Recording your voice for someone you love

In short

It takes one to three minutes, at home, on the phone or computer you already have, and there is nothing to install first.
Friendly prompts ask specific questions about familiar moments, helping you tell a story in your natural tone.
You can read a short card instead of finding your own words, or upload a recording you already have, and either one works just as well.
For a richer voice, the $20 plan asks for 30 minutes or more of recording, and you can build up to that over time rather than all at once.

What you need

Use a phone, tablet or computer with a working microphone. A quiet place and your usual speaking voice are enough to begin. You do not need special recording equipment.

Where to sit

A quiet room does more work than any setting on the device itself. Pick somewhere with soft surfaces, a couch, curtains, a rug, rather than a bare kitchen or tiled bathroom, since hard surfaces bounce sound around and make a voice sound thinner and further away than it is. Close the window if traffic or wind is audible, and turn off anything that hums: a fan, an air conditioner, a dishwasher mid-cycle in the next room. None of this needs to be perfect. It only needs to be quiet enough that your own voice is the clearest thing in the room.

How to speak

Speak the way you would if she had just answered the phone, not the way you would read a notice aloud. A little warmth in your voice, a small pause where you would naturally pause, matters far more than getting every word exactly right. If a sentence comes out stiff or rushed, that is what recording again is for. This is not a performance to get through once and be relieved about; it is closer to leaving her a message you are glad she will hear.

The guided prompts

A friendly list of prompts gives you something specific to talk about. For example, a question might ask about your favourite colour and something you own in that colour. Those small details give you a starting point and help you tell a story in your natural tone. Speak in your own words, at your usual pace. You can pause or try again whenever you like.

Listening back, and recording again

Once you have answered a prompt, you can listen back straight away. If it sounds like you, on an ordinary day, keep it. If it sounds hurried, or flatter than you meant, record it again; there is no limit on how many times, and you can choose the version you prefer. Take your time and listen back before saving.

If you would rather read a card, or already have a recording

If you would prefer another way to record, that is fine too. You can read a short card we give you instead, with the same warmth, in your own voice, without needing to find the words yourself. If you already have a recording of your voice from somewhere else, a voicemail, a video, an old message, you can upload that instead of recording anything new. Either path produces the same result: her calls answered in a voice she knows.

For a richer voice

The one-to-three-minute recording is enough to begin. If you would like the fuller, more natural voice available on the $20 plan, that needs 30 minutes or more of recording, which you do not have to find all at once. Add to it over days or weeks, in whatever short sessions suit you, and the voice she hears improves as you go, without needing to start over each time.

What happens to the recording

Your recording, and the voice made from it, stay yours: they are never sold, and never used to train other models without asking you first, in plain words, separately from everything else. A new recording takes effect on her very next call, so you are never locked into an early attempt you were unsure about. This is the one piece only you can provide: the voice she has trusted for years, ready to answer in the hours you choose. Privacy and your voice sets out the whole of it.

Questions people ask about this

What if I hate the sound of my own voice?

It can feel unfamiliar to hear yourself recorded. Listen for your usual tone and pace. You can record again or ask someone who knows you to listen with you.

Do I have to finish all the prompts in one sitting?

No. Work through as many as you like, save what you have, and come back to the rest later. Nothing is lost between sessions, and there is no deadline for finishing the full set.

Can more than one family member record a voice?

Each account is set up around one recorded voice at a time, matched to the person she recognises answering her call. If your family wants to talk through who that should be, that conversation is worth having before anyone records.