The voice over industry has seen tremendous growth in the last five or ten years. With Podcasting, Audiobooks, and the new technology that has given us the ability to make use of found time. Found-time can best be described as that time, you spend commuting, washing dishes, doing housework, or exercising, that you can plug some headphones in and listen with a part of your attention, and still be doing something more than just that one act, or action.
With the advent of satellite radio, wifi, smartphones with enormous capacities, we can literally walk around with dozens of books in our pocket, and listen to them on the train, as we drive into work, and other activities.
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This is revolutionizing the learning sphere, talk radio, and other mediums where using the internet, the information is available when you, the listener is ready. It is not set on a particular network’s schedule, or only available during school hours. And this is making the demand for voice-over talent skyrocket.
Then there is radio, online radio, and internet podcasting avenues for work as well. If you have a voice and a personality and you can keep people interested for an hour a week, you might have what it takes to also be a podcaster. In an article on Podcastinginsights.com in a recent Fast Company report, there are currently 525, 000 active shows and 18.5 million episodes available, and Apple has had more than 50 billion downloads on their Podcasts app.
The Audio Publishers Association (APA) released its annual US sales survey, and in 2017, audiobook sales totaled more than $2.5 billion USD, and this continues a six-year trend of double-digit growth for audiobook publishers.
Breaking into the voice-over industry is not as difficult as it once was. These days for as little as $400-500 USD you can purchase the entry-level tools you need to begin doing voice-over work. There is also a need to practice, and learn the tools, and ways of the industry.
You are an actor, and just like other actors, there are auditions, and readings, and agents to consider. But to begin you need a mic, a computer, and time. You also need to work on your voice, practicing often and taking every opportunity to audition.
According to the APA, with double-digit growth year-over-year, and record sales of audiobooks, the audiobook industry is strong and growing. With podcasts growing and reaching more and more audiences worldwide, finding a niche and building a regular audience for your podcast is another avenue to take in a voice-over career.
Featured Image courtesy of Jason Roswell at unsplash.com
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