How to Brand You!
One of the most intriguing aspects of acting (whether voice or on-camera) is that you are selling YOU! It is very rare in a business that you are everything about the company; the product, the salesman, the foreman etc..
How you dissect and brand your business is crucial in today’s marketplace. It is 100% necessary to stand out. Just being a good voice talent isn’t enough anymore, now you have to be clever and great at selling YOU and figuring out what that looks like!
Many of you who are aspiring to become voice talent will walk away from a session or workshop and not like the sound of your voice, or are nervous about getting up to the mic etc. This is an industry where you need to find a way to love what you can do with your voice. You don’t have to love your voice, but you need love what you can do with it and want it to be heard.
I do a ton of personality branding. I can tell you after you say the word “hello” a lot about your personality. Once I have an idea of who you are, then it’s a matter of finding a clever way to sell yourself. Your company name needs to be easy to spell, express who you are and what you do, and be memorable. So just ‘DebbieMunro.com’ isn’t enough. It doesn’t describe anything about me, and there are tons of spelling options here. Besides, what does that look like?
The best place to start is your hobbies, interests, favorite foods, nick names, quirks etc. For example the other day I was working with a student who wanted a personality/branding session. He had a very nice professional site created, but it said nothing about him. We discovered that his favorite past time is fishing, and his voices suits that of the all around American man; the outdoorsman. Next thing you know we have a clever company name, (VoiceLure), better idea of visuals that suit him and reflect his personality. For leave behinds he can send fish related things – such as a lure with his logo/branding on it as client gifts, or good fish recipes. Keep clients in touch with a fishing blog. Take it away from the business and get to know your clients personably by letting them know who you are.
I switched over to VO Chef Deb some time ago because I love to cook, and recipes are a great way to offer regular leave behinds with my clients. Something that they remember and look forward to.
You don’t want to come across as too gimmicky, and you don’t want to spend a fortune on leave behinds etc. We need to stand out in a saturated market and this is one clever way to stay on top! Find a way to sell you, but know what that looks like so you can bring it to life. Be clever and have fun bringing yourself to life!
If there is anything I can do to help you with your brand or marketing, send me an email.
Also check out my Signature Personality article as well here –
Until Next time Everyone
All my best
VO Chef Deb