All actors have a strategy for their career. If they don’t have one, they should get one. Strategy for the actor is like a business plan for the entrepreneur. As a matter of fact, actors are businesspersons and their strategy is their business plan. A career in acting is a business and it should be treated like one. When you understand how a business plan operates, you can then apply it to your career and your chances of success are much greater.

The first thing to understand is that actors are salespeople. What are they selling? This, unfortunately, doesn’t sound great, but they are selling themselves. Whom are they selling themselves to? This doesn’t sound any better, but they’re selling themselves to talent agents, casting directors, directors, producers, network hotshots, and other V.I.P.’s.

In a sense, the actor is a product, and in order to “sell well,” he or she must be in the best possible condition. Literally. Not only do you have to look and feel your best, you have to be able to operate and perform better than any other actors interviewing for the same job.

This means you must prepare yourself for the audition. The people in charge of hiring (buying) an actor are looking for the very best and they will settle for nothing less. You must out-perform the other talent and close the sale!

Up until now this might not seem so difficult. However, we haven’t even discussed how to get an audition. How do you get an audition? Well, there are many different ways to get yourself in the door so you can make the sale. What you need is a marketing tool. And your best marketing tool, of course, is your headshot. Your headshot is your sell sheet. Just like most businesses have a sell sheet to sell their product, you need a headshot to sell yourself. I can’t tell you enough how important it is that your headshot should be the best it can possibly be.

If you can’t look at your own headshot and say, “damn, I look good,” don’t use it. If you don’t look good to yourself, you probably won’t look good to others. This brings up another important point. Look like your headshot! Don’t practice the old “bait and switch” routine. What I mean is, when you’re reading the paper and you see an advertisement that looks like something you want but it turns out to be something else, you become disappointed. This applies also to your headshot. It has to be honest. This doesn’t mean you have to look like a perfect model. It just has to be honest. An honest headshot is a great headshot, no matter who or what you look like. When agents or casting directors see your headshot and decide to call you in for an interview, they’re expecting the picture they saw to be you! Not only does this save their time, it saves yours. This also keeps you from making a bad impression on the person you’re seeing.

Your headshot is one of the most effective tools you have to get an audition. Don’t settle for anything less than a perfect headshot.

There are other sources to help you sell you yourself. How about salesperson? Good salespeople can be found right here at chicagoactor.com under talent agencies. This should be easy to understand. Talent agents work for your. They promote you. Then try to sell you to casting directors and get you an audition. Talent agents earn their money by getting a commission, usually 10% of the total earning from a job they book. It’s important that agents believe in you. If they believe in you and the quality of your work, they will work harder for you. This means more auditions, and more work. This relationship works both ways. When agents get you auditions, you have to understand that you are representing them. Show up for your auditions on time and give your best possible performance. Since an agent works on a commission basis, keep in contact, do your best on auditions and always act in a professional manner; otherwise the agent may lose interest in you.

Selling is not an easy profession. Being an actor and being a sales person is even harder. But remember, there is nothing more satisfying in the life of an actor than getting a job which resulted from a personal best performance.
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