Right then, here's the not-so-small print…

THE MISSION

WELL BEGUN IS HALF DONE…

Before we start, we’ll have a chat – by email or phone – to establish what you want, your deadline, and how and where you’ll use the finished voiceover. That way I’ll understand your needs and be able to provide you with a quote.

I don’t work in the bargain basement, but I promise that my price will be fair, and I’m always happy to explain myself. If I can’t accurately price a job, I may refer it to one of my agents to handle the numbers.

ABOUT THOSE FEES

Like most voiceover professionals, my rates are based on a combination of two elements- the amount of work involved and the scope of usage. The first part is calculated by looking at the length of the script, whether we are recording “wild” or fitting to an existing video or guide track, and whether you wish to direct the session with me on the line or not.

The second part - the usage fee - depends on where the finished project will be shown (e.g. internal usage within a company, on a client’s website, their YouTube channel, pre-roll advertising for the web, events, radio and television advertising, etc.) and for how long. You have the option to “buy out” the usage in some cases and use the voiceover indefinitely, though many clients choose to licence usage for a year or two. This approach can reduce intial cost and allow you to see how well the project performs. You can then either renew the licence for a further run, or take the opportunity to update the existing project or create something entirely new.

If you're unused to working with voiceover fees, a great resource to check out is the GVAA Rate Guide. Then treat the numbers as a starting point for our discussion.

BEFORE I HIT RECORD

I’ll ask you to review the quote and agree in writing (usually by return email) and this will act as our contract. I won’t share anything you don’t want me to, but I do like to use social media, and I believe in the benefits of mutual promotion where appropriate. That said, I’m happy to sign an NDA if you need me to, so now is a good time to ask.

Before I begin recording, you’ll need to give me the final, approved version of your script. If you need to direct the session online, we’ll agree a mutually convenient time. Most of my voiceover work is done on my own, in my home studio (though I’m always happy to discuss travel if needed – especially if you’re based somewhere exotic).

If I’m recording solo, you’ll need to give me some pointers on how you want the voiceover to sound – possibly by referencing some of my demos, if you’re not used to giving direction. We might agree that I record a couple of paragraphs for your approval at this point – just to make sure we’re on the same page (so to speak). If there are non-English words, acronyms, or technical language, now’s the time to point these out so your recording doesn’t get delayed.

THE RECORDING

I work only with professional-grade audio equipment, in my acoustically treated, soundproof studio.

Unless you ask for something different (which you’re welcome to do), I’ll record and edit the voiceover track to my standard specifications. For the technically inclined, this means:

• uncompressed audio

• peaks at -3dB

• breaths removed (as best suits the material)

• supplied as a 16-bit/48kHz WAV file, which I’ll usually send to you via Hightail, Dropbox or WeTransfer (though FTP doesn't scare me if you're Old Skool…)

For the less technical, this means you’ll get clean, broadcast-quality audio that’s ready to use in your production. Your editor or sound designer will love it, and it will be in a form they can work with easily.

Artificial Intelligence (Synthetic Voice) terms and conditions

This section is written in clear, but more formal, language so there can be no misunderstanding. AI is impacting on the way voiceover talent like myself do our jobs, with the potential for widespread misuse, so it’s important that we set the ground rules. In the following, you are the “Client” and I am the “Talent”:

1. Client expressly agrees not to utilise any portion of the recording or performance of Talent for purposes other than those specified in the initial Agreement between the parties including but not limited to creation of synthetic voices or for machine learning.

2. Specifically, Client shall not utilize any recording or performance of Talent to simulate Talent’s voice or likeness, or to create any synthesized or “digital double” voice or likeness of Talent.

3. Client specifically agrees not to sell or transfer ownership of all or part of any of the recordings or performance of Talent to any third party without Talent’s knowledge and consent.

4. Client agrees not to enter into any agreements or contracts on behalf of Talent which utilizes all or any part of any of the recordings or performance of Talent without Talent’s knowledge and consent.

5. Client agrees that any recordings or performances stored in digital format will be reasonably stored so that unauthorised third parties may not gain access to the files containing Talent’s voice or likeness, and if such files are stored in “the cloud” Client agrees to safeguard same through encryption or other “up-to date” technological means.

What next?

Most of the time, that’s it! But sometimes I know there are things that won’t be quite right, so…

If I’ve made a mistake, I promise to fix it free of charge and in a timely manner. Hopefully the test read, and the discussion we had earlier, will mean this doesn’t happen. But if it does, it’s cool.

If you’ve made a mistake in the script, or if words need to be changed for whatever reason, I may charge a small fee to cover the time taken to put it right, as this is time I can’t be working with another client.

Remember what I said about my mission to be your “go-to British voice”? Just keep in mind that I always want you to be happy when you work with me. That way you’ll trust me, tell your friends, and hopefully keep coming back, again and again.

Hopefully that all sounds reasonable? After all, I’m British, and we’re all about fair play!