Huge thanks to Marc Guss and his guest tonight on the Marc Guss Voiceover Club, Eric Romanowski! Eric, trusted demo producer and head of Ear Blowing Audio Productions, joined Marc in the Club to discuss commercial demos and analyzing that all-important first spot.
Eric has a background in radio imaging, which Marc said can sometimes be a negative in the voiceover world because people can get pigeonholed. However, Marc said this was an asset for Eric because of his creativity and talent. Eric said that when he got into voiceover he worked hard and studied to learn what he needed in order to be competitive and make the best demos possible.
First, Marc and Eric talked about the importance of nailing it on the first spot because you don’t want the listener tuning out after the first few seconds. It’s about finding a way to grab the attention of decision makers and to keep them listening. “We have to get to the point very, very quickly,” Marc said. How quickly? Forget 15 seconds, even 12 seconds is too long. The ideal length for the first spot is around 6-8 seconds, they said.
The stage was open to those who wanted to play their demo’s first spot and get feedback from Marc and Eric. Here are some key points from the discussion and demo analysis:
- Your first spot should reflect the real you on a daily basis and show your relatable, conversational sound.
- Something slightly different from a conversational spot, like dramatic or warm, could be good for a second or third spot.
- Eric likes a contrast between the first and second spot to keep people listening.
- The subtlety of the spots was something that Marc talked about, and he said that even a quarter of a second could make or break someone continuing to listen to your demo. “There’s no luxury anymore to wait to get to the next spot,” he added.
- Your first few seconds are valuable real estate on your demo, and it can feel like a lot of pressure to choose exactly the right spot. But then again, Eric reminded us that “not everyone is going to like your first spot.” He said that you can go crazy if you try to please everyone, and that ultimately it’s your business and you’re in charge of your career. Good to remember. And, as we heard from the people who shared their demos tonight, spots can always be reordered and moved around. So try to make the best decision with your demo producer, but know that it can be changed up later.
Thanks so much to Marc and Eric for the great advice, and thanks also for talent who played their demos, which helped everyone listening learn so much! Check out the Marc Guss Voiceover Club every Wednesday night on Clubhouse at 8:30 pm ET or catch the replay later.