Being Smart With Social Media
Jul 24, 2018 17:53:26 GMT -8
Brittany Ann Phillips, h0m3st4r, and 6 more like this
Post by Lady Stardust ★ on Jul 24, 2018 17:53:26 GMT -8
In the current age, having a social media presence is incredibly important for establishing and growing your brand as an actor. Having accounts on sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram helps not only fans and peers find you, but even potential clients! However, social media is full of pitfalls that can be easy to fall into as an actor, especially if you're not careful. Here are some tips to keep in mind when it comes to your public accounts.
Make it easy for people to find you.
Sometimes having the username you want isn't always an option, but your name (or at least the name you go by for your work) should be included somewhere in your display name or bio so that people know it's you and that you'll come up in searches. You may wish to include a few of your most prominent credits or characters you've played as part of your bio and/or header photo. If you hashtag the character or project names, they'll also help your profile show up in searches! Linking to your social media from your website and other accounts can help you get more followers, too.
Sometimes having the username you want isn't always an option, but your name (or at least the name you go by for your work) should be included somewhere in your display name or bio so that people know it's you and that you'll come up in searches. You may wish to include a few of your most prominent credits or characters you've played as part of your bio and/or header photo. If you hashtag the character or project names, they'll also help your profile show up in searches! Linking to your social media from your website and other accounts can help you get more followers, too.
Think before you post.
This one sounds like a no-brainer, but when something's out there on the Internet, it can be very hard to take it back. For instance, there have been actual cases where voice actors accidentally broke NDA by revealing too much about a role or project, and despite immediately deleting the posts, fans screenshotted and preserved them as evidence on a wiki page or voice actor database. Or people have made comments out of ignorance that ended up surfacing much later. Ask yourself: Would I be embarrassed if people were to find this post five years from now? Would I be embarrassed if one of my clients or directors happened to see it? If the answer to either of these questions is yes, don't post it.
How active you wish to be is entirely up to you.
If social media marketing is important to you, keeping your accounts reasonably active not only shows that you are engaged in your career, but also helps keep you in the forefront of people's minds when they may be considering who to send an audition to or recommend for a job. However, many people understandably find social media to be toxic and/or draining for their mental health, so it's entirely okay to keep more of a distance from social media. At the bare minimum, you can use it to post relevant career updates only (for example, role announcements and upcoming appearances at conventions/events/signings).
If social media marketing is important to you, keeping your accounts reasonably active not only shows that you are engaged in your career, but also helps keep you in the forefront of people's minds when they may be considering who to send an audition to or recommend for a job. However, many people understandably find social media to be toxic and/or draining for their mental health, so it's entirely okay to keep more of a distance from social media. At the bare minimum, you can use it to post relevant career updates only (for example, role announcements and upcoming appearances at conventions/events/signings).
Engaging with others in your industry can help foster personal and professional relationships.
Following, commenting and liking posts made by your peers and superiors can help you engage with the rest of the community. The key is to do it genuinely. If you follow a ton of people and like their posts constantly just in hopes of getting follows/likes back, your intentions become transparent. Remember, quality over quantity!
Be human.
Unless your account is purely a business account (such as if you run a studio), you don't need to post about work 24/7 on a place like Twitter or Instagram. People generally follow you as an individual, not just a brand, so have a little fun! Rather than only posting booth selfies or pictures of roles you've done, show us photos of your pets! Talk about the latest video game you've been playing! Maybe share something about the other hobbies you have...because you are more than just an actor, you are a person, and as long as you're avoiding anything too controversial or inflammatory, it's okay to post about more than just acting.
Tag with purpose.
Don't tag people in something unless it's relevant to them and/or their work. Doing a #FollowFriday can be smart, but make it count - rather than just tag spamming a bunch of voice actors, try to have some sort of theme to it so people know why you recommend following those people. Don't tag a bunch of unrelated people in an attempt to promote your own work---try using targeted hashtags instead to increase visibility.
Don't ask others for follow backs, likes, or retweets.
If you want people to follow you, make your content engaging. Accept that just because you follow someone doesn't mean you are entitled to have them follow you back---many people carefully curate what they want to see on their timelines so they don't miss posts from people important to them. Don't take it personally if someone doesn't follow you, because chances are it isn't personal. Another voice actor following you isn't some sort of "rite of passage", after all. It also puts people in an awkward position if you specifically ask them to signal boost posts unrelated to them (nothing like hearing from a relative stranger, "hey, you've got a lot of followers - can you retweet my GoFundMe page?")
Be positive overall in the energy you put out.
Again, it's okay to be human, and issues like depression and mental health can be important to speak up about sometimes. But if the majority of your posts are negative and complaining, people may unfollow you or feel that you aren't able to keep your emotions under control when it comes to a business setting. Sometimes bad life circumstances will happen and you'll need support, and that's okay. Just try to balance out any negative posts with a lot more positive and neutral ones, and/or discuss your more personal problems privately with your friends. If you're having trouble thinking of something positive to write, try giving a genuine compliment to a friend or colleague!
Remember that you don't owe anyone your time or attention.
This includes random trolls, obsessively clingy fans, or someone whose comments or presence make you uncomfortable (trust your gut instinct!). In most cases, it is better not to engage with these types of people. If someone is determined that your work is terrible because they hate English dubs, there really isn't much you can say that will change their mind, nor is it worth your time to argue. Blocking is okay, but if you're worried about it inciting anger from the person, consider the "mute" function - they won't know you've muted them, but it will prevent their replies from showing up in your mentions.
Be mindful of how much private/personal information you want to reveal.
Anything you put on your social media accounts is public, and can be seen by anyone who happens to look at it. There are many databases and wiki sites who will include personal information that an actor happened to share on socials even in a one-off reply, which can sometimes cause issues (for example, if an actor is closeted about their sexual orientation and/or gender identity in certain spaces but not others, posting about this information on one social page could result in that information getting posted on a public wiki page, so be sure to keep your safety and well-being in mind when it comes to deciding what you're comfortable sharing.) If you ever post your full birthdate on the Internet, it will be very difficult to ever remove it, so keep that in mind too if it's something you're concerned about. Finally, be aware that unfortunately not everyone has good intentions. If you're posting about a fun place you and your friends are hanging out at, maybe wait until after you've left to check in or post that photo (it is not unheard of for people to show up at a place uninvited expecting to meet their favorite voice actors - while most of the times these people don't have bad intentions, it can feel scary and violating to have someone disrespect your IRL boundaries.)
Use your own best judgment when it comes to posting about politics, social issues, and other controversial topics.
While oldschool advice used to be passed down of "keep politics off your social media", the landscape of the recent years means many people do not feel they have the luxury of staying silent, especially those of marginalized identities. Sometimes an issue will be very important to you and it's okay to speak up about it---after all, you don't want to feel like you have to censor yourself when it comes to the things you care about. But be aware that hotly debated issues may cause a flood of negative replies that you have to find a way to deal with in a way that doesn't reflect negatively on you or brands/properties you are closely associated with. You can be passionate without being inflammatory or resorting to personal insults. Some actors routinely post about politics and social issues, while others prefer to keep their opinions on current events private to their friends and family, and keep their feed work-related. Some may even create two separate accounts. Whatever you choose, remember that whatever you say does still reflect you and your brand, so think about how you would like to be perceived and what you would like to be known for.
Don't complain about your job or the people you work with.
Every profession has its drawbacks, but if you are a working actor, you are extremely fortunate to be in a career that many people would kill to have. Complaining nonstop about pay rates or not booking enough auditions, or even worse, a picky client or director, not only makes you look unprofessional but could come back to bite you. We've all had bad sessions and people who were a pain to work with, but what do you think would happen if a client hired you for a job only to find out you later complained in a public forum about what a jerk they were being? Also...you're not always going to be a fan of everything you work on, but don't speak badly of a show, game, or other project you worked on. It looks like you are ungrateful for the work and is a slap in the face to not only your clients who hired you, but to the fans who do like it!
Be humble.
Being confident in your work is good, but it can be easy to come across as full of yourself on social media even if you don't mean to be. Consider this common type of post: "Got yet ANOTHER email of praise from a client! Can't wait to tell you what I'm working on even though it's super secret! I can't believe I'm so busy getting paid to play pretend! #actorlife #workingactor #lovemylife #lovemyjob #paidtotalk #soblessed" ...Yuck! You might see it as simply expressing gratitude for an experience you had that day, but your peers will often see it as tasteless bragging. The same goes for humblebrags - complaining about how you're working just SO much and booking WAY too many jobs can make other actors feel insecure or inferior, especially if they're going through a slow period themselves. In the end, it's your page and you can post whatever you want, but it's just good to be aware how these types of posts may come across.
Honor your non-disclosure agreements.
We have a whole other topic on NDAs, but keep in mind that even if you're not technically breaking NDA, heavily hinting at what you're working on without the go-ahead from the client can still land you in hot water. If you're posting a picture from the booth, make sure that no scripts or screens with sensitive information are in view. Making posts like "Not gonna say anything, but this character sure does sound familiar! 
" if you're not allowed to talk about the project yet is still basically confirming that you're voicing the character! The same goes for discussing behind-the-scenes stuff that isn't made public yet, such as plans for future releases of a game or the names of other cast members who haven't announced their roles. A client or director may trust you with sensitive information because it's needed to properly do your job, but that doesn't mean that you should go and post it online. If you're ever in doubt if something is okay to announce, ask.
" if you're not allowed to talk about the project yet is still basically confirming that you're voicing the character! The same goes for discussing behind-the-scenes stuff that isn't made public yet, such as plans for future releases of a game or the names of other cast members who haven't announced their roles. A client or director may trust you with sensitive information because it's needed to properly do your job, but that doesn't mean that you should go and post it online. If you're ever in doubt if something is okay to announce, ask.Keep your personal Facebook account only to people you actually know.
Facebook is where more personal things tend to be posted, so unless you want the entire Internet knowing your business, it's good to lock down your personal account and keep it only to your actual friends and family. Accepting a bunch of random friend requests is tempting because it may seem like you're making connections, but letting people you don't know into your more personal life can create awkward situations or give them a false sense of familiarity. Create a public Page instead for people to follow if they want to keep up with your work---this should be the page you link from your website and your other social media, not your personal page.
And on the topic of Facebook...don't send a bunch of random friend requests.
Adding a ton of voice actors may seem like "networking", but if you haven't actually made some sort of connection with the person before, they are unlikely to want to add you. Consider following them on a place like Twitter or LinkedIn instead and engaging with them there. Friendships should be formed naturally if they are meant to happen! Don't take it personally if someone doesn't accept your friend request---they may be very selective about who they allow to access their private page, or they may not wish to mix their personal life with work. If you think this seems harsh, consider that a voice actor actually had people attempt to contact his wife and daughter via Facebook to try to get in contact with him. And it's not the first instance that people have had fans or aspiring actors overstep boundaries in a similar manner by attempting to contact their families, significant others, etc. If someone seems guarded...it's probably for a reason. Respect their wishes.
Think carefully about getting involved in drama.
Remember: You don't HAVE to engage in the latest argument or pile on with a "hot take". For the most part, any issue you have with another person---especially one of your colleagues in the industry---should be handled privately. If you make public posts about your issues with other actors, it makes you look unprofessional and like you can't get along with others you work with, which isn't a plus if you want people to hire you. If someone persists on trying to incite problems with you, you can always say, "can we please talk about this privately?" By rising above and handling the issue with grace and class, you will almost always come out on top. There are always exceptions, and sometimes you may feel you have no choice but to make an issue public, but remember that once something is on the Internet it tends to stay there, so this tactic should be used as a last resort.
If you simply can't help it, consider a private/locked account.
Whether you're constantly itching to make "hot takes" about the lastest voice actor drama, retweet NSFW art, post photos of you getting wasted with your friends, or even just tend to vent a lot, it may be good to have a locked account under another name that is only open to close friends and other people you trust. Remember that nothing is truly private on the Internet and that people can still screenshot those posts and share them with others, so be very careful with who you allow access to such an account. Sometimes artists, for example, will even have separate accounts---one for their art posts only and one for their personal posts, so that people can choose to follow just one, or both. I don't believe doing this is necessary as a voice actor and it's not super common for people in that particular field to do, but if you're truly concerned about wanting to keep one account all-business, it can be an option.
If you mess up, make it right.
We all make mistakes, no matter how well-intentioned they may be. No one likes to hear they've screwed up, and it's easy to beat yourself up over it. When appropriate to do so, own up and apologize. Delete the post in question, acknowledge that it was a problem, and resolve to do better in the future. Actions speak louder than words, so don't just say you're going to do better---do it!
Above all, your mileage may vary!
There are always instances where a prominent voice actor "breaks the rules" and people will point out "but so-and-so did it!" As long as you're OK with what the things you post say about you and your brand, it's largely up to you. These are just things to keep in mind as you navigate the complex world of social media.
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