entertainment industry coach question 390: How do I get into doing voiceovers?

I get this question from many actors and some non-actors with great voices. Voice over work is one of the more challenging areas of entertainment to break into. It's a tightly knit group and they try to keep it that way. Many working voice over artists own their own home studio so they can audition from their home and email it to their agent or a specific advertising agency. Some even do the jobs from home.

Voice over artists have marketing materials such as a website, and a voice over CD. There are different areas of work, such as commercials, cartoons, video games, greeting cards and animated movies.

I wish someone would re-do the voice on the awful garage ticket machines. That voice gives me the creeps.

Do your research on the voice over industry. Have informational interviews with successful voice over artists and agents who represent voice over artists.

While many think of it as a supplemental income job to their entertainment career, you will quickly learn that it is just as much a full-time business as anything else.

For more tips and articles by top entertainment industry career coach, The Greenlight Coach, visit www.TheGreenlightCoachBlog.com

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Question 41: How should I prepare for an informational meeting with someone I've been referred to?

Preparing for an informational meeting with a referral is similar to preparing for a job interview. The differences being:

1. The person is meeting with you because of your connection to the person who referred you

2. It's not for a specific job

Therefore, in your preparation, you want to:

1. Know your objective(s) for the meeting

2. Research the person you're meeting with (seems obvious, but SO many people don't)

3. Design at least 5 questions that you really want to know the answers to

4. Compile a package that shows you in your best light 

For more tips and articles by The Greenlight Coach, visit www.TheGreenlightCoachBlog.com