3 Mistakes Actors Make Writing Thank You Cards

3 Mistakes Actors Make Writing Thank You Cards Plus 3 Quick Actor Thank You Card Tips

4/26/2018

HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED

My thank you cards get thank you's, so I want to teach you how to write kick-butt thank you cards that make you more memorable.

After I sent my last thank you to my agent, she wrote back saying, "You're a JEWEL!"

Say what?! Nobody's ever called me a jewel before.

via GIPHY

However, there are three common mistakes actors make when writing thank you cards, so let's make sure you're avoiding them.

That's assuming you're writing them. You are writing thank you cards, right?

MISTAKE #1: CARD BRANDING

What card designs are you naturally drawn to in the store?

Be intentional about finding thank you cards that fit your branding.

If you love bold geometric prints, then don't send a card with vintage florals that makes you want to vomit.

Pick something that represents YOU. If you love a design, but it doesn't say thank you on the front, that's okay!

Pickup every card design that grabs your attention in the store before narrowing down to your favorite.

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MISTAKE #2: ASKING FOR SOMETHING

Thank you cards are about the recipient, not about you.

Please, please, please avoid passively or actively asking for anything in your card. For example, "I really hope we work together again."

This seems nice, and maybe you genuinely like the person you're writing to, but it places an unnecessary expectation on the recipient to work with you again or else be guilty of not liking you.

We want our thank you cards to make people feel appreciated, not guilty.

Focus on them, not something you want from them.

MISTAKE #3: TIMING IS EVERYTHING

A lot of actors don't write thank you cards, which is unfortunate.

We need to avoid looking ungrateful by never writing thank you's.

Remember that everyone in this business is working their tails off, and they may not get a lot of appreciation for it.

I've seen a teenager show her butt in a casting office to an established actor that she had mistaken for an admin because he volunteered to help the casting office on a very busy day.

(Even if he was an office admin, they work hard, too.)

On the flip side, we need to avoid looking desperate by writing too often.

Some actors = overkill.

There's no need to write a thank you to casting or your agent every single time you get called in for an audition. Save those thank you's for major events in your career.

3 QUICK TIPS FOR ACTOR THANK YOU CARDS

Can't you simply sit down and write a thank you card? Yes, but make sure you apply these tips first.

ACTOR THANK YOU CARD TIP 1

So let's talk about a bonus tip for writing thank you cards if you're an actor. I recently needed to write a thank you card, and I kept putting it off. I thought, "I need to make the time to sit down and write out what I want to say."

I had some time to kill before acting class, and I realized, "You know what? I have my phone. I'm gonna open up the Notes app and type out what I want to say."

So that's my tip: Type before you write.

That will eliminate card waste because you'll probably be writing in a pen. You should be. If you write in a pen on your card and then you mess up, you must throw the card away.

Type it first. That way you can edit freely and then transfer that over to your card.

You should be writing thank you cards. They're are a great way to market yourself without self-promoting. It's always good to express gratitude.

ACTOR THANK YOU CARD TIP 2

Your second tip for writing thank you cards is to read what you've written out loud before you transfer it to the card itself so you can hear and catch grammatical errors and to make sure your thoughts connect.

ACTOR THANK YOU CARD TIP 3

For that third bonus tip I think you should just always have thank you cards with you. So keep them in your car. If you're not driving, if you have your business cards or your headshots stuffed in a backpack or briefcase, thank you cards are easy to carry.

They're smaller. Just make sure you have some with you in case you need to write one on-the-go.

TAKE ACTION

So what SHOULD actors write in their thank you cards? When I first started writing them, I felt like I could write to three different people but say the exact same thing.

I've since learned how to personalize them in a way that makes the recipient feel appreciated and valued, and I want to teach you to do the same.

I had a director take the time to email a response to my thank you card and say that he'd love to work with me again. This works better than mailing out your headshots!

Check out The Absolute Best Follow-up Etiquette Every Actor Should Start Using Immediately to learn everything you need to know about writing amazing thank you cards that will make you more memorable.

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