Why Your Invoicing Should be Set Up The Day You Launch
I learn so much and am often so inspired by my voice over students. Recently, a very talented student new to voice over who had all his demos done and his website up and running booked his first gig! YAY! He reached out and wanted to know how to send an invoice. I was surprised by this. I was less surprised that he did not know, and more surprised that I did not make it clear. So here I am, making it clear: if you are at the point where you are auditioning for work and ready to accept booked work that the universe sends your way, you had better have your business bank account up and running, and your invoicing software set up and ready for use. Even though we had talked about invoicing and talked about CRMS, apparently I did not make it straightforward enough, so this is me making it clear. Do not start looking for work if you do not know what you are going to do when that work comes in. Why? From start to finish, you want you your client to have a seamless, professional experience, and if they have not taken every single step that you have discussed, then they are not ready to launch yet. Period.
My Personal Preference: Wave App
Over my years as a working voice talent, I have tried many different types billing programs. I strongly prefer Wave App for several reasons. First of all, it’s free. Next, it is integrated rather seamlessly into the CRM I use, Voiceoverview. Because of this integration, I can create the invoice, modify, edit, and send it all within VOV. I can create shareable links and download PDFs of the invoice. I was able to customize the design to include my logo and the fonts that I prefer. All in all, of every option I have tried for invoicing over the years, this has been my absolute favorite.
Fresh Books
I very much liked using Fresh Books and it’s features and the only real down side is the heft monthly cost. I liked the look of the invoices it created. I liked that I could accept bank transfers, credit cards, and PayPal! I liked that I could add taxes for different countries. I very much liked the time tracking features. When I have done copy writing work, I used this feature and could do precise, to the second invoicing with ease. I also liked that for clients in other countries this program could sort out VATs and all of that and my effort was very little. Again, if it were free I would likely still use it.
PayPal
I love that you can create invoices for free. I do have some clients who specifically ask for PayPal invoices and I am happy to send them. Because they do not integrate with my CRM, I prefer Wave App to this, simply for ease of record keeping. This is fine, but not as great.
Square
I tried Square for several months several years ago. Other than to say it was lackluster compared to other invoicing systems, I do not have much to see. The look of the invoices was “ehh.” It was not as easy to work with. My overall experience was mediocre. Not bad, just not exciting.
Quicken
I have never endeavored to use Quicken, but much like Fresh Books those who do use it seem to love it very much. Quicken provides many features, and can both invoice and work as your accounting software. Again, like Fresh Books, you have to pay to use Quicken.
Best Practices
As small business owners with a client-centered approach, we need to be mindful of what is best for out clients. Typically, every time I deliver finished audio I invoice within the same email with a shareable payment link. As my billing software will also invoice directly, after that email, I also send a specific invoice only email. Some clients specifically ask for either a downloadable PDF or for a PayPal invoice, and if that is the case I send that upon delivery of the email. In my invoice, I also have a “footer” message giving very clear and specific instructions with all the ways that I accept payment. I do know some nice talents who invoice weekly, but I prefer to send the invoice as the job is completed. The only time I make an exception is when I have a client who requests a monthly invoice. If that is the case I hold the invoice until the end of the mont and invoice for everything at once.
Sometimes, it can be hard as business owners to balance what is right for our clients and what makes the most sense for us as voice talents. For example, sometimes clients request sessions at times that conflict with out family responsibilities. In this instance, it is actually possible to both meet our clients needs and to make the sound choice for our own business.
In the end, you have to trust your gut. If the coach has good referrals, and you feel like you will go far from working with them, it is reasonable to try coaching with them. Sometimes you can tell a lot by the demos they have produced and others that have coached with them, sometimes you can’t. One of the best coaches I ever had, Fred Frees, never coached anyone until I begged him to coach me. He was amazing. I found him in a testimonial on another coaches website, and Fred was incredible. He gave meaningful feedback, he listened, he was genuine, he was kind, and he had years of industry experience. What more could I have wanted? I think about Fred often. Don’t pick someone because of their name. Find the right fit for YOU. We all need something different, and we all learn differently. So, find someone who is the right coach for you!
I’ve been a full time, professional voice over actor for quite a while now, but in the past year I started hearing for the first time a new term: imposter syndrome. I started hearing it on social media, on Clubhouse, and at conferences too. I found it surprising because in all my years in VO, I had never heard any other talents speak to this before. What I have learned is that this term refers to the feeling that one does not actually belong, or is not what they claim to be and is, instead, an imposter. Suddenly, in the past year, I am hearing about others feeling this way frequently. It is coming up often in conversation. Perhaps it is because many turned to voice over during covid. Perhaps it is because some start working or trying to work before they are actually prepared. For a multitude of reasons, suddenly I am hearing this all over the place. If you are interested in being a voice over actor, and you really want to succeed and do NOT want to feel like an imposter, perhaps consider my experience, as this has never been an issue for me.
year, I worked with 4 coaches and took advanced acting and improv at a local theater. I spent sic to eight hours A DAY studying and working on my craft. I worked on scripts. I practiced characters. I recorded. I edited. I submitted to my coaches. I listened back to my assignments. I did research and followed prominent voice actors to see what they were booking. I took multiple private lessons each week. I was in group classes with GVAA. I had practice partners. I met with those partners. I did homework for those partners too and I took each and every assignment so seriously, as if my life depended on it. So when I say I had lots of training, that is just when I started out. Since then I have continued to have lots of coaching. Have coaching is the foundation of all we do. I think by the time my website launched, I was so ready to work that it never occurred to me that I was not prepared to serve my clients.
Both as a student of voice over and now as a professional, I have always put in extremely long days. From morning to night, often going back into my booth after dinner, my days are long and rigorous. Sometimes new talents ask me when they will start booking. They tell me they have submitted 50 auditions. I try to keep a straight face. I typically submit more than 30 auditions in a day, even now, so 50 auditions is in no way impressive to me. I have often heard of the rule of 10. I believe that Gaby Nistico has even made a video about it. If you work 10 hours a day more than 10 months a year for 10 years that is when you start making six figures… Well, I believe there is something to this. I have always had the luxury of being in voice over “full-time.” Well, let’s flesh this out. What exactly does “full-time mean? To me, it means I maintain standard business hours and I am in my booth al day every day to serve my clients. The more you are available and the more you record and submit, the more legitimate your business is.
When my business launched, in audition to lots of coaching and sweat equity under my belt, my first website helped establish my identity. I never had doubts about my identity as a professional. I had been told by every coach I ever worked with that even at the start of my career, I should introduce myself as a professional. I did so with confidence. As I get clients under my belt and had testimonials, I felt more proud of what I was building, but it never came from a place of doubt. I was certain that I was building a great service business that would help my clients get what they need.
I typically do these quite early, and I think my auditions serve as a great warm up for my actually paid work. Whether they are for pay to plays or for agents, I love running through the pace of auditions and feel that this helps me stay on my toes and understand the current industry trends for what is being sought after. Daily submissions are a must, and I typically submit early morning and late afternoon at a minimum. I like submitting, and relative to other talents I know, I regularly submit a lot. I think it depends on your specific goals, but auditioning is for sure a part of my daily routine.
A highlight of my day, throughout my day, are the breaks I take with my studio dogs Violet and Daisy. I love walking with the girls and taking these sporadic breaks every few hours is really good for me. It is so good to leave the studio and get actual fresh air. I occasionally run into neighbors and that is really nice too.
I consider the is to be the “Golden Rule” of voiceover! Whether a job is worth $200 or $2000, I treat every single client the same. If a new student books a single lesson or a five pack, they too are treated equally. First, I truly cherish each and every booking. Whether as a talent or as a voiceover coach, folks have a choice of who to work with. When casting, there are many who do what I do. Whether it is the conversational, millennial sound that I provide, or the fast turnaround, I am aware that I am not the only shop in town. Next, in terms of coaches, there are many wonderful VO coaches. Depending on your needs and what style you respond to, different coaches are better for different people. Again, I am aware that everyone has a choice. So, I treat every single booking as if it is my most important booking. 
One of my values is respect of everyone’s time. In the last year, I made a shift to using Calendly to book meetings and sessions. Automating bookings has been a huge improvement not just to my quality of life, but is also a giant nod of respect to my own time. There is no longer a repeated back and forth just ti schedule a 20 minute introductory zoom. Or when a student needs to book a session they have paid for, I no longer waste their time waiting for me to confirm a booking. It all happens seamlessly, which benefits everyone. Another way that I try to be respectful of everyone’s time, whether it is in a Clubhouse or a live session, is that I always am mindful of how much time has been booked. If an hour has been allotted, I try to work within the hour, and not run over. I always keep in mind everyone has a schedule.
Try to be giving when you work with clients. Don’t nickel and dime them, try to think of the big picture. When you go out to eat, and you ask for extra of something, how do you feel when the waitress immediately snaps about extra charges? Even if there are extra fees, there are pleasant way to introduce them, and then there is a tone that makes you seem like an anxious money grubber. Recently the traversing rod in my bedroom broke. I had to reach out to the local upholstery man, John, who had made them to come back and repair them. I had no idea how much he was going to charge and I had to call him repeatedly to beg him to do the work. I was worried that with each pleading call the price would go up. Instead, when he came to do the work, he charged me less than I expected. In this scenario, I was delighted by the quality of his work, his turnaround, and hsi fair price. This is how I want clients to feel every time they work with me.
Make it easy for clients to get what they need. Once you have a booking, turn that booking into a repeat client by making it is easy as possible for your customer to get exactly what they need by being genuinely helpful and kind. For example, I happen to have a lot of international clients. Often, the scripts were clearly not written by a native English speaker, and they need revision. I offer Copy Writing. If the changes are minimal, I do not charge. If the changes are quite involved, I send a helpful and caring note and suggest my usual hourly rate for this before I move forward.
