Skip to main content

Quick Tip #64

Category: Etiquette
For: Male & Female Models (Freelance & Agency Repped)

Being told by an agency that they'll contact you in a few days is great but plan for the possibility that they might not get back to you when they said they would.

"A few days" is very broad and could mean 1-2 days or it could be a week. Of course it isn't easy being the person waiting for the response. Before you hit the panic button and blow up their phone or email inbox, take a moment to observe standard business etiquette for when to follow up.

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to this but I recommend giving an agency between 2-3 "business days" BEFORE reaching out to follow up. A "business day" is defined as being between Monday - Friday...not weekends.

That means if you received an email on a Friday with the promise of reaching back out in a few days, you should reach out for a follow up as early as Tuesday, NOT Monday. Agencies operate strictly Mondays thru Fridays and typically will not do emails on a weekend IF you are not already a represented model. Did you get that promise at an open call on a Wednesday? You can send a follow up as early as Friday or that following Monday (Monday would be "Day 3" in business speak...get it?).

Agencies are busy, especially if they're good, and even though you'll be crazy excited waiting to hear from them, you have to maintain your calm and give them the opportunity to get back to you when it works for their schedule.

Of course you don't want to wait too long to follow up or you could risk falling off their radar. Until an agency offers you a contract to sign, nothing is a guarantee--even if they seemed to really love you. The longest you should wait to follow up is 5 business days.

What should you do if you sent a follow up email or phone call and STILL don't hear back? The bad news is that you'll need to let it go for now. Try sending another follow up a week later and see where that goes. Still nothing? Then consider it a bust for now.

Sending a bunch of follow up emails and calls won't help your case and could make the agency change their mind about signing you simply because they feel you're being too pushy (or annoying). It doesn't make sense, trust me, but this is a business and you have to take on the territory that comes with it, even if it ends up not working out in your favor.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Want to Be a Victoria's Secret Model?

(*Due to the number of comments and questions I get from aspiring models about working for VS, please be sure to read my post on this very carefully. If you don't meet all of these requirements then you cannot become a model for VS. If you are not tall enough, if you are not signed to a top agency, your chances are not good.  If you don't meet the requirements, please don't be too upset about it. Find another field of modeling you may be good for. There are plenty of other modeling opportunities for models outside of being a VS angel. They may not be as good or as well-known as VS but it's better than nothing.) I know I’d jump at the chance to be offered a gig modeling for Victoria’s Secret (although I think they’d be irritated by Photoshopping my stretch marks HAHA, yeah, I said it, I’ve got stretch marks!). All silliness aside, the gals of Victoria’s Secret are probably the inspiration for a majority of aspiring models out there. Not only do they get to wear the s...
358 comments
Read more

Modeling & Pay Rates: How Much Should You Charge?

(This post is more targeted towards freelance models and not those with agency representation, although it may apply to those that have an agent but continue to find their own work.) A part of being a successful model is making money from the jobs that you book. However, being a freelance model comes with many challenges--figuring out what you should charge is one of them. I will say upfront that there are no established black and white rules when it comes to pay rates. Each modeling job is different, each client is different and budgets vary. Ultimately the factors that should influence what you charge should be the amount of experience you have, the strength of the images in your portfolio and the client's budget/needs. Not every client is going to pay what you want to charge. There may be times when you will be skipped over for charging too much or taken advantage of for charging too little. It's going to happen so be prepared for it and do not take it personally. It...
37 comments
Read more

How Old is Too Old to Model?

It’s no secret that the media has made a big deal out of youth. Think about it: how many people have you heard say, “Gosh, I can’t wait to get wrinkles!” Worldwide, selling the idea of youth has made many companies billions of dollars. Without the models, however, they wouldn’t get very far. So that’s the obvious stuff but what about the question of age and being older in the modeling industry? Well, for starters, if you plan on being in the fashion and runway field, the younger you are the better. The longevity for this type of modeling is extremely short for the majority of models involved. Agencies sign girls as young as 13 years old and tend to hesitate if a model is over 18. This topic, like the height issue, is a reality of the industry that you don’t have to agree with but you will have to accept or at least get used to. It’s just a plain fact that agencies and their clients can get more work out of youthful models than those who already show the signs of aging. Sadly, this...
95 comments
Read more