Fear Factor and Voice Over Accreditation
We often hear that some voice talents avoid applying for accreditation out of fear. People have expressed real apprehension about being judged, even rejected. Some people are apprehensive simply because they don’t understand the accreditation program, are uncertain what to expect, don’t want to risk losing the accreditation fee, or just don’t feel comfortable introducing an unknown element into their voice over careers.
We genuinely understand all these fears. Because of the way we developed the accreditation program, as voice over talents, each director of SaVoa has had to deliver evaluation demos, submit for peer review and wait to be evaluated on the established accreditation criteria. Unlike other applicants, we also faced the possibility of publicly losing our seat on the board if we failed to pass peer review, a prospect none of us took lightly.
No other applicant needs to be afraid of publicly failing to meet the accreditation criteria. Unless you yourself publicize it, no one in the industry ever needs to know you have submitted an application for accreditation (unless of course you pass peer review and become an accredited voice over talent).
Fear of rejection is very common and no one finds that pleasant. However, in terms of voice over accreditation, if you are a working voice over talent capable of delivering broadcast-quality voice overs to your clients, you likely meet the accreditation criteria and may generally expect to pass peer review.
If you are not a working voice over talent and have not had the benefit of any client feedback, you will need to possess the ability to objectively judge your own talent for voice over delivery, both your performance and technical skills. Of course, you can avoid possible rejection of your accreditation application altogether by waiting to attain more feedback from clients, coaches or other voice over talents.
Here is another fact that should alleviate some of your fears: unless a client will hire only accredited voice over talents, your lack of accreditation will not prevent you from providing voice over services.
Fear of the unknown is also very common and one of the easiest fears to overcome. In terms of voice over accreditation, the best way to overcome this fear is to review our web site and ask us questions about the program.
SaVoa is not a mystery organization. Our criteria and procedures are published on this web site, and peer review is conducted by accredited members — voice over talents who, like you, once submitted an application for accreditation and went through peer review.
SaVoa is here to serve you, the voice over community, by:
- helping to set benchmarks for quality voice over, and
- maintaining a peer-based accreditation program that identifies voice over talents who meet those benchmarks
It’s that simple.
As for the fear of losing your hard-earned money, the accreditation fee is a small investment to say the least. If you pass peer review, you are accredited for two years. If you do not pass both the performance and technical portions of your peer review process, half of your application fee is refunded.
For additional details about the program, failing any portion of peer review and opportunities to reapply for accreditation, please visit SaVoa’s Frequently Asked Questions and in particular paragraphs 6 through 11. As always, your additional comments are welcome.
