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From Jiffy to Juicy Fruit, from sad and sappy commercials of the 80’s, to loud and bright Old Navy and iPod Commercials of the 2000’s. Something we can all agree on; those were memorable examples of commercial voice over.

What makes a commercial voice over memorable? Could it be the product itself? Most likely not. It’s usually the way the product or service was advertised, how it caught our attention and how it was forever ingrained in our grey matter. Perhaps they used a song, a funny character, or a memorable Voice Over. Whatever it is, decades of marketing research and psychology go into making it memorable, and more importantly, leading to sales.

Voice Over is one major aspect of that process. Why? Because we are all human! And listening to a voice that speaks to our mind, heart and soul really does make a difference in buying power. In a world surrounded by A.I., there’s just something about the human voice that truly makes personal connections. Maybe it makes us laugh, pulls on our heart strings, but whatever it is, it isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

The style of Voice has really changed over the years. When many think of Commercial Voice Over, they think of a loud, boomy voice screaming “This deal won’t last long, buy now before it’s too late!” But is that what we hear nowadays? Not likely. Haven’t you noticed the style of voice has been majorly toned down over the years. Do a test, and listen to 5-10 commercials the next time you turn on the tube and mentally note the style, gender and tone of voice speaking to you. It’s pretty interesting what you’ll note! Why could that be? Because, never before in history have humans had so much information delivered to us at lightening speed. From the moment we open our eyes in the morning and grab our phone, turn on the TV, listen to Alexa telling us our upcoming schedule, tune on the car radio, switch on our work computers, there’s no shortage of information coming at us. Don’t you find it gets just a little tiring? Well, that’s exactly why the majority of Commercial voices that speak to us, aren’t “selling” us anymore, they’re simply “telling” us about the product, allowing us to make our own buying decision. We have the power, not the brand.

Oddly enough you’ll notice the most expensive commercials on TV, have the least “Selly/Announcer“ voices, and the local or inexpensive commercials do. Think Big Bank commercials vs. Joe’s Buy and Sell ones. Can you hear a difference?

As the pinnacle of the industry animation voice over is what most people think of when you say “I’m a Voice Actor”. They think “Oh, so you do voices for cartoons and stuff?” Any fellow voice actor will attest to this. And there’s a reason for that. Because being able to portray different sounds, tones, expressions, and rhythms seem relatively difficult. And it really is! In order to find characters within oneself, it takes time, focus, and a lot of energy!

Mickey Mouse was believed to be the first Animation character Voice Over back in 1928. Whether that is exactly true or not, all we know the incredible change we have seen in talent, abilities, and characters over the 20th and into the 21st century.

All of us can remember characters from our favorite movies and TV animation. These are voices we never forget, and often imitate with a few chuckles in-between. Animation and character voices are probably the most memorable in the voice over industry. They don’t sound typical or boring. They are wild, fun, and different. They resonate and find their way into our long-term memory and often remind us of happy and positive moments when we were kids.

Who is the famous voice from your past? I always remember those pigeons on Warner Brothers’ Animaniacs. What about Porky Pig or Stewie from Family Guy? These actors really left an impression on us for many years and that’s because animation breaks us out of the norm into a fantastical world of excitement and possibilities.

What’s so interesting about animation is all the variety of sounds and styles one can make. Did you know there are 10 different ways to place your voice? By moving your muscles one can create hundreds of variations of voices. It’s really incredible what the body can do.

Over the years, we’ve definitely seen a change in the style of animation. Companies like The Cartoon Network or Adult Swim have more adult cartoon content and you’ll notice actors more often speaking in their normal voices rather than the classic exaggerated style.

In blockbuster animated movies of the last 20 years, technology has transcended the silver screen into a virtual reality world, and the style of voices has also become more normalized. Famous on-camera actors are snagging the spots from voice actors resulting in a star-studded cast raking in big bucks at the box office. And why not? Animated movies aren’t just for kids anymore, they are probably now more entertaining for the parents.

Animation isn’t going anywhere! It’s only gained popularity over the years. There are endless tv shows, movies, and corporate videos being created daily! It’s a genre that has reigned for many years with no end in sight. With the new Web 3  – Metaverse coming out shortly, experts are suspecting humans will have their own characters they can customize with voices and appearances to perform daily tasks.

Narration has come a long way from dull, dreary WHMIS videos played on VHS tapes in a stuffy office to cool techy Youtube or Vimeo videos. The corporate voice age has also evolved, and middle-Aged voices used to reign over most content, and now we are seeing voices such as Millennial and even Gen-Z voices becoming more popular.

The goal has always been to enlighten the listener. Your video is perhaps to speak to your staff or your customer. Regardless of the audience, you want your video to say: “This is who we are, and this is what we stand for!” Once you determine the goal of your video, it is easier to choose the voice that will deliver the message.

That is a personal decision. Who is your target audience? Is it seniors, millennials, or a group in-between? Making that decision will help determine the best voice for your business. Having worked in various industries such as government, tech, health, and insurance, one voice that doesn’t work is boring.

Nothing is worse than sitting in a dark board room or at your desk at 3:00 p.m. feeling exhausted and being forced to listen to a video with a dreary, corporate voice speaking at you. Even worse is the new girl’s voice from HR’s office, or an Artificially Intelligent voice! With a weak voice, you risk losing focus with your staff. Your voice, whoever it may be, should be BELIEVABLE, ENGAGING, and CONVERSATIONAL. The listener needs to stay engaged. Corporate narration comes at a cost, and the client should be satisfied.