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Preparing a Pronunciation Guide Before Your Voice Talent Session
26/10/2026
Few things derail a voiceover session faster than a name nobody is sure how to say. A voice talent reads your script beautifully, and then someone notices that the product name, the managing director's surname or a suburb has been pronounced in a way the client never uses. The fix might be a quick pick-up, or it might mean re-recording several minutes of audio. A simple pronunciation guide, prepared before the session, prevents most of these problems.
Why pronunciation causes trouble
English spelling is famously unreliable, and many words that look straightforward have local or brand-specific pronunciations. South Australia has its share of place names that visitors regularly get wrong, including many derived from Kaurna and other Aboriginal languages. Businesses also invent product names, use acronyms in particular ways and have staff with names from all over the world. A voice talent cannot know your preferences unless you tell them.
What to include
A useful pronunciation guide lists every word in the script that could be read in more than one way. That typically includes:
- Brand and product names, especially new or invented ones.
- People's names, including first names and surnames.
- Place names, such as suburbs, regions, streets and buildings.
- Acronyms, with a note on whether they are spelled out letter by letter or said as a word.
- Technical and industry terms that may be unfamiliar outside your field.
- Numbers, dates and prices, if there is a preferred way to say them.
- Web addresses and email addresses, including whether to say "dot com dot au" in full.
How to write pronunciations
You do not need specialist phonetic symbols. Simple sound-alike spellings work well, with the stressed syllable in capitals, for example writing a made-up product name as "zen-AH-lee-ah" rather than using a technical transcription. Even better is an audio reference. A quick voice memo of someone in your organisation saying each word, or a link to a reliable recording, removes any doubt.
Check with the right people
For names, ask the person themselves. For place names, check local sources. Where Aboriginal place names or words are involved, look for guidance from relevant language and community organisations where it is available, and be prepared to take advice. Getting these right is a sign of respect for the people and places involved.
Share it early
Send the guide to the voice talent with the script, not on the day of the session. That gives them time to practise and raise questions. Experienced voice talent will often flag words they are unsure about, which is another chance to catch problems early.
Keep it for next time
Save your pronunciation guide with your brand assets. The next time you record an ad, a training module or an on-hold message, you can reuse it, and new voice talent can match the way previous recordings sounded. Over time it becomes a small but valuable part of your brand guidelines.
Listen back carefully
When you receive the recording, listen specifically for the words on your list. It is much easier to fix a pronunciation in a quick pick-up straight away than after the audio has been mixed into a finished video.
Get it right first time
We provide experienced voice talent for Adelaide businesses, agencies and producers, and we are happy to help you prepare your script and pronunciation notes. Request a free quote with your script.