Stephanie Ciccarelli is a visionary entrepreneur whose innovative approach has revolutionized the voice-over industry. As the co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Voices.com, she has played a pivotal role in shaping the platform into a leading marketplace for voice talent. Since its founding, Voices.com has transformed how companies find and hire professional voice actors, connecting clients with voice talent across the globe.
In this blog, we will explore Stephanie Ciccarelli’s entrepreneurial journey, educational background, business experiences, the challenges she faced, her successes, and the incredible growth of Voices.com.
Early Life and Educational Background
Stephanie Ciccarelli’s interest in language, communication, and marketing was evident early on. Growing up, she developed a fascination with how people use their voices to express emotion, sell ideas, and connect with audiences. This passion set the stage for her future career, where she would eventually merge her love for communication with the world of technology and entrepreneurship.
Stephanie attended Western University in Ontario, Canada, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English Language and Literature. Her educational background in English provided a strong foundation for understanding the nuances of language and how it can be used effectively to communicate messages, a skill that would later prove essential in her work at Voices.com.
Additionally, Stephanie’s studies in literature and linguistics gave her the tools to understand the mechanics of storytelling and the voice’s role in creating meaningful narratives, both of which would influence her approach to marketing and brand-building at Voices.com.
The Birth of Voices.com
Voices.com was co-founded in 2003 by Stephanie Ciccarelli and her husband David Ciccarelli. The idea for the company emerged from David’s background in the voice-over industry. David, a trained audio engineer and voice actor himself, recognized that the voice-over industry was ripe for disruption. The traditional method of hiring voice talent was often cumbersome and slow, involving agencies, agents, and complex negotiations. David and Stephanie saw an opportunity to create an online marketplace that could streamline this process, making it easier for businesses to find, hire, and work with professional voice actors.
Stephanie and David Ciccarelli launched Voices.com as a platform designed to connect voice talent with clients directly. The website allowed companies to post job listings for voice talent, while voice actors could submit their auditions to be considered for the roles. This simple, yet highly effective, business model turned out to be exactly what the industry needed.
Voices.com quickly grew in popularity, offering a seamless and convenient way for both clients and talent to connect. What began as a small startup with a simple mission—empowering businesses with the voices they need for commercials, films, video games, podcasts, and more—grew into a global platform with tens of thousands of voice actors and clients from around the world.
Stephanie Ciccarelli’s Role in Voices.com
As Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Voices.com, Stephanie played a crucial role in defining and promoting the company’s brand. In the early stages of the company’s growth, she focused on building a strong marketing strategy to attract both clients and voice talent to the platform. Stephanie’s expertise in marketing helped establish Voices.com as a trusted brand in the voice-over industry, while also educating businesses about the value and flexibility of hiring voice talent through an online marketplace.
Her marketing acumen extended to content creation, social media, and public relations, where she built a community around Voices.com and established the company as a thought leader in the voice-over space. Stephanie’s work in establishing a brand identity and fostering relationships with key stakeholders played a crucial role in growing the company into one of the most prominent names in the industry.
In addition to her marketing responsibilities, Stephanie has been involved in many strategic decisions, including company expansion, partnerships, and the development of new services. Under her leadership, Voices.com has launched various features that have set the platform apart from competitors, including a ProFinder service for premium clients, as well as a mobile app to help talent and clients collaborate on-the-go.
Struggles and Challenges
Like any entrepreneurial journey, Stephanie’s path to success with Voices.com was not without its struggles. Here are some of the challenges that she and her husband David faced while building the company:
- Breaking Into a Traditional Industry: The voice-over industry had been operating in a very traditional way for many years, with agencies and agents acting as intermediaries between talent and clients. The idea of disrupting this system with an online marketplace was met with resistance at first. Many voice actors and companies were skeptical about working through an online platform. Stephanie and David had to overcome this resistance and educate the industry about the benefits of Voices.com, such as greater access to talent, cost-effectiveness, and efficiency.
- Building a Platform from Scratch: As the founders of Voices.com, Stephanie and David had to start with very limited resources and build the company’s platform from the ground up. This included everything from developing the website and creating a user-friendly interface to establishing secure payment systems and building a database of voice talent. It was a massive undertaking that required significant investment of both time and energy.
- Attracting Clients and Talent: In the early stages of the company, Stephanie and David had to work hard to attract both clients and voice talent to the platform. Since Voices.com was an entirely new concept, they had to convince companies to post jobs and trust the platform for finding quality voice actors. Similarly, they needed to attract talented voice artists to the platform, offering them an alternative to the traditional agency model. This dual challenge required effective marketing strategies, outreach, and building trust within the voice-over community.
- Scaling the Business: As Voices.com gained traction, Stephanie faced the challenge of scaling the company’s operations. With thousands of clients and voice actors joining the platform, there was a need to ensure the infrastructure could handle the increased traffic, keep the user experience smooth, and continue offering exceptional customer support. Growing the team, managing logistics, and maintaining quality control became significant challenges as the platform grew.
Successes and Achievements
Despite the challenges, Voices.com has seen tremendous success over the years, and much of this can be attributed to Stephanie’s leadership and innovative marketing strategies. Here are some of the key achievements of Voices.com under her guidance:
- Global Expansion: Voices.com has grown into a global marketplace, with over 500,000 voice actors from more than 160 countries. The platform’s international reach has enabled it to serve clients of all sizes, from small businesses to major corporations, and has made Voices.com the go-to destination for finding voice talent.
- Client Base: Voices.com’s client base includes top-tier companies and brands across industries, such as NBC, Disney, Microsoft, Warner Bros., and Coca-Cola. This diverse client base speaks to the platform’s versatility and ability to cater to different types of projects, including television commercials, corporate training videos, video games, and more.
- Acquisition of Voices 123: In 2016, Voices.com made a significant move by acquiring Voices 123, another popular voice-over marketplace. This acquisition helped solidify Voices.com’s position as the leader in the industry and expanded its talent pool and client offerings even further.
- Awards and Recognition: Voices.com has received numerous accolades for its business growth and innovation. The company has been recognized for its commitment to technology, customer service, and market leadership. Stephanie Ciccarelli, in particular, has been recognized as one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs in Canada and has been featured in several industry publications.
- Innovative Features: Under Stephanie’s leadership, Voices.com has consistently rolled out new features to improve the user experience. This includes launching ProFinder, which allows businesses to access premium voice talent, and the Voices.com mobile app, which allows users to collaborate on projects from anywhere, making it easier for clients and voice talent to communicate and collaborate efficiently.
Looking Ahead: The Future of Voices.com
As Stephanie Ciccarelli continues to lead Voices.com, the company remains focused on expanding its offerings and adapting to the changing needs of the industry. The rise of AI-generated voices and new technologies in the voice-over space presents both challenges and opportunities for the company. Stephanie’s vision for the future of Voices.com includes:
Embracing New Technology: With the advent of artificial intelligence and synthetic voices, Voices.com plans to stay ahead of the curve by incorporating these technologies into its platform while still preserving the authenticity and quality of human voice talent.
Expanding into New Markets: Voices.com plans to continue its global expansion, exploring new regions and industries that can benefit from high-quality voice talent.
Continuous Innovation: Voices.com will continue to develop new features and services to streamline the experience for both voice actors and clients, ensuring that the platform remains the go-to marketplace for voice-over work.
Conclusion
Stephanie Ciccarelli’s entrepreneurial journey with Voices.com is a remarkable success story. From overcoming initial resistance to building one of the leading platforms for voice talent worldwide, her innovative approach to marketing, branding, and customer service has set Voices.com apart in a competitive market
As the company continues to grow, Stephanie’s vision and leadership will no doubt continue to drive the future of the voice-over industry, ensuring that Voices.com remains the platform of choice for businesses and talent alike.
