Today we are talking about one of the hottest topics of the past month, month plus really, and that is Clubhouse. This is a new app. And it is taking our entertainment industry and many, many other industries by storm. Clubhouse is a social media app you can download on your phone.

It’s essentially a forum for conversations. It's like Zoom, but no video. Anyone can host a room either publicly or privately with up to 5,000 people in attendance. Users can start a conversation on any topic that they want and set up their room with their own rules. There can be one or many “hosts” of the room as well as invited speakers. Depending on the topic at hand, there are many creative way that ways that people have been using Clubhouse. For actors, however, there's a great opportunity to connect with and hear from some folks that we otherwise would not have access to like casting directors, agents, managers, producers, directors, and filmmakers.

Anyone you can imagine is hosting rooms these days, including me! I've been hosting rooms around Clubhouse with my partner in crime over at Beyond Acting, Alex Collins, and we have been having a great time chatting with actors. I've been doing some free Instagram audits, we've been having conversations about the real life of being an actor and the struggles that we all face, and so on and so forth. You can join our weekly Beyond Acting: what you didn’t learn in school room on Thursdays at 4pm EST. (follow @alisonhaselden for notifications!).

Currently, Clubhouse is only available for Apple users. Hopefully Android users will soon have access as well. One of the interesting things about Clubhouse is that you must be invited in order to access the app. Unfortunately, you can't just create a profile on a whim like you would on Instagram or Facebook or Twitter. If you're not on clubhouse yet, no worries, you can either find an invite from someone who's already on there, or wait until it opens up to everyone.

I know that it can be really overwhelming for a lot of people to adopt a new social media platform. So as a marketing consultant, I decided to do a little bit of digging, and a lot of research. I’ve been actively thinking of the top strategies and tips for actors to be as successful as possible on Clubhouse because I want you guys to thrive, and use it as a strategic tool for your acting careers (instead of it becoming another mindless time suck, right?). Today we're going to talk about the five key strategies for actors on Clubhouse. You ready?

Click here to tune into the podcast version of this blog post, Episode 74.

flesh out your bio

Let's dive on in! Tip number one, when you create your clubhouse profile, be sure to do an excellent job of filling out the details of your profile before you do anything else. Just like you would on any other social media platform, you need to create your profile and you need to do it strategically.

• You’ll want to make sure that you have a great photo of your face, whether that's your commercial headshot, your theatrical headshot, or a press shot of you, you want to make sure that your face is front and center.

• Next, you'll also want to fill out your bio with some key information about who you are, what you do, how people can connect with you out of Clubhouse.

• Connect your Instagram and Twitter profiles, they offer you an opportunity to add those links.

• You might also want to put your your agent or your manager’s information.

• Consider also adding some other fun facts about you or places that folks can connect with you outside of Clubhouse.

follow key industry players

Tip number two is to follow key industry players. This is so important because it’s a crucial way to learn about what chats are happening. You should follow anyone that you might want to interact with online. There are two reasons for this. First, you’ll be able to see when they are hosting a room. Second, you’ll be able to see when they are in another room that maybe you'd want to join.

This is the easiest way to stay on top of what's going on and to connect with the right people in the entertainment industry. You’ll want to follow the casting directors, the agents, the managers, the podcast hosts, the influencers, other actors, coaches, and anyone else that is important to you. Once you’re following those industry players, you’ll be able to see what they are up to and what is on their schedule on your main feed/homepage, and on your calendar section.

raise your hand to speak

Tip number three is to raise your hand to speak. It's very easy to fall into the rhythm of just attending rooms and chats and listening, which obviously can be so helpful and you can learn a lot. However, that is a passive strategy to use on the Clubhouse app. I would encourage you to flip the switch on that and aim to be an active participant on Clubhouse.

Obviously you should take some time to get a feel for it, and figure out how things work. But then I encourage you to raise your hand to speak when it makes sense. Typically hosts will ask you to raise your hand if you have a comment or question. Or they'll let you know what the rules of the room are and how you can interact. I encourage you to get out of your comfort zone, and ask a question, or make a comment. Because that is the way that you're going to make those new connections and network with new people. You're also going to help increase your following on Clubhouse and beyond. Otherwise, people might see you hanging out in the room and listening, but they won't necessarily be inspired to follow you or connect with you on a more personal level beyond that, unless you make yourself known. So raise your hand to speak, get in there get active be an active player on clubhouse.

host your own room

Tip number four is to host your own room. Once you get comfortable on Clubhouse, and once you figure out kind of what strategies you want to use, you're going to want to think about your personal brand, what you have to offer and try hosting your own room. It can be a small room, or it could be a big room, don’t worry too much about that when you start. But if you put yourself out there, especially if you do it consistently, you will have a massive potential to gain some new connections and new friendships and some new fans of you and your work. This can look really different for each person, depending on what your content looks like, and what your brand looks like. But it can massively pay off if you are brave enough to put yourself out there and help other actors.

be a giver

Tip number five is to be a giver on Clubhouse. I believe that this is one of the top reasons you should be interacting on social media in general - on every platform. On Clubhouse, because of the nature of the app, you want to go into every room with the intention of serving and giving and providing value to others.

I truly believe that we are all on this together. And there's something that we can learn from everyone. There are so many opportunities for us to help each other as actors. The cool part is that the way that you can serve and help other actors and connect with other people in the community is going to look different than me. But we all have something of value to offer. So if you go into every interaction with the heart and mindset of a giver, it's going to pay off for you and people are going to be able to tell that you're really genuine, that you're excited to be there, and that you're excited to help and connect with them.

Another reason to be a giver is that it will help you overcome any nerves that pop up if you're anxious about raising your hand to speak in someone else's room. Or if you're nervous about hosting your own room! All those other fears - throw them out the window and just bring it back to that idea of, “What can I give to my community? How can I bring value to this conversation?”

It’s also a really good way to avoid any accidental miscommunication or rubbing people the wrong way. One of the challenges of this app is that while it's kind of nice and convenient that we don't have the video factor, there is a risk of certain things being taken the wrong way or being misunderstood because we're only we only have the voice to figure out and connect with each other. Without our facial expressions and that visual aspect, sometimes things can get lost in translation. But if you are focusing on being a giver, then that is going to shine through in your voice and you'll be more likely to make genuine good connections and create incredible first impressions with those folks in the room.

bonus tip: be strategic with your time

Here's your bonus strategy for Clubhouse because this is something I've been thinking about a lot as a marketing consultant. There's been a lot of chit chat about Clubhouse in the marketing professional communities. To be honest with you? It is really, really polarizing. There are some people who are all about Clubhouse, and some people who are really against Clubhouse.

Essentially, it's really, really difficult for one person or one personal brand to be a rockstar on every single marketing and social media platform, right? That would take a lot of time, a lot of energy and a lot of effort. And so that is something that as marketing professionals, we are constantly keeping in mind and advising our clients, you want to focus on a few marketing channels that are really going to pay off for you and get you towards your goals, right. For some people, it could be clubhouse, and for other people, it might not. It's different for every person and I can't give you a blanket statement right here because it really depends on each person's personal brand and strategy and their goals.

One of the things that we've been chatting about in the marketing community is that, you know, a lot of marketers feel the pressure of wanting to be an early adopter of Clubhouse. But they've done some research and realized that it's probably not going to pay for them to be on Clubhouse, because they've assessed the time and effort and energy that they're putting into it, versus the ROI (return on investment) of that time, energy and effort.

I think it's really important for actors to do their research, and make sure that they are strategic with their time. You should figure out what you're actually getting out of being on Clubhouse. If you are on there all day, every day, but it's not actually getting you closer to your goals, you need to either adjust your strategy on Clubhouse, or reduce the amount of time that you're on Clubhouse and put that time towards something that will help you towards your goals. And that could be another social media platform, it could be being in class more. However, I think it's really important to be aware of how much time you're spending on Clubhouse, and begin assessing whether that time is actually paying off for your career or not. Ultimately, there's no right or wrong answer. If it is awesome. Great. I'm so excited for you. If it isn't, that's okay. No worries, I'm glad that you're you're realizing that now instead of later on, when you realize how much time you wasted.

recap

These are our top six strategies for actors on Clubhouse:

1. Flesh out your bio

2. Follow key industry players

3. Raise your hand to speak

4. Host your own room

5. Be a giver

6. Be strategic with your time and assess your ROI.

I love to connect with you guys and hear your feedback, what you're learning what's new, what your questions are, because I am right in it with you. We are all in this together. So if you want to head on over to Instagram @alison_haselden and send me a DM and let me know how Clubhouse is going for you what you've been learning any new strategies you'd like to share with our community, I would love to hear about it!