Founded in 2005 by David and Stephanie Ciccarelli, the company has grown by connecting advertising agencies, video producers and technology companies with the voiceover artists who best meet their needs.
With half a million users in 160 countries, its website records approximately two million unique visits per year and has facilitated more than 300,000 transactions to date, most of them outside Canada.
Clients pay either a flat fee that is a percentage of the contract value for smaller projects or a professional services fee for larger projects. Voices.com also charges a small fee to actors and actresses who want to have their profiles on the site.
Voices.com has played a significant role in revitalizing the business community in London, Ontario, where it employs over 120 people. David and Stephanie have spent a lot of time promoting their region to participants in the new economy.
Growth without profits
Mark Lunick of BDC Capital has been following the company since its inception. BDC provided Voices.com with its first term loan 10 years ago. In 2015, the company was growing rapidly but needed resources to meet its sales targets. It was also facing other challenges, such as a tight funding round and the inability to raise the capital it had anticipated.
BDC Capital provided quasi-equity financing , after which Mark Lunick suggested that Voices.com consider using the Growth Direction Program (GDP) to address the challenges.
The PDC is a two-year program in which experienced senior executives and former business owners help high-growth companies develop a growth strategy and evolve to achieve their full potential; they also support the development of the business owner's leadership skills.
Identification of three areas for improvement
The PDC team began by studying the company’s situation to determine whether it was ready for expansion. They conducted detailed workshops with the CEO and management team, and looked at the industry in general.
From this first assessment, three issues were identified.
1. Profitability
Voices.com was growing rapidly, but it was hurting its profitability.
2. Leadership
From having a single manager at the helm, Voices.com was now led and managed by a management team. BDC continued to help improve the team's collective performance.
3. Financing
The last round of funding had injected new capital into the company, but these new resources were not sufficient to ensure long-term growth in a competitive space.
Creating an action plan
Working collaboratively with the management team, we determined that certain changes were needed, as described below.
Restructuring of the professional services unit
A thorough review of the professional services process flow was conducted. We identified a risk of excessive effort being put into large projects before the client actually commits.
Important decisions on the structure of this business unit were made, the unit was brought back to the ideal size and returned to profitability within a few months.
Pricing
The pricing methodology was changed following a review of engineer database the potential for further development of the business sector and a review of the business model and value chain.
Leadership
Significant changes have been made to the company's leadership, which has been expanded to include human resources. We have placed emphasis on supporting the development of the CEO's leadership qualities.
Growth strategy
Market research, brainstorming sessions and a change in perspective led to the realization that no online marketplace technology was serving unionized performers, who make up a significant segment of the professional voice market.
The management team looked at how Voices.com could enter this segment and identified an established company in this space as a market entry platform.
Support for the next round of funding
Increasing revenue and profitability, along with defining a clear growth strategy, have made Voices.com much more attractive to the private equity market .
The result was an $18 million investment from San Francisco-based Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital and the acquisition of a well-established company in the field, Voicebank.net.
The BDC team helped Voices.com's management team prepare for the financing due diligence phase, which was later told by Morgan Stanley representatives that Voices.com was "the most prepared company they had ever met."
The acquisition gave Voices.com access to agents and their union members of SAG AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), solidifying its position as the world’s premier destination for professional voice talent. In the year since the acquisition, the number of producers using the platform has grown significantly.
However, the most incredible effect of this project was the magnitude of the increase in the value of Voices.com. Thanks to the compelling growth strategy, including the acquisition of a major player in the field, the net worth increased sharply in the 13 months following the launch of the PDC.
Not only did the appreciation in value benefit the company, which was able to access more financing, but it also minimised dilution for shareholders.
Voices.com now has the financial resources to continue growing and consolidating industry businesses.
Program Results
The Voices.com Growth Journey project met the objectives set by both the client and the delivery team.
In September 2017, Voices.com was named one of the top 100 fastest growing companies in Canada by the PROFIT 500. It posted five-year revenue growth of 1,166% and ranked 61st out of the 500.
In November 2017, Voices.com was recognized as one of the fastest growing technology companies in North America through its inclusion in Deloitte's 2017 Technology Fast 50 and Technology Fast 500 lists.
A journey that continues
The Voices.com management team and BDC PDC advisors are working together to determine how to attract other producers who are still using the traditional artistic distribution process.
If Voices.com were successful in attracting them to its site, it would enhance its reputation as a trendsetter and market leader. It would also have the opportunity to maximize its customer service offerings (the producers) and control pricing in the marketplace. Planning for this next strategic step is underway.
