I’ve noticed that a lot – almost half – of the pictures entered into the CuteKid contest are ones where the child is looking away or has a hat or sunglasses on.

The NON-NEGOTIABLE rules for sending pictures into agencies is this (and the same type of pictures should be entered into the contest):

• Make sure pictures are in-focus and close-up to the face on the head shots – this is the most important rule!!
• No distracting patterns on clothing
• No hats, sunglasses or anything else that covers the face or head

When an agent or manager is going through hundreds of pictures of children, the ones that will stand out are the ones that are following these rules above.

Has anyone gotten any response from sending their kid’s pictures into modeling or talent agencies?  Would love to hear some feedback!

One of the most frequent questions I get asked is “How do I know if my kid HAS WHAT IT TAKES?”

Well, folks, there is only one way to find that out!  Send those pictures in to managers, modeling and talent agencies (but keep it local – you can’t run back and forth to castings if you are too far away).

Every agency/manager is different in every part of the country…they are all looking for different things.  Even the same agency!  For instance, Ford Models in New York may be short on brunette girls ages 10 -12, while Ford Models in LA may be looking for that exact type at the same time.

So your best bet is to send in pictures every 3 – 4 months, just to keep in the loop in case whatever they are looking for is YOUR CuteKid.

A lot of the questions I receive are very much like this one – where do you begin?

Well, it depends on a variety of things: your child’s age, where you live, etc. but the best place to start is your local area – besides TheCuteKid website, of course!

To procure agency/manager representation, you really have to live in the area (or about an hour away) in which you would be going on appointments with your child, or be willing to move immediately to where you send their pictures.

The talent agencies normally do not represent children under the age of 4 – there is no getting around that, it is a standard industry rule. I had to wait like everyone else – don’t you think I was DYING to get my twins representation before the age of 4 for acting? Absolutely! But I to had to wait, even though I live in the NYC area and have a ton of resources because of the location.

So if your child is younger than 4, you should focus on the modeling end of things for now - and whatever open calls you see from TheCuteKid website. Google “model agency your town” and start researching! Call the agencies you find, and ask questions – is there a fee to join, do they have a children’s division, where can you send your pictures?

The modeling and acting industries are hard WORK – and once you get representation, it’s even more work going on all of the auditions, callbacks and the preparation it takes. The “overnight success” phrase is a myth, spun by the media to make celebrities seem all that more intriguing.

If your child is older than 4 and you want to get them into acting, then you should start having them participate in school plays, acting camp, workshops for kids and that type of thing. Acting takes more of an investment at first than modeling does – you can get away with sending in casual snapshots to a modeling agency (even after joining the agency you can use use non-professional pictures depending on their age), but after a child is past a certain age for acting you will be looking into getting a profesesional head shot, resume, etc.

I hope this helps, the fact that you are reading this shows that you are moving in the right direction! Learn, learn, learn – knowledge is power in this industry to avoid falling into the hands of the wrong people.

Ever heard a response like “He/she is not right for this agency” or “Beautiful child but come back when he/she is older?“  What do you do when you get an answer like this?  Or no answer at all?

KEEP TRYING – the modeling industry is cyclical!  One day you will find that agents are looking for a certain kind of look (which may not be your kid) and the next they are dying to represent him or her.  Often the answer to whether or not an agency wants to rep your child has nothing to do with your child at all!

For example, if your kid looks like someone else they represent already, or they have too many kids in that age bracket, an agency simply won’t consider him or her.  That is why you have to keep at it and send those pictures in every few months, unless you are told not to any more (which rarely happens).

Persistence, patience and pictures with personality ALL count when you are marketing your child!!

And when you send those pictures in a few months later, make sure they are totally different from the ones you sent before.

Confirm that the agency you’re sending pictures into has a children’s division, then try to get a name of an agent in that division to mark “attention to” on the outside of your envelope. If you can’t get a name, write the “attention to” as “director of kids’ division” or whatever name the agency calls their division.

For example, Wilhelmina’s Kid’s division is called “W Kids” – so write that on the front of your envelope so your pictures don’t get mixed up with another division or simply thrown away because there is no specific place where it should be going (if another division in the agency opens up the envelope, it may never get to the intended recipient).

Modeling and talent agencies get hundreds of envelopes every week, so you want to make sure yours is going to the right place!!

Do your research!!

Find out if your state requires modeling agencies to have a license, and if they do, ask to see it.

Also, go on the Better Business Bureau website to see if there are any complaints, as well as the Bureau of Consumer Protection.

Finally, if they are trying to charge you an upfront fee, that should be the biggest warning sign.

Has anyone ever had a bad experience with a company? Or a question about a company that claims to be legitimate, but something just doesn’t seem right?

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to my blog!!

The purpose of this blog is to connect people on this site to each other and myself!

There is SO much to learn about the modeling industry, and hopefully I can help you.  Please post questions for me, or comment on other people’s posts — it doesn’t matter.  What does matter is that we all stay connected and try to learn as much as possible from each other!!

So, who wants to start?  Does anyone have a question about anything related to modeling?  ASK AWAY!!!!