Watermarking Voice-over Auditions

Today's blog post is inspired by a great question that was posted on Such A Voice's

Facebook page about watermarking auditions that you post on directories such as Voices.com and Voice123.com.

When discussing watermarks for audio files, a watermark refers to a second layer of audio that you would lay over your voice over to prevent a shady client from using your work without paying for it first. If you are auditioning for a commercial, your watermark might be as subtle as a "bing!" sound every few seconds, which shouldn't be so loud as to get in the way of your actual voice-over work, but would render your voice-over useless for commercial purposes. If you are auditioning for something longer, like a narration, another common watermark would sound like, "This is just a demo by John Smith." You would insert that watermark anywhere from 10-30 seconds into the full script audition.

Although watermarking can protect your voice over jobs, it's not advisable to watermark every audition. Especially if you are working with a well-known client or someone you have worked with in the past, watermarking an audition could be interpreted by the client that you are distrustful of them. They might pass up your great audition that was watermarked because, "What, did he think I was really going to use his voice over without paying for it?"

After all of your voice-over training and hard work to become a professional voice actor, it's natural to want clients to treat you with the respect you deserve. However, make sure to maintain good working relationships with all your clients, and you should trust the people you're working with.

So, when is it a good idea to watermark your work?

It depends on the interactions you have had with the client. The longer you work in the voice-over industry, the better you'll be able to tell how to handle these nuanced situations. Some instances in which you should at least consider watermarking your work include:

1. You are working with an over-seas client who you aren't familiar with. 2. You are working with an "unknown" client for a project that was posted through Craigslist or another open forum. (Disclaimer: Craigslist is great, but anyone can post anything for any purpose there.). 3. You are working with a new client who wants you to read the entire script for your audition.

The good thing about erring on the side of trusting the client is that on the off chance you get a shady client, you can tell everyone about it through social media. If you don't get paid for work you do, or if a client treats you badly, you can let other voice-over artists know about it. And, in the worst case, you find a "voice-over job" that ends up being someone totally sleazy, you can warn other future victims. (See, the Sleazy Sneeze Guy)

by: Catherine Marshall

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