Many readers of The Magazine of Santa Clarita continue to send in great questions about the voiceover industry.  This month’s question is about getting a deposit before she works on a project.   
Q: Is it customary to ask for a deposit before you do a voiceover job, even if the company that hired you has a website and it’s known?  I asked for one because I have been burned in the past.  But those were people who just found me randomly on the Internet, had a Gmail account and no website.  Your thoughts? – Wendy B., Saugus, California
A: Great question, Wendy.  I have no problem with asking for a nominal good faith deposit from someone or some company you’ve never worked with before.  It can be stipulated in a simple letter of agreement.  Twenty-five percent is usually the standard deposit for a project, but that figure is ultimately up to you.  After you’ve established (hopefully) an on-going working relationship with the company, you’ll just be able to send them an invoice upon completion of the project.  But also stipulate the billing cycle: 15 days, 30 days, 45 or 60.  I don’t think any job should be paid outside of 60 days.
Marc Cashman © 2012
Marc Cashman creates and produces copy and music advertising for radio and television, and has been twice named as one of the “Best Voices of the Year” by AudioFile Magazine.  He’s been a Keynote Speaker and Master Class instructor at the international voiceover conventions VOICE 2008 and 2010 in Los Angeles, and will be reprising these roles at VOICE 2012 in June at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim, CA.  Winner of over 150 advertising awards as a producer and casting director, he also teaches voiceover technique at California Institute of the Arts and instructs voice acting of all levels through his classes, The Cashman Cache of Voice-Acting Techniques in Los Angeles, California and through one-on-one coaching worldwide.
Marc can be contacted at cashcomm@earthlink.net or his website, www.cashmancommercials.com.