Actor Aaron Marcus says use slow periods to improve your headshots and skills, then do personalized outreach with a memorable story attached. He got recognized from House of Cards in remote Alaska, and that kind of specific detail makes casting directors remember you.
Here's another acting and modeling quick tip with me, Aaron Marcus. So I recently got back from vacation. I haven't really been in touch with industry people for a couple of weeks. And typically summertime is slow. Not always, but I mean, last year actually my summer was probably the best summer I've ever had. But for right now, you know, a lot of times people go on vacation, things aren't really happening as much as they normally are. But honestly, you can't predict anymore. I used to be able to predict when things were going to be busy and slow. And I really can't, but it does seem like this is a slow period right now. So this is the time to, you know, either work on your photos, work on your acting skills, modeling skills, read books, take classes. And something else you definitely want to do is start marketing yourself. So here's a little trick. I am marketing myself pretty heavily right now, and I'm sending out emails, sometimes letters depending on my relationship with them. If it's People I really don't know at all, I will send a letter. I'll make sure that my headshot is in the letter, all my contact information is in the letter. But if it's somebody that I know, I'll just email them. But here's one of the tricks. You want to personalize it. You don't want to just have this generic kind of email that you just send out to hundreds of people. And what I did was I connected this story of when I was in this very remote area of Alaska, I was in a restaurant. It was amazing. The waitress recognized me from House of Cards, which was actually pretty cool. I really wasn't expecting that. So anyway, I shared that little story with people. I just wanted to let you know that the way to get more work is by putting yourself out there. I don't like to sit by the phone, wait for agents to get in touch. I like to be proactive, and that's something you might want to consider doing. So if things are slow for you, this is the time. Start reading, reading books, taking classes, you know, doing private sessions with people, building on your craft so that when the phone calls do happen, you are prepared. And while you're doing all that, get back in touch with people, meet new people, network. That's the way you want to do it, and that's how you stay busy. You can make work happen. Hey, if you're watching this on YouTube or Facebook, please don't forget to like it and give it a thumbs up. Share this with all your friends. I love sharing information with people. Feel free to do that throughout social media. And if you have any marketing ideas that you would like to share, I'd love to read about them. You can just post it here. And if you want to reach me, if you have questions, just go to facebook.com/howtomodel or you can get to me through my website. Howtoactandmodel.org. I'm Aaron Marcus, and I can't wait to talk with you again soon.
