Needs For Low Cost Voice Over
The costs associated with producing audio and video content has reduced dramatically in the past five years, but is still very high compared with text only content. In the meantime, one of the major shifts in multimedia localization for the corporate market has been the spread of audio and video content for internal purposes.
 Even though "internal use" could still mean tens of thousands of viewers for some multinational corporations, there is generally a push to find lower cost, lower quality solutions for audio and video localization that keep enough impact in each language while avoiding unnecessary expenses. JBI Studios is at the forefront of this effort.
Understanding Voice Over Cost Savings Beyond Cheap
It's not just about lowering the quality and the cost until you reach a satisfactory middle ground, it's about finding creative solutions that preserves quality where it is needed, and limits expenses when appropriate. Say a webinar was recorded by technical experts for client training: they are not voice-over experts, and their delivery might be less than satisfactory. Does that mean you can save on costs and have a random, non-professional voice, recording the voice-over in foreign languages? No! The last thing you want is a voice of someone that sounds like he does not understand what he is talking about: you'll defeat the purpose of the webinar by having it sound not knowledgeable.
Voice Over Case Study Shows Content Is Key
Take a technical webinar for customers that was streamed live and recorded simultaneously into a flash video format. All presenters are speaking and recorded over the phone. The sound quality is phone level: can we record in our low end "studio 3" to cut costs? Yes!
The presenters are techies, not great speakers: can you have an average native speaker record the VO instead of a professional voice talent? No! The result will be an uninteresting voice that sounds like he does not understand what he is saying.
The original speaker sometimes stutters, or even says the wrong word without realizing it. Can we avoid a linguistic director and linguistic QA, and have the voice talent leave mistakes in the recording? No! Even though the sound quality is low, and the speakers are not professional, the content is key. Leaving errors in the content defeats the purpose of the webinar. This is a tempting but mistaken path.
Cheap Professional Voice Over Solutions With Localization Past
A localization past: as a foreign language recording studio, we always had to stay cost effective. We know you don't want to spend as much to localize your product as you did developing it and we always keep this in mind.
Low end recording: our low quality recording room, nicknamed "Studio 3", gives you professional recording equipment, but no sound isolation. If your product allows, you can leverage our huge database of foreign talent while saving on studio costs by using "Studio 3".
Creative Solution One Talent Voices Multiple Characters
Creative Solutions: whether it's reducing the number of people on a set when shooting a training video; using our "Studio 3" to record content that does not need high-end sound quality; covering animated text instead of replacing it to spare the client the expense of retrieving complex source files; slowing down a video to accommodate for expansion in foreign language voice-over because the type of product can accept such a degradation in quality; JBI Studios A/V localization experts strive to come up with creative ways to help you meet your budget and your needs.
On The Fly Recording By Interpreter
Here is another example of a low cost solution: on the fly recording. What does this mean? Instead of going through a translation and a voice over, we have an interpreter watch/listen to the video and interpret simultaneously as it plays. We record that interpretation, and... voila! The new audio track can be used by itself, or laid back on to video.
Warning! This very attractive solution has limitations: it will sound very different from a standard/professional voice over, and the quality of the translation rests within the interpreter's hands. This should not be used for any kind of technical content, or client facing product. This is typically used internal corporate communications with a short life span, such as a monthly address.
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