Recent Negotiation Examples
As a working, professional voice talent, one of the aspects of my job that I dread is negotiating rates with clients. When I think about “living the dream” part of the dream of pursuing my passion for voiceover as a talent, coach, and demo producer does not involve the back-and-forth banter to iron out a rate before a job begins. Yet, this banter is becoming more and more necessary as the days of jobs with desirable rates simply arriving in my in-box seem to be fewer that past years.
Let me share two experiences that happened in the past week. Last week, I heard from an Indie Video Game producer that I worked with in 2016. They were offering me the same role I played then. I had detailed notes in my CRM that they needed a discount as they were trying to launch the game with a kickstarter campaign. When I quoted them this time a normal, mid-range rate, they came back to me saying they were shocked that my rated had gone up. They went on to say that the five other talents had agreed to the rate they offered and they wanted to pay everyone the same. I referred them to the GVAA rate guide, which I will discuss later, and reminded them of the terms of 2016. They came up to my rate for me and for the other talents.
On Friday at the end of the day I client I have done quite a few TV campaigns for sent me two scripts. The rate for both was pathetic for one. It was clear he wanted a buy out, meaning he expects usage in perpetuity, which is never good for voice actors. I responded saying that I’d love to help but that the rate won’t work. I sent some suggestions their way, and said that we need to find a rate that is fare for both of us. My hope is that tomorrow we can work something out and that I don’t have to walk away from a long time client. I cannot, though, work for the rate offered. Maintaining industry standard rates matters for multiple reasons, not just for you as a solopreneur working to make living, but for the some total of our industry as a whole.
If We all Accept Lower Rates, Will Only Get Lower Rates
Imagine a scenario where we all just stopped negotiating. Let’s say a client offers $200 for two TV commercials with no mention of the length of usage, and instead of trying to negotiate, sort out the details, and explain why buy outs don’t work for us, we all just said “sure.” The implications would be staggering. The clients, then, would assume there is nothing wrong with this sweat shop pay, and would assume that our years of coaching and on-going professional development, that our expensive studio equipment, that the service we provide, that none of it has value, and that the can continue to lower and lower the rates. Where will it end? How low will they go? I shudder at the thought, and fear that if we are not willing to walk away, these bargain basement rates will become more and more common. You must know your worth and be willing to stand up for it.
Sometimes Client’s Genuinely Don’t Know and Need to Be Educated
As hard as this is to believe, sometimes clients are not actually trying to drive rates down. Sometimes they genuinely have no idea where the rates should be set and it is up to us to educate them. I have had this conversation with many other voice talents, and this is often the case. Often those casting us have never worked with voice actors before. Perhaps they were tasked with hiring a voice actor by someone else, and they know nothing about it. It’s possible, especially in eLearning, that they come from Human Resources or Academia and they know little to nothing about casting. When this is the case, a conversation about rates becomes a wonderful opportunity instead of frustrating and contentions.
Imagine How much Less You would Make If you Took the bottom Number on Every Job
Think about your financial goals for the month. Then think about your financial goals for the year. Then think about that over a three year period. Imagine, then, what would happen if you made 10% less on each job? Worse, what if you made 30% less on each job? It’s not just about having money to live off of and pay bills, at such a large income reduction, it will also effect your ability to save for the future and for your retirement. As solopreneurs, every booking we get matters in and of itself and in terms of building our client base. Each booking also matters for the industry as a whole. We all impact each other’s earning potential.
Where can you find Guides for Industry Standard Rates
If you are looking for sources or rates guides, let me refer you to three:
- The GVAA Rates Guide is extremely thorough and covers most of what you need: https://globalvoiceacademy.com/gvaa-rate-guide-2/
- The Gravy for The Brain Rates Guide is very specific, allows you to search by genre and usage, and is also great for EU and UK clients:
- The SAG rate guide cal also be extremely helpful: https://www.sagaftra.org/contracts-industry-resources/voiceover
Think About the End Goal: Earning a Consistent, Sustainable Income
In the end, we all want to earn a consistent, sustainable income. I remember hearing Bill DeWees, one of my first mentor’s in voice over, talk about this back in 2015. Yes! That what I needed, consistency. But a consistent income doesn’t just fall into your lap, it requires a rigorous blend of hard work and a willingness to negotiate. If you can’t stand up for what you’re worth, you’ll never get it.
When I started in voice over years ago, I remember thinking that when I had an agent I will have “made it.” I remember Screwing Up is Part of Success”one of my coaches telling me that she worked for five years before she had her first agent, so that I could align my expectations. At that point, I did not even know about managers. I was lucky, I was able to get on quite a few agents rosters pretty early in my voiceover career. As a working professional, I would hear a lot of chatter on social media about various agents and managers and how to get signed, as if somehow getting on the roster would lead to the ultimate success.
I signed with this manager specifically for the Radio Imaging part of my business in January 2019. Within the first week, I sent him 5 leads of stations who wanted to sign me and wanted to negotiate retainers. The email above was a call I got a week later. Of these leads, my manager destroyed every single one of them. I was not on the calls. I had empowered him to speak on my behalf. The email above “I was told that our station was not big enough for your services.” is a glimpse of how these prospects were treated in my name. Was this the road to the big agencies? No. Worse, when he tried to renegotiate the stations I had, I lost them. There were other odd quirks about the manager. He wanted any auditions to be professionally mastered, which was an added expense. He also sent Sound and Fury auditions, but I get those from other agents, so now I was paying him to get auditions I was already getting. It was terrible. I realized early on and I was stuck. I basically had to stop soliciting all Radio Imaging business or it would be tied to him. Years of hard work and planning came to a screeching halt. Be careful who you pick to represent you.
As a working mom, when I heard that there was a voice over conference with a focus on “the business of the business” right here at home in NYC, I did not hesitate to sign up, especially when I learned that Carin Gilfrey and Jamie Muffett were running it! From the start, VOcation was extremely well conceived. There is something so special about a conference run by voice actors for voice actors. It goes beyond the over all vibe. From the little details like having talents sign up to announce the speakers, to the clever swag they gave away, this dynamic duo thought of everything.
Any solopreneur can tell you that marketing is essential to maintaining client relationships and growth, and the VOcation team sure had this in mind when they planned key sessions as well. I very much enjoyed Tracy Lindley, Joe Davis, Brad Newman, and Tom Dheere. I have heard Tracy, a LinkedIn expert, speak at other conferences too. To her credit, she always speaks about something different. This time she focussed on strategies for effective messaging. I hung on her every word and ate it up: it’s as if she knew just what I needed and was talking to me! Thank you, Tracy! Joe Davis of voice actor websites spoke about best ways to optimize your website for SEO. Joe’s team has been doing my website since 2015, so I enjoyed getting the most up to date tips from him. Like Tracy, Joe exudes a passion and genuine eagerness to help others, which makes him a true joy to be in the same room with. Good choice again, Carin and Jamie! I confess that I did not get to attend Brad’s break out session but to plan to attend at WoVoCon. I have the slides and they are incredible. Brad is super smart and I trust his business instinct any day of the week. He has been doing my hosting for years and I can’t wait to hear him speak. Last but certainly not least, was Tom Dheere. I was so excited to meet Tom and learn from him. I have a few industry friends who have been coached by Tom. I see why they all like working with him. Tom’s organized approach to Direct marketing would teach any new talent how to build a strong foundation. The marketing components of the conference were great!
Lastly, I have heard from friends who were not at the conference that they had friends who complained about the venue and the picnic lunches. My response is that they need awareness about NYC. There will never be a shuttle in NYC. It is not that kind of city. I heard someone complained it was near the subway. In New York, it is a luxury to be near the subway, so having the venue directly across from the express subway line was very, very smart of Carin and Jamie. Further, space and food are extremely costly in New York. Options for talent were either to go out to eat on their own as I did or the provided lunch. There is always a choice, you just have to understand your options. For those who are not local, perhaps a better approach might be to reach out to one of us in advance next time, I’d be happy to go out for lunch and go shopping:)
