A US research on about 800 male CEOs questioned the correlation between voice and professional success. The winning frequency for the ‘million-dollar voice’? 125 hertz.

Reported by BBC, the survey unveils that CEOs with deep voices earn about 187 thousand dollars more than high pitched uvulas, have longer careers and work in companies with far superior financial results. Just to mention an example, James Skinner, CEO at McDonald’s up to 2012, has one of lowest frequencies among those examined by researchers.

The relationship between voice and business success has some biological and evolutionist reasons (think of lion’s roaring), but in contemporary society it’s perception that makes the big difference. A low frequency is normally associated with authoritativeness, competence and persuasion ability, both for men or women. Speaking with a deep voice instills trust and reassurance, as well as leadership.

The importance of voice in personal and business communication has been widely investigated. At the end of the 1960s, the American phycologist Albert Mehrabian stated that verbal contents influence about 7% of the effectiveness of a speech, while tone of voice accounts for 38%, and body language for 55% of the liking. The author himself explained these figures should be referred to messages concerning feelings and emotions, so – although often misquoted – they are not valid for any kind of human interaction.

It is anyway acknowledged that a strategic use of voice is fundamental to make communication clear and effective, above all when talking in front of an audience. In case of important events, presentations or meetings, it’s worth preparing with the dual goal of fine-tuning speech contents and improving delivery. To ignite and maintain audience attention, do not underestimate the power of elements such as posture, gestures, eye contact and – of course – voice.