Aaron Marcus keeps a contact list of 1,200 industry people he's worked with over a decade, tracking their name, role, email, phone, and notes about past jobs. He uses it to stay in touch and get repeat bookings, always telling agents when he reaches out directly so he doesn't cut them out of commissions.
Do you know the acting and modeling list that I created that helps me make money? If not, hey, watch this video until the end, and not only will I explain to you what kind of list this is, but I'm going to show you an example of the list that I created that has helped me make money as an actor and a commercial model. Okay, let's get started. Hi, I'm Aaron Marcus, and welcome to the Actor and Model Quick Tips channel and also the Actor Career Center. Every week, depending on my schedule, I try to upload a new video. So don't forget to click the subscribe button and the notification bell. And that way, every time I upload a new video, you will be notified. And if you like the video, please give it a thumbs up. So in this video, what I'm going to be sharing with you is a list that I created. And, and I've been using this list for many, many years. It's probably up to about like 1,200 people on this list. And here's, here's what the list is all about. And like I said, at the very end, I'm going to actually show you what the list looks like so you can create this as well. Every time I have an audition, every time I have a job, I add people's information into my list. In the list, I have the names of the people, the types. Is it a photographer? Is it an agency? Is it somebody from an ad agency? So I'll have first name and last name. I'll have their title. What do they actually do? Look, if it's a photographer, then I don't have to put anything into that list. But if it's an ad agency, maybe I'll put creative director. I will have their address. city, state, and zip code, the country that they live in, because sometimes I've worked with people outside of the United States, their email address, their business number, cell phone number, website. If they have social media links, I will add that in there. And most importantly, if it was an audition, I will put a note in there saying I had an audition for this particular project on this date And I might even connect it with an agent who submitted me for it. If it's an actual job, I will certainly put the name of the product or the TV show or the film, whatever it is, so I can easily identify it. Here's the reason why it's so important to do this, because this is how you stay in touch with people. And I know Some agents will say, I really don't want you to have personal contact with people who I might have submitted you for. And I understand that. And the reason why they don't like to have actors or models stay in touch directly, because they're concerned that their talent might go directly to the client and bypass the agent so they don't have to pay an agent's fee. Well, look, I can tell you that I have never in my life ever taken money away from an agent who connected me with somebody. If for any reason, whether I marketed myself and stayed in touch with that person or not, if they contacted me directly and they asked, hey, look, can I book you directly for this job? I'll say, yeah, of course. But I always tell the agent and I let the agent know because I— Look, if it was an agent that got me the audition, got me— they didn't get me the job because I had to audition for it or attend a go-see. But if they— if it was through their connection, I would never sidestep them and cut them out of commission. It's personally— it's just morally I wouldn't do it. And you know what? Even if you don't have any morals, it's not good business because if an agent finds out that you just cut them out of a booking, well, they're probably going to drop you. So don't play that game. But what's really good about having this list is, let's say you book a job. Well, you might want to stay in touch with a photographer. Maybe it was a commercial modeling job. Hey, just wanted to stay in touch, let you know I just booked this thing. Just to stay in their brains, to have them remember you. You can send them a quick email. We worked together on this project. I just wanted to let you know I just did this. I hope we get a chance to work together again in the near future. And I'm telling you, keeping your face, your information into other people's brains who you've had contact with is really helpful. And that is how this list has made me a lot of money, and it's been very helpful to me. So Here's a sample of what the list looks like. Look, if you want to create a spreadsheet like I did, that's fine. When I first started, I had a 3-ring binder and I would just write everything out on a piece of paper. This certainly is a lot, a lot simpler, but however you want to do it, always, you know, have the information of the people that you connected with in the industry, have the specific details So you remember, you know, what your contact was all about, and then stay in touch with them. So anyhow, I hope this was helpful to you. Hey, if you have some kind of system, please share it with others, a way that you stay in touch with people, a way that you market yourself to people. Please leave a comment below, that would be great. And help other of your fellow actors and models, share this link and the link to my YouTube channel with, with them as well, so that That way we can build a family of people helping each other. If you haven't done this yet, please, just as a quick reminder, subscribe, click the notification bell, and if you like the video, please give it a thumbs up. That would be great. I'm Aaron Marcus, and I can't wait to talk with you again soon. See ya.
