Eardrum founder + Cannes Radio Lions president Ralph van Dijk opens OZ’s first voice-casting division to stop the use of cliché voiceovers
Australian advertisers are damaging their brands on radio and television by using cliché voice overs and failing to create and maintain a distinctive audio brand voice according to this year’s Cannes Radio Lions jury president and founder of Sydney-based audio advertising specialist agency Eardrum, Ralph van Dijk (pictured).
van Dijk, who has been named chair of the Radio Lions for the 60th anniversary of the world’s preeminent advertising awards, said while agencies invest significant time and money into the visual component of television advertising the voices used to accompany them are often an afterthought and badly done.
Considered a world authority on radio advertising, van Dijk is launching Australia’s first specialist voice casting service in order to expand the range of voices currently heard in radio and TV advertising and help advertisers adopt a more consistent brand-voice approach.
The division of Eardrum called Earcasting will scout Australia and internationally for fresh and distinctive voices and then advise agencies and clients on the best options for brands.
Says van Dijk: “Most brands will have extensive guidelines dictating how their visual brand is to be used, but most haven’t given any thought to how their brand sounds. We can find a voice that we believe is unique to a brand in the same way as their brand has a visual identity.”
Advertisers and agencies are also too quick to change voices in their advertising, leading to confusion among listeners and viewers, van Dijk says, adding that once a brand has an established voice it should be applied across all audio touch points of the brand including websites, telephone recorded messages and in-store.
Says van Dijk: “Many companies have several audio touch points but use different voices for each one. They would never dream of doing that with their visual brand identity so why should it be any different with their brand sound?”
TV advertising in particular needs to improve consistency in voice branding, according to van Dijk.
“Agencies spend tens of thousands of dollars and many hours working on the visual aspect of making an ad, but they will spend half an hour in the studio recording the voice track that took them 20 minutes to cast. At the very least they’re missing a trick and potentially damaging the brand.”
van Dijk has been named alongside some of the advertising industry’s biggest names including David Droga, BBH founder Sir John Hegarty, Wieden + Kennedy’s Dan Wieden and R/GA’s Bob Greenberg as president of a Cannes Lions Jury in 2013 as the Festival of International Creativity celebrates its 60th year.
Says van Dijk: “It’s a great honour to chair the Radio Lions in such an auspicious year for the festival and alongside some of the most famous names in the business. Radio is such a powerful and effective medium for advertising and I’m looking forward to hearing the best examples of audio production and innovation from across the world.”
14 Comments
Long needed.
What’s wrong with using Lee Perry on everything?
Lee is a fucking genius. If you know how to work with him, you won’t ever realise it’s Lee doing the voice.
After you’ve scoured the world for a perfect voice, will you just cast yourself like that time with ANZ?
Lee is a “fucking” genius … as you say. And a lovely man. Won’t have a nasty word said about him. But I disagree with you Mr “Not so lazy creative” … whether Lee’s doing a drunk mexican, mid-Atlantic smoothie, posh English bloke or a straight Aussie corporate, I know it’s him. I can spot him a mile off. Don’t care what you say. I may be lazy but I’ve got a very keen ear and if Lee’s doing the voice, I’ll spot it.
By first ever in OZ, maybe he means where the Wizard lives. Many studios have casting divisions. Many others just have people who are really bloody good at it. If a brand hasn’t given any thought to how their brand sounds I would have thought that was the creatives fault.
Charles, you’re right, but therein lies the genius of Ralph. He’s built an entire career on repackaging the stuff that decent agencies and production studios should be doing anyway, and presenting it to clients like it’s an all-new service. All at a healthy mark-up.
Congrats again, Ralph. You’ll no doubt kill it once more with this one.
Lazy creative is either a sonic genius or a voiceover guy with an agenda. I’ve worked in this business for almost 30 years, very hard to tell ‘Lee’ or his standard character acting from his bespoke voices for me.
Would love a list of commercials you think he’s done recently, personally think Lazy Creative would be surprised.
Not the first specialist casting service. Really Ralph. There are people and studios in this business that have been doing this in Australia for over 30 years.
Well done Ralph. Ignore the creatively barren and continue to do what you do bloody well. Well targeted ideas, freshly cast with great production values will always work best. Keep doing it Ralph.
Scout me! Scout me! This is great news for us freelance, non-represented voice artists! Good luck with your venture, Ralph!
What’s truly genius about Lee is he manages to be Australian while looking Indian.
Don’t forget Keith Scott, ‘The Man Of A Thousand Voices That All Sound Like Keith Scott.’
The sound of a message, and I believe the spoken word is the most important part of that, is what bridges the gap, making the connection to the listener ( customer ) calling them to action. I love rising to that challenge.