amazing videos as well. Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge with the community.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Of course! Happy to help, and if anything pops up feel free to drop me a line.

[@MrJayspeaks]

$500 plus 20%!!

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

In practice it's more so a bit of sticker shock in my opinion. Just add the 20% on top of standard rates just like you would for an agent/manager and it's a wash.

[@GMS444]

Most other professions you would be FIRED for a 1% success rate.

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Such is life. Once you become more focused in genres as well as more experienced that ratio goes down considerably however.

[@zgab5835]

dude what are the things on your wall acoustics? sound proof? Can you link it? I have no idea how to set up my room to do something like that :(

[@jaymyersvoiceover]

Sure! I have a Studiobricks VO booth which has built in acoustic treatment and sound isolation. You can check their website to see more details. If you want more tips on how to set up your space here’s a video I made in just that Your FIRST Booth -- Voiceover for Beginners -- Part 2 kzbin.info/www/bejne/mZrIi3RtjrhshM0