Special interest groups spend a great deal of time and money getting their voices heard in Washington. Finding a credible voice over to deliver their political ad and drive their message home is crucial to their success. In a very real sense, interest groups are the American people. They work to garner focus on those things the people care about the most. Though it’s hard to quantify the number of groups these days, the Encyclopedia of Associations has around 23,000 entries and a great deal of them qualify as “special interest” – so let’s just agree it’s a lot. For almost every major stance or opinion a voter or politician might take, there’s likely a group lobbying for and/or against it.
Represent, People – Finding America’s Voice Over
If a special interest group seeks to win the argument, they have to sound like the American people. And this includes the delivery, style, and sound of the voice over artist hired to represent them. A political ad voice over pro’s bread and butter comes from an ability to communicate specifically to varied audiences. Not just the words on a page of copy, but the intention, subtext, and emotion underpinning the message. They understand who they are representing, who is listening and who needs the information they’re relaying. They employ a toolkit of deliveries to effectively relate to their listener and be persuasive, and in doing so, can bring other, like-minded people into the special interest’s fold.
To win hearts and minds to any cause, a messenger needs to embody a “je ne sais quoi” that points to a commonality with the listener. And special interest groups vary widely in their constituency. Your hired voice over artist finds the proper attitudes and emotions that appeal both to the politicians they lobby and the citizens they hope to represent. They can be authoritative and businesslike in one message, comforting and calm in the next, fun and engaging for the audience and message after that. The tone of voice that speaks to a coal miner, nurse, teacher, entertainer, single parent, GenXer/Millenial/BabyBoomer, factory worker, CEO, butcher/baker/candlestick maker the artist is one each will relate to and resonate with.
Winning Friends and Influencing People – How Special Interest Voices Get Heard
Just about every special interest group you can think of has a presence in Washington (notoriously along K Street) where their primary raison d’etre is to influence people and policy and control the dialog surrounding their issues.
Lobbying: The Voice of Advocacy
Special interest groups, along with industries, companies, and unions give gobs of money to professional advocates to lobby members of Congress, government officials and federal agencies on the issues they care about. If these lobbyists are successful, the amount of money they will see in ROI (Return on Investment) on the squillions of dollars they spend makes these gobs look like teeny drops in the proverbial bucket. It follows that consideration and thought should then be taken in the care and selection of the voice over artist chosen to represent them. Radio and TV ads, political videos, PSAs, social media content etc, must have a consistent representation in the form of voice over to articulate the message.
PACs and 527s: The Influence of Voice Over
The Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision in 2010 has made campaign finance murkier waters, but in general, political action committees, or PACs, control pools of contributions from individuals and distribute them to candidates, political parties and even other PACs. They can also spend money independently on all sorts of political activities, including advertising and supporting or opposing candidates in elections. They are controlled by special interest groups, companies, trade associations, unions, and even groups of politicians (in the form of something adorably called “leadership PACs”), all vying for a piece of the power pie. And here, again, each of these entities needs to invest their political dollars on a voice that epitomizes their outlook and can communicate their stance.
Even nebulous entities like the so-called 527 committees (referring to a section of the IRS tax code), which can take unlimited amounts of money from just about anyone or any corporation and uses that money to engage in the full range of political activity. And their voices can have a strong influence. Consider the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, which ran “issue ads” critical of Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry’s Vietnam War record in 2004. Their message was strong and relatable to the targeted group of voters that they wanted to compel to vote for Bush. Their voice helped sway a Presidential Election.
A Voice Over That Rises Above the Din
With the large number of organizations, corporations, unions, PACs and interests competing for the hearts and minds of voters and politicians alike, how to be heard is crucial for rising above the din. Employing an experienced, competent, compelling voice over to effectively communicate a position across all media platforms is crucial for winning support, affecting policy or swaying voters. To represent values, positions, the American people themselves, you need the right herald – one who understands your message and knows how to deliver it.