That’s a quote from a friend who I have worked with several times since we both left traditional broadcast media. It’s a common bit of feedback I receive from producers who aren’t used to receiving the voiceover back to them as quickly as I’m usually able to deliver it.

The Fast-Paced World of Professional Voice Acting

In today’s digital media landscape, with AI being integrated into so many elements of the production process, the ability to deliver high-quality voiceover work quickly has become more valuable than ever. My background in television news has given me a unique edge in meeting these demands, and it’s transformed the way I approach every voiceover project that lands in my inbox.

Why Wait? The Importance of Quick Turnaround in Voiceover

I don’t understand why some VO’s take so much longer in getting people the files they need to complete a project. There is something to be said for not rushing through a script just to get it back to a client in record time. I understand, that’s not the goal and that’s not what I do. But I know some folks will actually sit on booked work and continue with their daily auditions rather than prioritizing the completion of the jobs they’ve won.

I simply don’t understand this mindset. The theory for some is that since you have that job “won,” now it’s time to keep hunting. They’ll go back to the awarded projects at some point later in the day when the audition requests have cooled off. But I’ve only been selected for the one job I’ve “won.” Now is the opportunity to truly prove my worth to them for the longer term. Not just for this job, but to be given strong consideration for future work.

The Clock is Ticking: Lessons from the Newsroom

Perhaps a project doesn’t have an imminent deadline and I’m explicitly given a set timeframe several days into the future. That’s fine. But if I could give them top quality work within an hour, what type of impression would that give them? I worked in TV news for 20 years. The deadline pressure was immense. Unless you’re working on a special project, the turnaround time is always the same day. Aside from long-form projects (longer than ten minutes in length), that’s how I’ve always treated voiceover jobs.

Understanding Project Types: Corporate Narration vs. Commercial

Below is a product explainer for Teledyne Flir, a thermal imaging company that produces a lot of advanced tech. It’s longer than a typical commercial and not appearing in a paid placement advertising campaign. It requires a different rhythm and cadence than a 30 second commercial. With several minutes to describe a product that is public facing, a smoother listenability is required rather than a punchier, attention-grabbing sound that is normally associated with a quick commercial. Knowing the parameters and the expectations like that ahead of time can make it easier to deliver the final product to the client and with fewer revisions needed on the back end.

Your Deadline is My Priority

When you’re racing to complete a video project, the last thing you need is someone who sits on your script for days. You’ve got stakeholders waiting, events approaching, or marketing campaigns ready to launch. Every hour of delay impacts your timeline and potentially your results.

I treat every project with the urgency it deserves. In TV news, deadlines aren’t suggestions – they’re absolute. Miss your deadline, and you’ve missed your broadcast window. That mindset doesn’t disappear just because I’m now in the voiceover world.

Quality Doesn’t Have to Mean Slow

Someone else might tell you they need days to deliver “quality” work. But here’s what two decades in broadcast taught me: preparation and professionalism mean you can deliver excellence quickly. When your product launch video needs to be ready for tomorrow’s meeting, or your commercial needs to air next week, you shouldn’t have to choose between speed and quality.

What Fast Turnaround Means for Your Project

When you work with a voice talent who understands deadline pressure:

• Your production schedule stays on track
• Your team can continue editing without delays
• Your stakeholders see results faster
• Your stress level stays lower

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That was the case with this narration brought to me by Honeywell Aerospace, a company I’ve been fortunate to collaborate with on several occasions. This was a “corporate anthem” style project and one of my favorite things to do in voiceover. It doesn’t hurt that it also rekindled the dreams of my youth growing up on the Space Coast of Florida, wanting to be an astronaut. (Yes, I even went to Space Camp. Thanks, Mom and Dad!)

That dream eventually died inside the AP Physics classroom but maybe projects like this one can help inspire the next generation to push through the coefficiency of friction equations and send us deeper into the Final Frontier.

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This project was done in a directed session with a producer/editor guiding me remotely via teleconference. I really love the instant feedback of a live session and the ability to get things dialed in for a client in real-time. I’ve done a few sessions with IBM. They seem to like how I can give them speedy options that include potentially tongue twisting jargon. This corporate narration is for IBM Open Data for Industries for Cloud Pak for Data.

When I first got into voiceover, I naturally read copy very fast and I had to learn to slow things down. So, when someone asks me to speed back up, I’m more than happy to oblige.

The final take they used below was not one of the sped up versions.

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