If you’ve been around a while, you know I have categorized the Voice Actors out in the world and defined four types of Voice Actors. The WFH Voice Actor professional is how I have defined the new wave of voice actors we’re seeing, voice actors like you and me who want to make a living working from home voice acting. 

With that, I’ve really tried to hone in on what it means to be a WFH Voice Actor outside of the other types, so I’ve created the WFH Voice Actor Code as a way to help you better understand which type of Voice Actor you are and the possible next steps you can take to level up in your voiceover career as a WFH Voice Actor if that’s what you’re interested in doing. 

As we go through these attributes, please note that where there is always nuance and wiggle room in life, there definitely is when it comes to being a WFH Voice Actor so these are not hard and fast rules – these are merely attributes I made up as a way to define the WFH Voice Actor. 

So, Without further adieu, WFH Voice Actors…

1. Have fully remote businesses

The biggest aspect of being a WFH Voice Actor is that we work from home 100% of the time. This sets us apart from the traditional and historical definition of “talent” and allows us entrance into the realm of “freelancers” or “contractors” where we work on our own time from wherever we want with anyone we choose and are not dictated by anyone else, like a boss, or manager, or a physical location outside of where we choose to set up and record. 

2. Get paid professional rates

This is a big one because when people think “freelancer” they often think of the gig economy and when we add the additional note of working online as a freelancer places like Upwork and Fiverr can come up readily. While there is nothing wrong with utilizing these tools, sometimes it’s hard to find professional paying jobs here. Whereas if you’re working on pay-to-play sites and directly with clients where you have more freedom to quote your own rates. The main argument for this attribute is that it’s important to accept professional rates as getting paid the same amount as another more experience Voice Actor for the most part is how we are able to make a part-time or full-time living as a Voice actor. Because you can do 20 jobs at $50 apiece for a total of $1000 but if you can do 10 jobs for $300 apiece for a total of $3000 you’re looking at more of a livable wage. So, that’s why this piece is important for any freelancer really, but especially when it comes to voiceover as there is a lot of room for interpretation of what our work is worth. If you ever have questions about rates for your voiceover work, the GVAA rate guide linked in the show notes is a valuable resource. 

3. Have a broadcast quality studio

According to Voice123’s blog, broadcast-quality can be defined as audio that is produced that: 

1. Sounds clear as opposed to muffled.
2. Is noise-free, i.e. no hissing, or other buzzing in the background
3. Lack of environmental sounds like others talking or dogs barking
4. No echo or reverberation of the voice
5. No distortion
6. Seamless editing i.e. no obvious breaks in the audio
7. No breaths or mistakes
8. Loud enough for the listener
9. And overall, the audio needs to be listened to easily, good sounding

If you are able to record using a good quality mic, have proper sound treatment in your recording space and present a decent noise floor in your recordings, and edit your audio well, that is essentially broadcast quality. If you are concerned you are not able to offer this to clients do a bit more research and testing with your recording set up to be sure the product you’re able to offer your clients is high-quality enough for the pay you’re asking for.

To Wrap

These three attributes are the biggest pieces of the puzzle when it comes to running a remote VO business as a WFH Voice Actor, according to our definition. There are plenty of other nice to haves and useful tools which we talk about a lot in this show but without all three of these specific pieces in some shape or form, it’s very hard to consider ourselves WFH Voiceover professionals. 

The beauty of these pieces is that they’re pretty easily attainable for most people interested in giving voice acting a try – tech is much more affordable and accessible than it used to be, and communication worldwide is a part of living now, making who we work with global. But like anything, if there isn’t some sort of standard, it’s hard to know if we’re doing well or are attempting to start a business like a fish out of water. So, with these three pieces in mind, find your source of water or make one, so to speak, and be sure your little fishy voiceover fins are able to swim around, explore, and start getting paid.