How to Maximize Social Media as an Actor

Amy Jo Martin, entrepreneur and author of the best-selling book Renegades Write the Rules: How the Digital Royalty Use Social Media to Innovate, has described social media as “the ultimate equalizer,” saying that these tools give “a voice and platform to anyone willing to engage.” While Martin’s description applies to everyone, it’s wise to consider the implications of her statement specifically to us as actors.

Social media isn’t for everyone, and it’s valid to only use social platforms to stay in touch with friends and family…or to attempt the latest dance craze on TikTok. Others will find it best to eschew social media altogether.

Whether you choose to engage with these platforms is your call. The overarching recommendation, however, is to approach these spaces with intention—clarity on why and how you’ll use certain platforms—and to reserve your right to reconsider your position at any time.

For example, just because you signed up on Facebook in high school, doesn’t mean you must remain loyal 15 years later. Conversely, just because you mocked TikTok when it first launched, doesn’t mean you can’t give it a go today.

With that, let’s deep dive into the benefits of engaging with social media as an actor. We’ll explore the platforms and supporting tools, and the best practices to employ. We’ll also hear from Christopher Tester, a UK-based actor with over 415k followers on TikTok, 82k subscribers on YouTube, 20k followers on Instagram and 17k followers on X, who has maximized the potential for social media to serve and further his career.

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A post shared by Chris Tester | Voice Actor (@chrisnaturallyrp)

The Benefits of Social Media as an Actor

While much has been said about the negatives of social media, it’s worth acknowledging that it is simply a tool. Like money, social media itself isn’t inherently good or bad—its use is what determines how constructive or destructive it is.

With that in mind, here are three benefits of intentional social media use as an actor:

1. Easy Access to Open Casting Calls

In Australia, for example, McGregor Casting and Mitchell Casting regularly pin open auditions to their Instagram profiles. In the UK, Emily Brockmann from Lucy Bevan Casting, and independent casting directors Heather Basten and Orla O’Connor do the same on X.

2. The Potential to Secure Auditions and Work

Increasingly, casting directors, directors and producers are turning to social media for casting inspiration. Browsing social media profiles has somewhat become the new street casting, making sourcing fresh talent easier, safer and more robust than the airport or mall finds of yesteryear.

“Because of social media, I have worked with brands and clients I’d never have imagined. Audiobook producers, creative directors and game developers have all reached out to me directly having seen my content,” Tester says. “The majority of people who’ve reached out to me aren’t looking to leverage the audience that I’ve built across social media platforms—the content I’ve created has simply made them aware I exist. But, there have also been instances where having a larger online following has provided opportunities. People are aware I have an audience, and that certainly plays a crucial role when it comes to negotiating fees.”

3. Keeping Your Creative Cup Full

As actors, we can experience short “off-seasons” as more draining than back-to-back “on-seasons.” We thrive on creating. Therefore, if we approach creating content for social media as a valid means of self-expression, the process can become fun, rewarding, and in some instances act as a creative lifeline during those quieter seasons of our careers.

“Creating content has been a lot more creatively satisfying than sending endless cold emails and shooting speculative auditions into the void without reply,” says Tester. “My current content is built around the fact I wasn’t doing three things I should have been doing daily: a vocal warm-up, emotional preparation and cold reading practice. Creating the content makes me do the stuff I should be doing, as well as counting as marketing.”

The Platforms and Supporting Tools

Another benefit of social media is that the barrier to entry is very low. Anyone with an internet connection can access these platforms for free, and if you have a reasonable smartphone or tablet, you won’t need to buy any additional gear or software to get started.

According to data aggregated by Statista, the five most popular social media platforms as of April 2024 are Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, WhatsApp and TikTok. Each platform serves different purposes, and what works for one algorithm won’t necessarily work for another.

That being said, it can be wise to start small—especially if you’re new to using social media for your acting career.

“I’d say choose one platform to focus on and learn the do’s and don’ts of that, rather than try and master many at the same time. They all have their individual quirks, and different audiences hang out on different platforms with different mindsets,” says Tester.

Here’s an overview of what you can expect from each:

Facebook: Facebook’s largest demographic is users aged 25 to 34. While standard text and image posts still perform well, engagement with “behind the scenes” Facebook Live videos are on the rise.

YouTube: The video-sharing platform remains the international leader in longer-form video content. It’s become harder to “go viral” here, but that needn’t be your aim. YouTube can be a great home for showreels and short films.

Instagram: Demographically, Instagram skews young, with around 32% of users between ages 18 and 24. Instagram favors curated imagery but, as with Facebook, IG Reels, IG Stories and IG Live are all gaining momentum.

WhatsApp: Primarily an instant messaging app, WhatsApp is a different breed from the other platforms listed here. Rather than posting publicly, WhatsApp facilitates private exchanges through text, voice, photo and video. Its Group and Community features offer an efficient means of looping in with groups, such as classes or cast/crew teams.

TikTok: Similar to Instagram, the majority (around 36%) of TikTok users are from the 18 to 24-year-old demographic. TikTok is currently the place for short-form, phone-shot videos; and although that which attains “virality” can seem to lack rhyme or reason, the bite-sized and easy-to-share content lends itself to wide exposure.

In addition to the platforms themselves, there are a handful of popular supporting tools that can take your content to the next level once you’ve found your footing. Canva, for instance, has a free plan that enables you to edit and customize static or video content with ease. The software can get you Photoshop-level results without Photoshop-level knowledge.

CapCut’s free software offers a suite of services similar to Canva, with impressive speech-to-text and text-to-speech features.

Best Practices for Engaging with Social Media as an Actor

Best practices for engaging with social media as an actor are more common sense than complex science. In general, if you aren’t 100% certain whether you should post something, err on the side of caution and, at the very least, sleep on the decision.

The line between consistent, courageous and innovative content, and content that is spammy, overshared and made in bad taste often becomes apparent in the heat of the moment. Running post ideas by people you trust can be an additional safeguarding strategy.

Common sense aside, here are two more nuanced points worth approaching with intentionality:

Public and private profiles: Although it’s not strictly necessary, many actors will have two accounts—one for their personal life, and one for their public life.
If you intend to engage with friends and family on a certain social media platform, it may be beneficial to reserve it for personal use by setting it to “Private.” Then, create a second profile to interact with the industry and decision-makers.

You may want your friends to be able to flick through the photo dump of your wild weekend in Ibiza, but you may not want the casting director of your country’s national theater to be able to do the same.

Your public persona: A further consideration is the image, message and behavior you want to portray and uphold in these social spaces. Using public accounts to double down on “type” is one option. Aussie actor Dacre Montgomery, perhaps best known as Billy from Stranger Things, has done a brilliant job of this with his public Instagram account.

You can also use your public accounts to showcase other aspects of yourself. Often, those with huge profiles (think Matthew McConaughey) will use their social feeds to reveal the “human” behind the hype; the #reallife behind the #bestlife. “Your content needs to reflect what you want to showcase about yourself,” Tester says.

When used with intention and awareness, social media can be a powerful tool in your arsenal as an actor in the 21st century. Permit yourself n to engage with social media, find the platforms that feel like a fit for you, and get creative with how they might be maximized to serve your artistic goals and values.

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