Drop Offs

I've been on the fence for years about whether headshot drop-offs are for me.

I'm not a big fan of the drop-off services in which your headshot/resume is grouped with those of a bunch of other actors and dropped off to a plethora of theatrical and commercial casting offices. You can definitely get lost in the shuffle and the only real purpose of these companies is to drop off to as many casting offices as possible while charging you fairly high prices for the service, in my opinion.

I've always thought that quality over quantity is the biggest bang for my buck.

I recently re-visited my target list of episodic and feature film casting directors. And, in coming up with year-end goals with my career coach, Dallas Travers, I made a goal to book 3 co-star roles by 12/31/2010. So, we looked at all the ways I could be marketing to CDs and I decided to add drop-offs to CDs back on my marketing list BUT only drop-offs to those offices I could walk into so they would get to know me. And, my only costs are the reproduction and gas costs.

It's helping me in many ways: I know where the casting offices are, I get out of the house, I am doing something productive for my career and I'm making myself known to the casting offices I want to work with.

Again, quality over quantity.

Meetings. Offers.

I have a mantra that I keep on my desk that says:

Replace auditions with meetings and offers.

The subtext behind this for me is to shift energy away from self-submitting myself and into developing relationships with producers and directors.

I embarked on a project in May to reach out to more indie film directors so they knew I was here and ready to help them with their projects. I email them to arrange 10 minute conversations with them - I get a better than 1-in-3 response that they are interested in speaking with me. Sometimes the conversations last 10 minutes, most of the time, they last longer.

I am a strong believer in there is more than enough work for any actor who wants to work and has a sound work ethic. I also believe that the Universe has a plan for all of us and that an acting gig might not come when we want it, but it will come.

I was contacted last week by a dear friend who wanted to cast me in a web series. I'm excited about it. I play a character called Miriam in "The Unemployment of Danny London". Details can be found here.


So what is the number 1 thing you can do? It is easy - Show Up. But really show up so that energy is flowing throughout your entire being. Be your best at a networking function, meeting, CD workshop, class, audition, working on your craft, working on your actor business, etc.

I find that setting an intention helps. How about this one, borrowed from Don Miguel Ruiz' "The Four Agreements":

I WILL ALWAYS DO MY BEST

Cheers,

Susyn

Random Acts of Social Media

Hey everyone!

My friend and former writing partner, Dana VanDen Heuvel, who is CEO of Marketing Savant, produces a great email newsletter called Monday Morning Moxie, which has some great marketing tips. The tips are bite-sized so they are easy to implement, and they are worth their weight in gold.

The message is that if you are going to tackle Social Media, you have to be strategic about it. As the cliche goes: plan your work and work your plan.

Below are starting points to get you on your way to a successful social media experience.

1. You’re going into a long-term arrangement. Time, work and commitment are required. Get this into your headspace and you’re set for battle. 
2. Content. You need to become a publisher. That’s how you build your voice, your brand and your social media presence.
3. Fish where the fish are. You NEED to UNDERSTAND your audience and where they hang out in social and digital media. Spend a day and start searching…and searching…and searching...
4. Run it like a business. It’s not about having friends or followers. You HAVE to figure out how YOU will utilize social media to meet YOUR goals. Usually this means interacting, helping and then promoting, usually in that order. Innovate and then implement what works for you!

Success to you!!

Love,

Susyn

Mental Health Break

Hi everyone. I took a bit of a break in July. First, Jeff and I took a vacation to Pittsburgh, PA and Dayton, OH from July 14-July 23, 2010. And, last week, I took a "mental health" break.

I'll be back in August.

In the meantime, enjoy this Dilbert cartoon.

Cheers.

Ellipses Vs. Dashes

Some more good advice from Lesly Kahn's blog:


Ellipses (. . . ) are not dashes. During ellipses (. . . ) no one says anything. Everybody thinks.

Dashes ( -- ) are cutoffs: you keep talking 'til the other actor interrupts.

The Universe

I love a lot of the things found on Lesly Kahn's blog. This is just one of the many juicy tidbits...

With self-confidence, the world bows to greet you and coincidence becomes your partner. And self-confidence comes from loving yourself. And loving yourself comes from knowing that you are, still, exactly who I most want to be. And so I am.
- The Universe

It's A Numbers Game

I went to a fabulous CD Workshop with one of my favorite CD's recently, who re-affirmed the comment that acting is "a numbers game". Yes, the entertainment industry is a numbers game, just like every industry out there. In the actors' case, the more we audition, chances are good we will book more.

But, we have to be strategic with this to be effective, which means we have to have a strong foundation - a sound business plan, have a focus, be strategic and tactical (Dallas Travers calls it having a "laser beam focus - being targeted with our marketing) combined with a healthy pursuit of our craft (classes and practice). Otherwise, we are just spinning our wheels.


Being strategic and doing the hustle will get you from point A to point B much faster than being without direction.