Your phone presence is like “stage presence.”
If you have it, you are interesting to watch. If you don’t, people find
someone else to watch. Here are some keys from a CD’s desk on how to be
well-received via phone. (Note: These clues are meant for phone
interaction with agents, stylists, production managers, or anyone else you
encounter.)
His words . . .
What you say is only half the battle, how you say
it is the other half. In other words if we cannot hear you clearly or if
you speak too fast it doesn't matter what you say. It seems people often
say things in a manner that is directly correlating to a "stream of consciousness".
We not only need informative and concise
information, but information that can be easily notated in one sentence.
Try keeping these three things in mind when making phone calls to industry
professionals:
1.) Articulate
Articulate your words (especially your name)
so that we don't have to make you repeat it which wastes both of our time
2.) Be Audible
Make sure you are Audible; speaker phone/ear
pieces are not a wise choice; we cannot help but be frustrated when someone
calls and it sounds like they are talking to us from across a 30 foot
room. Don't be shy, use that strong acting voice you were given and if
you aren't normally very loud then FAKE it... Hey you're an actor right!?
3.) Get "To The Point"
Don't waste time (time is money) tell us who
you are, why you are calling, and who you are calling for. It is rare
that the person that answers the phone is the person you are trying to reach so
making that first correspondence as stream-lined as possible will help both of
you.
-- Casting Director, Scott
Powers
Now that you have the ingredients, practice on your
voicemail so that you are prepared and professional when someone important is
on the line!
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