BY ALEX NICOLE

What Kind of Agency is Right For You?

Getting signed to a modeling agency is the first step to getting work. Signing is the term used to refer to having signed a contract with a modeling agency that has agreed to represent you. Alternatively, you do have the option to work as a freelance model but once again, if you do not have prior connections that is another obstacle you may need to overcome that is why I suggest signing.

There are two main types of agencies you can sign to:

1. Booking agency
2. Mother agency

A booking agency is typically going to be the one to get you work through their connections with clients. Clients being the brands you would work for such as Levis, Revlon, Prada, Apple, etc.

A mother agent’s job is to develop you – meaning build up your portfolio a.k.a. your “book”, place you with a booking agency, and teach you about the modeling industry.

Both are great to have and you can have both at one time however the order in which you sign is important.

If I have one regret about my start in this industry it would be that I did not get a mother agent first. In my defense, I did not know anything about this industry and I had no connections therefore I did not really understand the benefit of having a mother agent. Plus, if I am being completely honest when one of my dream agencies offered me a contract I was happy to sign it no questions asked (I do not recommend that approach).

If you sign with a booking agency first they will also most likely be considered your mother agency and as a big booking agency with so many other models to manage you are not going to get the same help that a mother agent provides that I am about to explain. You can not go back and sign with a mother agent after signing to a booking agency, in most cases it must be done first or in between leaving one agency and signing to a new one.

When you sign to a mother agency first you will typically have one agent who is going to be your mother agent. They will be the one who will consistently fight for you throughout your career-It is a nice security to have. They will help you to understand and negotiate contracts with future agencies and more importantly they will stand up for you if you are unhappy with your booking agency.

Once your mother agent believes you are ready to be signed to a booking agency they will help you submit to the bigger booking agencies, these are the ones you have probably heard the names of before such as IMG, Wilhelmina, Select, Elite, Ford, etc. In return they will get a 10% commission on all future jobs you book, usually, this is split between your mother agency and the agency that booked you the job however it is not unheard of for it to be taken out on top of the usual 20% taken by the booking agency leaving you with 30% or your rate going to commission.

Or

You can go straight to signing with a booking agency. Again these are going to be the agencies you are more likely to have heard the names of in the past and are going to be located in the major markets such as NYC, LA, London, Paris, Milan, and Sydney.

The process of submitting and signing to both types of agencies is typically the same.

How Do I Submit to a Modeling Agency?

Make a list of modeling agencies you want to submit to.

If you are located in a major market you will have what seems like countless options. If you are not, (don’t worry, neither was I) you can either see if there are any agencies in your current area, or you can submit to agencies in either the closest market to you or somewhere you would be willing to relocate to. (I chose the second option).

Now that you have decided where and what kind of agency you want to submit to you need to pick the actual agencies. This can be a numbers game so the more agencies you submit to, the more likely you are to hear back from at least one.

Look for modeling agencies that represent models similar to you. This means objectively looking at yourself. Are you shorter than 5’7/8″ (women) or 6’0″ (men)? Then you want to find agencies that represent Petite (this means shorter not skinnier) models. Are you curvier? I mean this by modeling standards, not normal world standards. Curve models usually are anything around a size four and up. If so, make sure they either have a curve board or have models of this size on their board. (A board just refers to the section you are in when looking at the website. You will notice they are typically; Image, Direct, Curve, Showroom, Main, and Development.)

Now that you know what you are looking for, make that list and double-check the agency’s legitimacy. You can do this by checking Models.com which has lists of legitimate agencies that you can filter through based on what you are looking for, or if they are a smaller agency then you can also check their Instagram to see if they are verified. Another good thing to look out for is if they are a smaller agency, are larger booking agencies following them? They often will because they can scout a new face straight through Instagram.

Digitals

Digitals are the modeling world’s equivalent to an actor’s headshots. The main difference, though, is that it is industry standard to take them on your phone and at home. They are typically done with little to no makeup, natural hair (or however you would wear it to every casting and job unless requested otherwise), and black form-fitting clothing.

Now that you have your list go to the website for each agency, it is a good sign if they have a Recruitment warning of some kind. (Never pay to submit or get signed to an agency. Any agency marketing itself as a “Model School” is also a scam).

There should be a page titled something along the lines of “Become a Model” or “Get Scouted”.

Here there will be instructions on how to take your digitals. Typically you will need one close headshot, a three-quarters shot, a profile, and a full body. You rarely need to submit bikini digitals but it is not completely unheard of although I would make sure they are a legitimate agency before doing so.

Something else that some agencies will ask for is a walking video and a personality video. Make sure just like for your digitals these are done in good lighting.

Once you submit all you can do is wait. If you submitted at the beginning of the week and an agency is interested you will most likely hear back within the week, sometimes even within a day or two. If you submitted closer to the end of the week you may not hear back until the following work week. Lastly, if they are not interested, unfortunately, the odds are you will never hear a word from them. They get so many submissions a day and if they are not interested in signing you they most likely won’t waste the time telling you that.

Social Media

The last thing I recommend doing to help your chances of getting seen would be to follow all the agencies you are interested in signing with on Instagram and TikTok. If they have the hashtags they use to scout models listed in their bio make sure that you are using those as well if you post anything that could help you to get signed. Most agencies will announce if they are actively scouting for a specific look and if you fit the description make sure to submit and/or go to the open call if they are having one.

Sometimes they will also list an email or direct you to submit to their DM’s if that is the case make sure to do that too!