e-Learning Voiceovers
The e-learning segment of voice over has grown dramatically over the past few decades. The internet has fueled the growth of online learning in academic settings. Nowadays, nearly every university offers online degree-granting programs and some universities are solely online. Students who attend universities on-site also benefit from e-learning modules, as they can learn at their own pace and at a time of their choosing. Large corporations, governments, the military or any organization that has employees who are scattered across multiple sites or working from home, can use the e-learning format to train their staff without shouldering the expense of business travel.
At academic institutions, e-learning is primarily used as a medium to teach students. Students have the ability to replay and review the e-learning modules, a feature that can facilitate improved information retention. In the corporate/government/military setting, e-learning is used to inform and train the staff on new requirements/regulations/tools, or to seek changes in their behavior.
The role of the voice-over artist is to facilitate those objectives. The choice of voice-over style may depend on the target audience and/or the content. For a younger academic audience, a friendly, conversational style might be effective whereas a more authoritative style might be appropriate for a military audience or when the content is more serious (e.g. training to recognize sexual harassment). E-learning modules can be lengthy and so the voice-over artist must be able to engage the audience for a significant period of time using the power of their voice. It is critical that the narrator understands the content so that he/she can emphasize the main points and key takeaways, and help drive the learning process.
Warren’s academic credentials and 30+ year career working in the pharmaceutical industry qualify him as a subject-matter-expert in several scientific fields. If you are looking for a male voice to narrate scientific e-learning content, then look no further. Warren will do you proud. And those corporate e-learning training modules? Well, Warren has experienced countless hours of e-learning training over his corporate career. He has seen what works well and brings that experience to the recording booth.
Explainer Video Voiceovers
As their name suggests, explainer videos are used to explain a concept, procedure or product. These videos are usually only a few minutes long and employ animation, whiteboard or live action to deliver the visual content. “How-to” explainer videos provide instructions on how to complete a task. “How does” or demonstration videos explain how a product works or how it benefits the customer. Explainer videos are often used in marketing and sales enablement, introducing a new product/service or perhaps the company itself and what it does. Some companies will build a whole series of explainer videos around their products, perhaps creating an opportunity for the voice-over actor to become the Voice of the company brand.
The voice-over narration should be genuine and trustworthy, aligned with the objectives to sell something and get the customer interested and excited about it. A tone that is conversational and friendly is most often used, although edgy and authoritative tones can be effective in select cases.
The voice itself should be easy on the ears, not grating, because explainer videos are not long enough to allow the listener to “get used to” the narrator’s voice. Diction should be easily understood and pacing should not be too fast so that the audience can follow along and complete a task, if appropriate. It is critical that the narration be relatable to the target audience and so the voice-over artist is free to add human elements such as emotion, personality and warmth to help make those connections.
