BUSINESS
Is a Male or Female Voice Better for Your Brand?
Are women the voices of reason and warmth, while male speakers are best for selling goods? Well, yes - and no! Here is an overview of how to choose a gender for your audio projects.
Maria Chatzi, Product Owner
This is an excellent question to ask. You might have wondered, does choosing a male or female voice make a difference? The answer is often yes.
For some, in a world of equality and fairness, gender choice for a voiceover should be inconsequential. On the contrary, the gender behind a voice helps to establish a number of unstated, communicative factors. Audio and voices create emotional connections, ones that are very hard to overcome. Sometimes, those emotional connections are hardwired-in: Dads tend to be more authoritative and inspire discipline, while moms are the voice of affection and reassurance.
Female speakers provoke certain associations. Or you can break the rules.
But what does that primal emotional association have to do with your brand and your audience? When you are asked to decide whether a male or a female voice is a better representation of your brand, you need to consider many factors that will help you reach a verdict. For example, you will need to identify your target audience: if your business is selling men’s razors and shaving cream, then naturally you are considering using a male voice.
The majority of brands rely on this gender-biased representation of emotion a voice can bring.
Alternatively, if you are selling female sanitary products, you will by definition choose a warm, female voice. On a few occasions, going against the stereotypes might work, but if you have a careful listen to all the advertisements on TV and radio, you will find that the majority of brands rely on this gender-biased representation of emotion a voice can bring.
Another thing you will want to consider while choosing your preferred voice, is the emotion you are trying to convey. If you are going for energised, aggressive, and strong, you should maybe opt for a male, deep voice. In most cases though, a female voice is like a jack of all trades: it can go a long way. It can be soothing, reassuring, warm and welcoming. But you can also count on an upbeat female voice, if you want to project energy, young spirit, and liveliness!
Can I sell you something? Men's voices are not always better for sales audio.
If you are indecisive and you want to reach multiple audiences at the same time, why not try mixing both? The style of your text will evolve into something more conversational, and will immediately capture the attention of the listener, as it is less boring, more interchangeable, and fun to engage with.
If you are advertising locally or are showcasing a regional brand, you may want to choose a voice that feels more familiar to your listeners.
Lastly, the tone of your chosen voice plays a big role into how your audience will perceive it. For example, a Mindfulness brand will be better represented if the voice that accompanies the services is placid, calming and reassuring, while a Fitness brand has to be spirited, uplifting, motivational and enthusiastic. If you are advertising locally or are showcasing a regional brand, you may want to choose a voice that feels more familiar to your listeners: a US, UK, AU accent might win the remaining trust of your audience!
People want to identify with the voice they hear, they want to listen to what is closer to them and to their causes. For this reason, our team in Aflorithmic can fine-tune your content to meet exactly the expectations and demands of your business and your target market: speed, tone, accent, gender are all on deck. With our professional experience, we can suggest the right fit for your endeavour and maximize the impact of your message.
About: AudioStack is a London/Barcelona-based technology company. Its platform enables fully automated, scalable audio production by using synthetic media, voice cloning, and audio mastering, to then deliver it on any device, such as websites, mobile apps, or smart speakers. With this Audio-As-A-Service, anybody can create beautiful sounding audio, starting from a simple text to including music and complex audio engineering without any previous experience required. The team consists of highly skilled specialists in machine learning, software development, voice synthesizing, AI research, audio engineering, and product development.