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best practices

Client Communications Checklist: How to Best Communicate with a Voice Over Client

October 19, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

By Laura Schreiber & Voice123’s The Booth 

This article is sponsored by Voice123.

You nailed the audition! Your voice is exactly what the client wanted and it’s that project you had a special feeling about. Now comes the difficult part; maintaining successful client communications throughout each stage of the project. 

 

It might seem easy since you already landed the job, but keep in mind that clients need to see value to continue the relationship or work with you again in the future. So when working with clients, whether it’s an audition, a direct booking, a booking from an audition, or a repeat client, you only have one chance to get that first communication right! When they reach out to you, it is up to you as the voice talent, to set the tone for how the communications will go. A warm, friendly, helpful response goes a long way in every scenario and helps to build the foundation for a great talent-client relationship. 

 

Do your best to make them happy every single time!

 

Common miscommunications when working with clients 

 

Miscommunication issues can take many shapes and forms. Messages can be taken out of context by cultural differences and delays can creep in if both parties are in a different time zone. 

I have worked with international clients and had some miscommunication issues, so often the more information that you can spell out at the start of work, the easier it is for everyone.

 

Worse-case scenarios: A client gets offended, gets the wrong impression, or pulls out of the project. Or a voice actor could jump the gun, miss a deadline, or drop the ball altogether by missing an important project requirement. 

 

How can these negative situations be avoided? 

 

From the first communication with a client, it is best to understand the intentions behind the project. If you can, ask questions about the tone of the project and specifically what they are looking for. Knowing the answers to these and other vital questions in advance of doing the work leads to successful client communications and also confirms that a booking is a booking.

 

To help you with this, here’s a checklist of vital points that you need to go through beforehand. 

 

  • Ask the client if they have a scratch track. 
  • Ask if they know what music they are going to use. (This helps me understand the tone and the pace of the voice over.)
  • Confirm the file format. WAV, MP3, or both?
  • Confirm if the client needs raw or edited audio.   
  • Confirm whom, where and when to invoice. 
  • Confirm your service agreement, payment, and revisions policy. 

 

 

A key takeaway for clients, in this case, is to contribute to a faster process by responding in a timely manner, being transparent about project details, and keeping a voice actor in the loop regarding any changes or delays. 

 

How to manage client expectations  

 

In general, all back and forth client communications should be prompt. If you are replying to an audition request, it is to your advantage to submit on the early side. Personally, as soon as I get an audition that looks appealing, I try to submit it. If you can be in the first ten submissions, that is ideal. Sometimes it is hard because of differences in time zones, or the demands of another project, but early submission is the key to getting booked. Once the client hears what they need, they will cast the job. They also would rather work with a talent who is responsive. 

 

When replying to emails, whether for an audition or for a booking, being available makes you easy to work with. If you reply quickly and are transparent in your business practices, you are far more likely to gain a client. Timing matters. If a client has a deadline, you do not want to be the reason why they have to push their deadline. Instead, make it easy for them to get what they need by both responding promptly and submitting promptly. 

 

Make all replies personal so that the client feels heard. Be sure to respond to all of their asks in your email and cover all bases. This also includes your turnaround time, pickup/revision policy, and payment terms. 

 

Do’s and Don’ts for setting the right expectations  

 

  • Don’t feel shy or afraid to outline your terms. Clear and transparent client communications benefit everyone.
  • Do find out the client’s intentions behind the project. Are they trying to increase sales, or drive more traffic to their website? And what is their target audience?
  • Do ask about the tone of the project. Often, the client has a specific sound; a voice in their head that they’re trying to match. Asking for an example such as a celebrity, similar sound, or even one of your samples could point you in the right direction. 

 

But how does this translate into a written message when working with clients? Here are some specific templates that can be copied and tweaked to suit your needs. 

 

 

Template 1: If you missed a client’s message  

 

Hi, Name, 

 

I am so sorry for the delay! 

 

I had to ________, but I am definitely available now. I always aim for professional and fast communication so I really apologize for this. 

 

If you’d still like to move forward with this, I’m more than happy to make it up to you by adding ____ free revisions instead of _____. And also willing to _________, as a gesture of good faith. 

 

Let me know and once again, sincere apologies. 

 

 

Check out the full list of free Client Communications Templates here.   

 

To sum things up, successful client communications are all about knowing what to say, how to say it, and when to say it. Don’t leave anything to chance. Prepare your communications ahead of time, follow the right format and tone, and always follow the 3 Ps when working with clients: 

Professional, Punctual, and Polite. 

But there’s so much more to communicating and working with clients. Read the complete Client Communications Checklist For Voice Actors in Voice123’s Voice Over Guide.

Filed Under: Business Management, Client Relationships, Voiceover Tagged With: best practices, client relationships, communications, Expectations, reply, response time, tips, tricks, VO, Voice 123, voice over, voiceover

Inspirations from WoVoConVI To Best Serve Clients

October 22, 2019 by Laura Schreiber

Learning from the Best

I’ve said before that it takes a lot to get me to pack up and fly across the country, leaving my twins and my dog, but boy- going to a conference like WoVoCon VI in Las Vegas, Nevada this past weekend sure made me feel like the trip was worth it! Voice over

Time with industry friends goes by way too fast!!

actors from all over the world, casting directors, eLearning companies, and more gathered at the Tropicana to support each other to better our craft, learn about technology, discuss business trends, talk about marketing ideas and best practices, and of course bond! If you have ever been to a VO industry event, you know that professional voice over actors tend to be a pretty friendly bunch, and when you have found your people, somehow a long weekend goes by in the blink of an eye and you leave feeling like you just did not have enough time and you wish you did not have to pick and choose from the outstanding sessions! I moved between some of them and still did not get to everyone. I got to the airport to return home with mixed feelings of joy over what I had accomplished and a long list of people I never got to connect with. But let’s focus instead on the big take aways:

Philosophical Truths

A lot of what I heard resonated with me, but as I sat next to fellow New Jersey voice talent and all around renaissance man Brad Newman, and I soaked in his presentation, I was in awe of his genius. A lot of what Brad said made an impact on me, but when he talked about recurring work bells and whistles went off in my head. One of my big goals for 2019 has been to do more campaigns and fewer one-offs, so I was on the edge of my seat. Brad talked about how in business when preparing to meet a company or when prepping for an interview, you would do your research, learn about their business model and their goals to try to meet their needs as well as you can. He talked about all that we do to understand the end client, so why on earth would we do all of that to only ever work with them one time? Right? I could have jumped of my seat and spent hours discussing just this one aspect of Brad’s presentation, because this really hit home for me.

It is so important to me to do my very best for clients. I understand that they have unique needs and that every job is different, but I am so excited to build lasting and meaningful relationships and to really get to know what is most helpful to them!

Efficiency/Software Tips

In voiceover, we all know we are only as good as we sound. The software often changes and as there are upgrades to our computers, often the DAW we use changes. I work on Twisted Wave 90% of the time. I sat in on a session on Twisted Wave, and then that session led to side chats where I learned so much that will help me better serve my clients! So, I learned a much more efficient way of splitting files. I already split files by markers. Before this weekend, I would manually type in the names of each file, which could be quite time consuming. Well, now I have learned how to use the markers window and to cut and paste from either a word document or an excel spread sheet. See the video here for a demonstration of what I learned in my session with the great Jim Edgar who can be found at JustAskJimVO.studio/JimEdgarvoices.com:

https://youtu.be/kI8lIKLN0Sg

I was also chatting about this and I learned a great cut and paste trick from Dan Lenard. He showed me how to create uniform space cushions at the beginning and end of each slide! If I were the client, I would love if each cushion were the same length.

Pushing Through

I have blogged before about being a migraine sufferer. I happened to have had a pretty bad headache on the Saturday of this conference. It would not go away. I had to miss some sessions I really wanted to see in the morning. I eventually went down to participate, even though I did not feel 100%. To be honest I did not even feel 30%, and if I were home I would have stayed in all day. But I flew across the country for so many reasons, and none of them included a day of napping. It was not easy for me, but the biggest challenge, bot physically and mentally, was getting through Everrett Oliver’s session. If you have never coached with Everett, he is truly outstanding. He pushes in all the right ways. He makes you go places you would rather not but as an outstanding booth director he gets it out of you. I LOVE working with Everett. And in truth, as a working professional, when booked work comes in, I have to record, so this was a good exercise. I am not shy but I am much more comfortable in front of my own mic than in a room full of people, even if those people are my tribe. I loved every minute. LOVED. I am glad I participated. I hope to work with this amazing coach again soon.

Final thoughts….

Once you start naming names it gets dangerous…So many wonderful people I love were all there. It filled my heart and made me happy. I wish I lived closer to you all. I am so thankful to work in this industry. I hear music in my head when I think of you. Until the next time, my friends. Thank you. Sending lots of big hugs!!!!

Filed Under: Client Relationships, Elearning, Studio/booth, Voiceover Tagged With: audio engineer, best practices, Brad Newman, campaigns, client relationships, DAW, elearning, Everett Oliver, inspiration, Jim Edgar, markers, Pain points, space cushions, twisted Wave, VO, voice over, voiceover, working mom, WOVO, WoVoCon, WoVoCon VI

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