How To Spot a Voiceover Coaching SCAM!

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You've probably heard horror stories of people losing hundreds, sometimes THOUSANDS of dollars on a coach or company that made promises that are too good to be true. In this video, Gabby goes over what to look for, warning signs and questions you should ask any potential voiceover coach or company BEFORE you start working with them.

Transcript
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How to Spot a Voiceover Coaching SCAM! - 8:50

Hey guys, it’s Gabby. We’re looking for a predator, OK? You ready to come with me? Let's do this.

So here's the thing. The predator we’re hunting is actually the predatory coaching companies that are sadly all too easy to find. They don't hide by any means, guys, and I'm sure you know of at least a few of them. What I want to do today is talk to you a little bit about what predatory coaches do, the kinds of services that they offer so that you can understand that whenever you see something like this, they’re pretty clearly red flags and something you stay away from. Predatory coaching companies and scam voiceover companies are all over our industry. They make really big promises, really big claims, and by now you guys probably know the old adage, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. That’s definitely the case with the majority of these companies. I want to help you in this video to understand what predatory voiceover companies do, the kinds of services they offer, and this way you’ll know that anytime you hear someone talking about those types of services, it should be a really big red flag, so that you know to slow down and do some really extensive research on them.

Probably the biggest giveaway that you’re being courted or pitched by a scam voiceover company is they promise to fast-track you through training super, super, super quickly. I mean like one weekend of training and a demo is made. Anything that’s just remarkably quick, where the coach that you’re working with or coaches that you’re working with don't ever really get a chance to know you, and you’re only working with them over the course of maybe a day or two or certainly no more than a week, and then a demo is completed for you, it is nuts. There's countless amounts of data all over the web on plenty of voiceover websites about all the reasons why you should absolutely never spend your money on a company like that. Also the costs are going to be crazy. Usually $2000, $3000, $4000, $5,000 for this really limited, really short-term engagements.
Along with that is any company that promises to make you a demo after X number of voiceover lessons. No quality voiceover coach, no one with a good, solid reputation is going to promise you a demo after say five classes or six classes. The reason is because we can't do that. We can't predict the future. We don't know how exactly how far you’ll progress in five classes. We don't know how far you’ll progress in 10 classes. So anytime you’re being prematurely pitched on a demo, walk away.

A lot of the scam companies start their introduction with you in some sort of a community college or a vocational college. And literally the class they offer will be part of some kind of adult education curriculum. You’ll pay something really, really small to attend it too like $35, usually no more than $50. And in that room, you’re going to be sitting with a lot of other hopeful people who just kind of think, hey, voiceover sounds like a neat idea. The person speaking, who probably by no means is a qualified coach, because these folks usually don't hire qualified coaches, because we wouldn’t really have anything to do with a process like this, is going to pump your head full of information about why the voiceover industry is so fantastic, and all the money that you can make, and how quickly you can do it. Shortly after you take this introductory class, you’re gonna get a letter, or a correspondence, or an email, or even a phone call from someone at the company saying how amazing you were, and how you blew everybody away. And now they want to invite you to come to their masterclass or whatever the next step in their training is. And that’s usually the one, two or three-day weekend type workshop where you spend a ton of money and leave with a demo... (continued)

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[marylandgirl]

Thanks for this video. Now I no longer feel tempted to take that Such A Voice class at our local community college.

[j.stephenson]

After about 8 months of being a new voice talent, I can truly say that the majority of what I've needed to know, I've learned from YouTube videos, from guys like Gabby, DeWees, Earl Hall, and the Booth Junkie. I'd advise anybody to just watch all the YouTube videos you can from these guys, practice, practice, and practice, maybe take 3 or 4 classes from somewhere like Edge Studio, take a few marketing and/or business courses, and you'll do fine.

[StarlightInsights_com]

Wow this is crazy, like really crazy - I have seen the *exact* same predatory approach in a few other fields (mostly coaching, but not always) - like totally the same business model - get people to a cheap/free meeting, tell them how great they are, milk them for as long as you can - I had no idea that this was also an issue in VO coaching business - thanks for putting this out 💪

[eileenanglinactor]

I signed up for a "voice Over Class" at my local community college. I thought it would be a workshop, instead I sat through a three hour infomercial. They had us say some lines for an "evaluation." I knew ten minutes in what this was, but unfortunately, the people in the class had no experience and were being reeled in by the claims being made. I googled the company, and sure enough, it would be several thousand dollars to work with them. They have emailed and called but I have ignored them.

[rickjayglen]

I’ve been a working VO for 10 years.

I’ve done workshops where I promise the students a demo. A demo is nothing more than a track to present and display your voice.

It was in a studio and a lot of the students did very well. A lot of them needed work.

I didn’t promise a career in my class, and I certainly told them that their is no “fast track”.

Some people do get a fast track while others don’t.

Opportunity is not a promise. Nor should it be sold as a promise.

But as a working voice actor, I don’t have time to guide everyone else in their career path. Two days to learn the mic, practice in a studio, record a sample and get connections is a lot of work.

You certainly can’t teach everything in a weekend, but I think that people who are willing to learn, can take something away from being in the studio, taking direction, having their talents observed and critiqued can definitely benefit them when they are starting out.

I would never waste my time preying on aspiring artists. I get paid more to just do my work.

[devonmichael]

I signed up with such a voice. Could I have been scammed? From the sound of your video, possibly. But I came out knowing a hell of a lot more about voice over than I would if I hadn't.

[tammyjanderson]

Your intro made me snort! So funny. This is a great resource for me to refer people to that have coach questions. Alright, who is the ghost lurking in your video?

[DrewMontgomeryVoiceOvers]

I think it's about time to name NAMES! :)

[irenesantiago]

THANK YOU GOG! I have been saying this for years! Unfortunately, so many fall for this over and over. Sharing!

[endTHEhegemony_Today]

That that was a good swerve for me.
🖤💜💙💚💙💜🖤
Thank You!
🖤💜💙💚💙💜🖤
Much Love!!

[JerryDechant]

The lighting behind your camera crew was causing distracting shadows. I'd suggest fixing that for future videos. Other than that, the content was well worth watching and informative. :)

[DtKnize]

Reputable demo producers will not produce a demo unless they feel you are ready to self direct and voice copy properly .

[lorimadsen]

Love your videos! Love your bloopers! In the past I have had an "issue" with "coaching classes" set up by my agent! Hope that's not typical!

[rguitar]

Great vid, tons of useful info (as always). My only suggestion would be to not group your final call to check out your fb etc. with the bloopers. I'm very interested in the industry and your info has been invaluable. Thank you!

[Daydreamroses]

I paid for an edge studio commercial demo over a year ago for around $2000 and a week later I found out about how you shouldn’t really go get demos produced by people who say you can produce a demo after x amount of coaching sessions. I’m still going to have them produce the demo because I can’t get my money back. But I don’t think it’s a scam? Mainly because dan green (voice actor for yugi in yugioh) is one of the coaches that can help you for your demo. But I wish I didnt jump the gun and used that money for more improv and acting classes. You live and you learn 😂

[OMGmyFACE]

Cut a demo way before I was ready from a studio that was more than happy to take my cash and only now that I'm serious (and still starting from zero because I know I need the coaching) do I realize how amateurish the demo was. An hour or two of coaching and then a "not great to OK" character demo? They probably knew better but, hey, easy money for them, right?

[ThinBlueLaneRVLife]

Love your videos! Thank you for making them.

[JohnGroveVO]

This is fantastic Gabby:~)) Great for you to share with newbies:~))

[franciskosc]

This pretty much describes my experience.

[xrarelightx]

There are seasoned voice actors like Chuck Huber charging about $300/session to teach new actors. Emphasis on NEW. Actors just entering the business aren't going to have that much money. Coaches need to be reasonable. $300 is half of my monthly bills. Also Casting Call Club "classes" seems like a scam too.