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Acting , Acting Advice , The Business of Acting , Your Career

An Actor’s Approach to Social Media


December 5, 2024

Gone are the days when Hollywood stars appeared to be otherworldly titans stored on unreachable shelves, only taken down for awards shows or filming projects. Over the years, actors have become brands, with audiences craving every detail about their lives. Thanks to social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok and Bluesky, icons like Jane Fonda and Tom Hanks are right at fans’ fingertips— at least the curated versions they’d like the world to see.

There are mixed opinions on what an actor’s relationship to social media should be. Some link the online networks directly to fame seekers vs. people who care about the craft, while others see the value in cultivating their audience through social networks.

At the end of the day, social media can be an invaluable resource for budding actors when approached correctly. Here’s a basic three-fold system for mining the caverns of social media for career-boosting diamonds.

Insights: What You Need to Know About Social Media for Your Acting Career

  • Create a social media profile that represents your true self, ensuring that it’s clear you’re an actor, includes links to your professional work and approach your online presence with authenticity.
  • Follow and interact with accounts that inspire you and contribute positive content to your feed. Aavoid strategies focused solely on gaining followers without meaningful interactions.
  • Ensure your posts are eye-catching, engaging and educational. Plan your social media strategy with a content calendar, post regularly and avoid the temptation to buy followers.

Craft a Social Media Profile That Best Represents You

Good news—you are early on in your acting journey! Which means you have a fresh slate to work with. When crafting a social media presence, put some thought into who you are.
Although social media is fun, you want to make sure you lay a foundation of authenticity to build upon. That’s what followers and entertainment audiences are attracted to (aka you).

You may be asking yourself: Who am I? Am I my resume? Your resume is a part of your life, not the other way around. Ponder what you put out into the world, and then, in your dream of dreams, what you’d like to bring to the world down the line. The answer to this one isn’t necessarily acting. That might be a vehicle to it, but think about your unique perspective.

That said, from a logistical standpoint, your profiles are your calling cards. Ensure that it says “actor” on your profile, in addition to linking your actor website or reel. If you’re going to use social media, you’re going to need a social media strategy.

Follow and Angage With Accounts That Empower You

Your social network newsfeed should be a stream of love. In addition to following your family and friends, follow accounts that both inform and inspire, so you’re not bombarded with toxic blurbs, negative comments and/or inappropriate comments every time you log in.

You’ll find many of your favorite actors, writers, directors, etc. on social media platforms, so that’s a great place to start. Ensure that every profile feeds you and doesn’t send you into a spiral of comparison (when we compare, we despair).

A pitfall to avoid is following a bunch of accounts, hoping these accounts will then follow them and like their content. While that’s part of the game, it’s a losing strategy.
Social media is social. In order to run a thriving social account, you have to engage with others. Like, comment and repost more than you post your own social content. Who knows—commenting on accounts of people you wish to work with could lead to opportunities.

Another wonderful aspect of social platforms is that they can be used to connect with fellow artists. X Spaces and Facebook Groups (yes, they are still a thing) are two wonderful tools for this, although you must be vigilant about the groups you’re joining. In the end, you can find a community to cheer you on and collaborate with.

Provide Social Content That is Valuable to Your Followers

Using social media to advance your acting journey only works if you post, and the type of content you post matters. While engagement is extremely important, it’s not as effective if you don’t share your own original content. Ideally, your posts should check off the three E’s:
1. Eye-catching: In an age where there’s a never-ending flow of content for consumers, you have seconds to stand out and make someone stop scrolling.

Think about the social media posts that make you stop. Do you like really cool behind-the-scenes photos? Do you get drawn in by a head-turning headline of text over video content or are meme-adjacent photos your thing? Do you enjoy unique artwork? What makes this compelling content? There has to be that vacuum element that sucks followers (aka your target audience) in.

2. Engaging: After you’ve gotten people’s attention, you want them to engage! Perhaps the photo is so shocking or hilarious that followers automatically comment and like. However, you may need more. Maybe you post a video that fellow actors can relate to that ends with a question, asking them to share their own experiences in the comments. Always have a call-to-action element that your target audience can engage with to create that sense of community.

3. Educational: Don’t worry—you don’t have to teach people something with every post! We mean “educational” in the sense that it impacts users, whether it’s inspirational or informative. Provide content that affects people and makes them want to share it. Sharing (especially from accounts with larger followings) is huge.

Before posting, ask yourself if this is relevant content. Educational posts should always have something valuable your audience can take from them, compelling them to engage with you.

How to be a Social Media Manager

If this is all shaping up to sound like a full-time job, that’s because it is! Remember, you don’t need to have social accounts on every platform, nor do you have to hit the ground running. Start off slow and only bite off what you can chew.

If you want to benefit from social channels, you’re going to want to plan. Set doable goals for yourself by saying “I will post X amount of social media content Y times this week,” and then develop a content calendar to make that happen. Some users do “content days” for their social channels where they film five videos for the week in one day.

When planning your social media strategy, consider the following:

  • Decide what social media channels you want to use.
  • Think about what your content strategy should look like.
  • Determine what types of content you’d like to post and research what optimal times you should be posting to your social media accounts.
  • Decide what posting frequency you should start with, the frequency you aspire to and whether a social media content calendar makes sense.

Remember, content creation may be fun, but an actor’s social media shouldn’t be all-consuming. Once you enter that space, you’re an influencer, which in the end could help your career, but may not be your desire.

However, do not fall into the trap of purchasing followers. You’ve no doubt seen people who buy 10,000 followers right off the bat to make themselves look more hireable to producers.
Guess what? Everyone can tell they’re bots, and it ends up hurting you in the algorithm.

Instead, grow your social media accounts organically by doing what works best for you. It will take longer, but your social media efforts will be recognized. Real people will follow you and engage with your content, which is the goal.

If you take nothing else from this, remember that what works with acting works with social media—approach everything with authenticity.

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Robert Peterpaul is a writer, podcaster and performer, who can be seen in films like IFC's “King Cobra,” T-Mobile ad campaigns, and TV shows like CBS' “BULL.” He currently hosts the hit podcast The Art of Kindness on the Broadway Podcast Network, which has featured guests like Carol Burnett and Director Jon M. Chu. Other writing and hosting highlights include: NBC’s “Access Hollywood” and “America’s Got Talent,” “BUILD Series,” the Huffington Post and serving as the Weekend Editor for HOLA!/ HELLO! USA. He also co-founded his family’s nonprofit the Thomas Peterpaul Foundation, which aims to end pediatric cancer. Robert has studied at the Barrow Group, Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, UCB and earned a B.A. from Marist College. This one’s for the dreamers - keep following your bliss. www.robertpeterpaul.com



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