Finding the right voice for your script is a tough task and deciding if that voice should be a man’s or woman’s is even tougher. This is because gender specific voices do have an impact on the overall message of your content. Deciding between a male or female voice-over artist has always been a challenge for creative directors and producers.
Now, research has thrown some light on this issue. Let’s take a look.
The Survey
In 2010, AdWeek Media and Harris Poll conducted a survey where they questioned 2194 adult Americans to find out how they, as consumers, responded to advertisements with male and female voiceovers. These were the findings:
- The survey found that 48% of the consumers found a male voice-over to be forceful. However, 49% of the other consumers stated that gender had no significant effect on their buying decision.
- Similarly, when questioned about female voiceovers, there was an equal division in opinion. 46% of the consumers found female voices to be soothing, while 46% stated that gender did not have any effect.
- However, the area of persuasion is where the results were really split. 19% of consumers felt female voices were persuasive, while 18% felt male voices were more persuasive. The remaining 64% of consumers stated that both genders didn’t have an effect on their buying decisions.
So, the point here is gender does have a certain impact on your ability to sell. For instance, if your advertisement requires a forceful tone, then going for a male voiceover artist will appeal to 98% of your target audience. This includes the 48% who feel that male voices are forceful and the other 49% who will buy your product irrespective of the voice’s gender. Similarly, an advertisement that requires a soothing voiceover would do much better with a female voice.
Product Matters Too
The study also found that a male voice is more effective in selling products that are male oriented. For instance, 28% of the consumers stated that a male voice would convince them to buy a car. On the other hand, only 7% felt that a woman’s voice would achieve the same. Similarly, a woman’s voice is better used to sell female oriented products.
What the Experts Have to Say
Voice-over artist Arthur Chu states that male voices are synonymous with authority, neutrality, and fact based information. So, if you’re creating an instructional video or sharing certain facts, then a stern male voice is the choice to go with.
As for female voices, veteran voice-over artist, Roberta Kennedy believes that they are compassionate, non-threatening, and nurturing. So, a narration or a commercial that requires persuasion will do better with a female voice.
Conclusion
Choosing the gender of your voice-over depends on factors such as the product you’re selling and the audience you are catering to. To put it simply, a car or a gadget advertisement will see better results with a male voice, while a cosmetic advertisement will experience the same with a female voice.
About Roberta:
Roberta is a Professional AND International Award Winning trained Voice-Over Actor, as well as an accomplished On-Camera Actress and Spokesperson. She is the owner of Roberta Kennedy Voice Talent and RK Productions, Inc.
As a professional voice actor located in the San Francisco Bay Area, she’s recorded thousands of voiceovers for companies around the world using her state of the art, broadcast quality studio. Her home studio is equipped with ipDTL and ISDN with phone patch capability and lightning fast turnaround times.
A Voiceover talent with over 20 years of voiceover acting experience, she offers a full range of voiceover services at highly competitive rates & will work with your budget to help you promote your business to new levels of excellence!
To request a personal quote or audition and/or to review more of her credits & demos, feel free to visit her website: www.robertakennedy.com. You can also mail her at roberta@robertakennedy.com or check out the Contact page. Thank you!