DAMIAN'S THOUGHTS ON...: HOW TO BRAND ON SOCIAL MEDIA: FINDING AND BUILDING AN AUDIENCE

I will start out every blog of these HOW TO BRAND ON SOCIAL MEDIA thingys the same way so the message is clear and here it goes:

My name is Damian Bailey and I am NOT a Social Media branding expert nor claim to be one; however I used a few methods that continues to work in my favor that I would like to share with you on this journey of success.

ONSET of the film "BLACK PEARL" featuring Samuel Gomez and Bill Johnson

OK so you know your "type", have the greatest headshots that represent you, and you consider yourself an INC. a BRAND, NOW WHAT?

1. THE DEMO REEL

Back in the 90's, a demo reel was only needed if you were going to LA to meet an agent; now its a necessity across the board. The headshot will make them smile and check your resume; a solid reel will give you an appointment or an audition. I mean a GOOD SOLID REEL. So what makes a great reel or a bad one? what IS a reel?

A Reel is a combination of clips from previous or present films from your resume. Here's where it gets complicated; what if you have close to no work, or too much work, what do you do? lets break it down with limited to no work first:

a)ask a FILMMAKER friend for a favor to film a scene featuring you as the subject. Now we're going back to the INC. viewpoint. You don't want to hire the salesperson for your store who has no teeth, bad breath and smells like pure ass to sell the products right? then don't just ask any filmmaker friend or student to film you. Research their credentials, look at their work and if its of HIGH QUALITY, hire them. You may have to pay a huge dollar for this but this is your career you're investing in; therefore get the best. If you cant pay them, offer them lunch, carfare, etc. but DON'T go the cheap route getting a student filmmaker who will shoot you on a camcorder with the bathroom as a background.

b) DO A MONOLOGUE by FILMING YOURSELF. With that said, you are responsible for filming a quality video. Use a good HD camera or your iPAD and MAC with great lighting that will show you in the best way and not in a distracting way. Be mindful of sound which is key-don't do a monologue video with a baby crying in the background (I saw this before).

c) DO MONOLOGUES BASED ON WHAT YOU'RE SELLING-YOUR "TYPE". Too many actors are doing monologues that are not their type because they want to show the agent or casting director that they have range-sorry but this is the industry of FIRST IMPRESSIONS and they want to see the person on the headshot along with the person in front of them that can be MARKETABLE. A beautiful woman in her mid 20's should not, in my opinion, do a monologue on a 50 year old woman going through menopause, crying over her deceased children. STAY IN YOUR LANE. Show your type FIRST then build that rep through the work that you get.

My type is leading man and I landed my agent by doing a monologue from the film "PRINCE OF THE CITY" -the scene where the LEAD character, a crooked cop who snitches on his crooked partners and breaks down when doing so. A role played by Treat Williams that I can also portray myself that's why I did it. Its from a LEADING MAN doing an intense monologue with range.

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Now lets discuss the fact that you have mountains of work: here's where the GREAT DEBATE begins.

HOW LONG SHOULD A REEL BE? Industry standards would say 3 min. Now some of these Casting Directors are lying to actors saying they just want to see 60 seconds. Some say 5 min. Few say ADD AS MANY MATERIAL AS YOU CAN. In my opinion, ALL ARE VALID (except for the 60 sec rule). The reason these Agents and Casting Directors say it has to be short because "THEY GET SO MUCH ON A DAILY BASIS AND DON'T WANT TO SEE REELS ALL DAY", ok I get that yet when I do attend these "offices", they're snooping on FACE BOOK most of the time (I'm nosey, I see everything even when they don't realize it). As a filmmaker, I HATE watching REELS that are too short because I feel cheated. I don't like credits on the reels, cant stand loud background music and special effects on reels.

The main focus on REELS is YOU. Not the music, not the credits, not the AFTER EFFECTS usage, I want to see YOU and the first 30 to 60 seconds better be DAMN GOOD for me to keep watching and it should showcase YOUR TYPE. right away. The second clip should be just as great as the first for the viewer to KEEP WATCHING. Its up to them to shut it off or to keep watching MORE OF YOUR OUTSTANDING WORK.

I know TONS of actors who have reels that are 5 min or longer...AND WORKING. The ones I see or know of with these microwaveable reels, are barley getting it-again this is debatable and I can be wrong but....

hey, everything is TRIAL AND ERROR and what works for me may not work for someone else. Just make sure those first 2 min are EXCELLENT.

I used to do reels for actors but I decided not to anymore; however I do know filmmakers such as Tony Clomax and Rosalyn Coleman Williams and Craig T. Williams of Red Wall Productions who not only establish your reel but will create a short for your reel. Yes you have to PAY-this is an investment you cannot go cheap in. Anybody that charges you $50 or $100 to do their reels, go the other way. THIS IS YOUR BUSINESS, SO INVEST WISELY.

2. WEBSITE

This used to be hard to make and maintain because it was so expensive however hosting sites like godaddy.com or web.com has made it affordable for you to create your own website. Yes we have social media but a website is different. Its just YOU, no friend request, no fighting with your friends, just you. Once your reel is established, place your reel on your website so not only filmmakers, Agents or Casting Directors can see it, but they can KNOW about YOU as well. Besides talent, they want to see who they can work with: Do I like this guy? do they have a "story" within their life? What's their BIO like? This is where you can share who you are, what you want to do, where you're doing it and how.

my website

www.damiantheactor.com

3. FAN PAGE. I used to be against this because I thought it was just too vain until I saw the light. Its just another way to brand yourself the right way. I'm not sure what the statistics are and I'm too lazy to research it right now but I strongly believe Facebook is ten times of a larger audience than Twitter. I could be wrong. A Fan page is like a spawn of your website. Now you're letting your audience see what you're about as an actor, filmmaker, etc. When you create a Fan page, you separate yourself from your personal page. I have a dumb big mouth, and on my personal page I say whatever I want and it stays just on Facebook. On my ACTOR/FILMMAKER fan page, I speak on acting and my career and it posts on Facebook AND twitter to open my audience, letting them know what I'm doing. Post whatever you want but be mindful on how you do it. Imagine seeing someone in person and they constantly say "I got an audition, I got an audition, I got an audition..." you're not gonna give a damn plus you would want them to just shut up. Use your fan pages wisely. Connect it with Twitter or any other social site. Again, you're building an AUDIENCE.

4. BLOG. I've learned this from my mentor Craig T. Williams who is a great writer (writer of JUSTICE-Shameless plug), to always WRITE. Write what's on your heart, mind and soul on your journey. You build an audience by people being inspired by you. They are on the same path and need to hear from others how to take this journey with their heads lifting high. The main key is to get your name out there and making a video on how to take care of your hair and put it on youtube is great exposure. Always remember YOU ARE BEING WATCHED AND YOU NEVER KNOW WHO'S WATCHING YOU. A top notched producer could be bored one night, go online, accidentally type "HAIR" on his google feed and your face comes up. He clicks on your picture which leads to your youtube video about hair. The video makes his snicker...then he notices something: on the right side he sees your name with other videos attached. One HAS YOUR REEL. "Oh...shes an ACTRESS? I LOVE HER PERSONALITY. SHE NEEDS A JOB". This HAS happen before. It also happen to myself. Blogging shows your personality so blog.

When you have all these tools and post them at least 2x a week, YOU WILL ESTABLISH AN AUDIENCE. Few may approach or email you saying they love what you do and TONS of people wont say anything but they ARE following you. You will know when you're approached in the street and they say "I love your blogs and you're work" and all it takes is the right person to see it.

Always keep in mind whatever you're selling or promoting, which is you, it has to be ready NOW. Don't promote yourself on social media saying "my reel is the shit" and you have no reel. Online content audience must see it right there and then.

GUARD YOUR WALLS. Stay active on your social media sites, that doesn't mean you have to update statuses, post pics on a daily basis like I do (hee hee) but be active. I find when you're not active on social media, viruses are posted on your walls or idiots would put something to make you look bad. You always wanna guard whats on the wall because these agents ARE on FACEBOOK watching you.

Post your reel up at least once every three weeks. Post it in groups, etc not only to showcase yourself but to showcase the person or production company who made it for you. In this business, one hand washes the other and its all about connections. Posting your work, pictures showcasing the photographer, goes a mile away.

When an actor becomes a Hollywood star their publicist makes sure their in the spotlight by SHARING pics of their clients who were at the latest events, or filming a new production-you should be no different and this eliminates the whole "SHOWING OFF" theory. Hey, you're a BRAND, you HAVE to show off.