I found this article online and couldn’t help but re-post it here, as it is no longer available on the Back Stage website.

It’s a great recap of 6 time-tested techniques of self-promotion. Enjoy!


Spotlight on Promoting Yourself on Video, CD & the Internet
By Leonard Jacobs, Back Stage East

“In 1965, an aspiring actor-comedian named Mary Jean Tomlin—stage name Lily—began working in a Howard Johnson’s restaurant reportedly so tiny it didn’t bother with the chain’s usual “Waitress of the Week” awards. Tomlin wasn’t fazed: Grabbing the mike one night and summoning chutzpah, she announced, “Your Howard Johnson’s Waitress of the Week, Miss Lily Tomlin, is about to make her appearance on the floor, and let’s give her a big hand!”

The point is that self-promotion must be as ever-present in the actor’s mind as learning monologues, taking classes, and auditioning smartly and often. Whether one self-promotes conservatively, aggressively, or creatively, both the beginning and the working actor must always be doing something to get ahead. It may take inspiration, ingenuity, seizing the moment, or thinking big picture even when circumstances dictate starting off small. Tomlin’s tale, spunky humor aside, embodies the idea that self-promotion makes actors stronger, savvier sells.

What techniques do actors use? In interviews with six actors—Michael Cerveris, Sasha Eden, Murray Hill, Andrea Reese, Paul Swinnerton, and Wil Wheaton—Back Stage identified six major self-promotion strategies. First, and before all, comes a website; it is industry de rigueur to have one. Creating it is not enough, though; you must also learn how to leverage it to advance your career. A second Web-related technique involves the power and pitfalls of email blasts, and a third Internet approach, blogging, is a hot new trend.

Offline, a demo reel, in digital CD or DVD format but sometimes also on analog VHS videotape (though not audiotape—its day is done), is a fourth weapon in the arsenal. The time-tested tactic of contact through postcards, flyers, and snail mail is a fifth way to yield positive results. And last but surely not least, number six is that inevitable art of person-to-person contact: the schmooze.”

You know that favorite aphorism…
“90% of making it in this business is luck?”

Well, it’s St. Patrick’s Day, so with the luck of the Irish, good things are coming your way!

Limited Time Offer

We are running a super special for the first 17 people who order online -
You’ll get our popular Starter Package, with domain name & hosting,  all for $100. That’s it. $100 bucks! Feel free to e-mail us with any questions, but order now, as these sites will go fast!

Make your own luck!

We are firm believers that you can increase your casting luck by increasing your presence.

Here’s how:
You are “Google-able,” right? You need to be GOOGLE-ABLE!
Picture this: A friend drops your name in conversation when speaking with a casting director. The casting director, whose job it is to know everyone in the business, gets on their iPhone and Googles your name. Your website pops up. Voila! You have presented yourself with a new contact, with no effort on your part. Zilch!

You can send out a postcard or an email introducing directors, writers, casting directors, everybody… to your new website, and there they will read about your latest news! When they see that you’re working and they’ll think of you for their next project. Work begets work, no?

Put your website address on your headshot and resume, that way directors and casting directors can see more of you! Your website is your own personal showcase! You can show them what you are all about in a sleek, professional, and branded way. If your website looks great, then you look great and they will remember you.

Give your website out in conversations. Your domain name should be your name, so it’s super easy to remember! Not like “well, you gotta search actors access and then type my name and number blah, blah, blah” Why be one of thousands, when having your own website puts you front and center?

Your pot of gold is out there. For reals. You just need to make your own luck.

Okay actors- it’s just about time to stop procrastinating and go ahead and tackle that pile of receipts, 1099s, W2s and bank statements. It can be intimidating, and sometimes the numbers are scary, but have no fear. There is help. So, we aren’t accountants, and we tend to get mighty confused along with the best of ‘em when confronting a tax conundrum. But here’s where we recommend you go to get good solid info about what you can deduct, and for just some good solid tax advice.

And need we remind you that a website is TOTALLY deductible? It is a business expense, after all, so go get one!

Online advice:

An accountant responds to the top actor questions, here.
Advice about accurate receipt keeping in Backstage.

Books:

Just saw this at the bookstore today, and it looked super helpful- it’s available at Amazon (linked below):
New Tax Guide for Writers, Artists, Performers & Other Creative People, by Peter Jason Riley.
The author also has a blog.

For in person help (for those of you in unions):

VITA provides free tax help to AEA, AFTRA and SAG members. In New York, office hours are Mondays, Wednesdays – Fridays from 11 am to 4 pm. VITA is located at 165 West 46th St and is NEVER opened on Tuesdays.
Screen Actors Guild’s Tax Assistance Program
(SAG-TAP), provides a members only program offering tax assistance specifically for actors. The SAG-TAP program is best contacted via email: SAGTAP@sag.org.
The SAG Foundation also offers LifeRaft seminars on the same subject, and those workshops are available to AEA, AFTRA, AGVA & SAG members.

Not in a union? Well no problem. There are great finance workshops out there.

In New York, The Field has various helpful seminars, including “Finance Basics for Artists”
Fractured Atlas provides all kinds of workshops, and great online advice through Fractured U.

Accountants/DIY

Sometimes, it helps to get some dedicated help- there are tons of artist friendly accountants out there. Personally, we love these affordable accountants: Fox Tax, LLC. TurboTax is also super easy to use!

Good Luck! And soon enough you’ll be wiping your hands of it all, and well equipped for next year!

Quote of the Week

“In [this industry], you are in the Olympics of acting. You’re up against the best actors in the world out there. Are you going to say to yourself: ‘That’s okay, I’d be happy with Silver?’ Or are you going to go for the Gold? Go for the Gold every time you go into an audition!”
– Rick Pagano, Pagano/Manwiller Casting, IMDB


The 2010 winter Olympics are full of amazing stories of persistence and integrity. Each athlete has his/her own story of determination, focus, and rising to a great challenge. As said in our quote of the week, being an actor in a major market is like being in another kind of Olympics. To succeed, you’ll need to apply yourself everyday and keep your instrument in top condition, in order to stand out among the best in the field.

Years of training the mind and body go into the making of an Olympic athlete, broken down into a daily regimen. Being an artist is no different. We should train and prepare for success, like a champion, with your eye on the goal just ahead. Director Anne Bogart talks about how becoming a great artist begins with deep practice, which she defines in her blog as: “a slow and uncomfortable interaction with something that is just out of your grasp and just beyond your capabilities. To practice deeply is to live deliberately in a space that is uncomfortable but with the sense that progress can happen.  Hope, determination and inspiration are the fuel that can sustain the necessary sweat and frustration of deep practice.”

So what does this mean for you? Here’s a few ideas of what you can do everyday to stay strong:

Focusing
Be clear about what you want.
Target the area in which you want to succeed, and learn all about it.
Try not let others’ success or failure distract you from your goal.
Stay healthy and stay positive.