Ok - I will try and answer a tricky and sometimes controversial question.
Firstly there are two main groups of professional voiceover artists in Ireland.
1. Voiceovers that belong to the actors union, Irish Equity.
These are actors who are full time and have a union that negotiates equity or standard rates across TV, Radio, Video and Elearning. The usage rights for their voice are included in the rates and are calculated by the length of time the piece will be used and the number of channels or the size of the audience that will hear the voice. With a simple Google search the equity rate card for voiceover artists in Ireland can be found.
Here are some equity rate examples for radio and tv commercials:
- Demo script or for going to the studio and reading a sample, €162. NB This is paid even if the advert is not used.
- TV Advert voiceover fee for a commercial used across all stations in ROI, €853
- Radio Advert voiceover fee for a commercial used across all stations in ROI, €533
The advantage of choosing a voiceover from the equity stable is they are experienced and generally highly skilled. The disadvantage is the costs are fixed and can be expensive, of course dependent on your budget.
Advertising agencies representing big brands would tend to use equity rate voice actors in TV, Radio and Social Media advertisements. Saying that as their margins are squeezed they are venturing out of this set and looking the second option below.
2. Independent Voiceovers that work for themselves.
This is the set I am part of so can talk with experience on it. Each job is negotiated with the client on a project by project basis. So when you are asking a voiceover artist from this group for a quote these are the parameters they will work from:
What medium will the voice be used?
TV, Radio, Online video, Social media, explainer video, elearning. Within that media how many stations will it play on?
How long will the voice be used for?
One campaign, a week, a year, ongoing etc.
Where is the recording of the voiceover happening?
Most decent voiceovers in Ireland would have a high quality studio that they can record from. Of course if they can do this it is less expensive as they do not need to travel. If they are required to attend a directed session in another studio they can do this too for a higher rate.
How many words are involved and the length of recording?
This is mostly applicable to voiceover fees on elearning projects -
Ok, so exactly how much does a voiceover in Ireland cost?!?
Group 1 see example equity rates above.
Group two please see some indicative price ranges for what you could expect to pay:
Radio Advert: €40 - €250,
The stations would normally pay a VO only €40 per advert if it is played on their station - it is so low because of the volume of recurring business they can offer the VO. If the advert is played on other stations an additional fee is worked out.
TV Advert: €250 - €650, maybe higher depending on usage/ length of recording session..
Elearning: Generally at approximately €50-65 per 1,000 words recorded.
Explainer video or Corporate video: Between €95 - €350 depending on length,
I hope this is helpful,
Thanks,
Richard
www.skeltonvoiceover.ie