In the fast-paced, competitive world of social media and influencer marketing, rising to success isn’t always a straightforward journey. Today, an increasing number of influencers are realising the significant benefits of partnering with talent managers to catapult their careers to new heights. Talent managers can offer crucial guidance, industry insights, and strategic direction to help influencers navigate the complex landscape of brand collaborations, sponsorships, and career progression. But when exactly should an influencer consider taking on a talent manager? In this blog, we’ll explore the key indicators that suggest it’s time for an influencer to engage a talent manager.
Often, influencers find themselves overwhelmed by administrative tasks, such as negotiating contracts, vetting brand partnerships, coordinating collaborations, and managing finances. A talent manager can lighten this load, allowing you to focus on your creative endeavours while they handle the business side of things. They possess the expertise to negotiate fair deals, safeguard your values and interests, and ensure smooth execution of collaborations, enabling you to make the most of your influencer journey.
Collaborations with brands and other influencers can significantly enhance your online presence and broaden your reach. However, forging these partnerships can be a challenging task, especially if you’re new to the industry or lack connections. A talent manager acts as a bridge between influencers and industry professionals, possessing an extensive network of contacts. They can leverage these connections to facilitate collaborations, secure brand deals, and open doors to exciting opportunities that can accelerate your career growth.
Monetising your influence is a top priority for influencers, and talent managers are experts at optimising revenue streams. From negotiating favourable brand deals to exploring various monetisation avenues like merchandise, licensing, and sponsored content, talent managers can ensure that you capitalise on every opportunity to maximise your earnings. Their insights and industry knowledge can guide you to make informed decisions and ensure that you receive fair compensation for your influence and hard work.
Engaging a talent manager can be a turning point in an influencer’s journey, opening doors to new opportunities and strategic guidance. Whether you’re struggling to break through a growth plateau, overwhelmed by administrative tasks, looking to expand your network, or seeking to maximise your revenue potential, a talent manager can be your guiding light. They possess the expertise, industry insights, and connections necessary to accelerate your career and propel you towards long-term success. By recognizing the signs and taking proactive steps to engage a talent manager, influencers can unlock their full potential and reach new heights in the ever-evolving world of influencer marketing.
Our Director, Kylie Green was interviewed on The Business of Influence podcast recently and had some sage advice for influencers and talents looking to engage a talent manager. You can listen to the podcast episode by clicking the button below.
What does a talent manager do, and why is it important for influencers and content creators?
A talent manager is someone that manages a talent’s work and career progression, helps the talent to build their profile and brand and hustles and negotiates on their behalf for contracts, roles and collaborations. A great talent manager works in partnership with the talent and can be a great sounding board, helpful with advice and also be a shoulder to cry on in some instances. A talent manager is often proactively pitching and presenting their talent behind the scenes to brands, agencies, production companies and casting directors depending on the talent’s skillset.
It can be a really important and long-term relationship for talent with trust and transparency the key for both parties involved. For example; if the talent is not being open and honest with the talent manager and a major incident occurs mid way through a brand campaign, this could have very serious consequences for the talent manager’s industry reputation, not to mention the talent’s as well.
Before starting a partnership with a talent, we do a deep dive into the talent’s channels, vet their audience profiles, review their performance on a TV show if they have appeared on one, read any publicity in the media they have received, review if they have had previous representation and why they might be changing and of course review if they have worked with any brands in the past.
If we feel that they could be a good fit with our agency, we would do a chemistry session with the talent in person or over zoom. If we decide to sign them, once a contract and all of the admin is in place, we would then carry out a strategy session with the talent to set the course of the direction we feel would work best. We also get an understanding of their values, realistic goals, the brand categories that they would not work in eg: gambling, politics, for some it’s alcohol etc.
As mentioned, transparency is key. We have a number of systems and processes in place that allows our talent to always be able to see and review what we are working on in our WIP, live jobs and all of the details from brief, to deliverables, comms and budget.
When an influencer or talent is seeking representation how should they pitch themselves to talent managers?
We see a wide variety of ways talent pitch themselves to talent agencies when looking for representation from cold calls to emails to full blown presentations with existing media kit and audience analytics. Like the old adage suggests, first impressions do count!
Talent managers are super busy so it’s important that you provide them with as much detail as possible when introducing yourself and pitching. Remember they may not have seen you on the TV show you were on or follow you on Tiktok.
I believe that if you are just starting out as an influencer or content creator and you’ve built a small audience and are wanting to make this your career, a talent manager isn’t likely to take you on just yet. You want to grow your audience to say well over 10,000 followers before approaching talent managers plus have a proven track record of a few brand deals that you have worked on. The best way to grow your initial following is to register yourself on some of the influencer marketplace platforms and apply for campaigns listed. In Australia, you may look at joining the marketplaces Tribe, Vamp and The Right Fit for example.
If you have come off a TV show and suddenly discover you have a large following as a result of being on the show, don’t just expect that a talent manager will automatically take you on. Your audience could be following you for a variety of reasons which will link back to how you conducted yourself or were portrayed on the show.
Too often, I receive emails with an unrealistic expectation that just because you have been on TV that you suddenly think you can give up your day job and become an influencer, a TV presenter or a radio host. Yes, it has happened on the odd occasion however it’s because a producer or network executive spots something in them and offers them a new gig or that they have worked really hard to build their profile and brand or capitalised on a moment in time and hustled and hustled.
How important is a talent’s niche when considering representation?
Niche can be an advantage and disadvantage. For instance, you may be a laundry expert on Tiktok with lots of followers providing your best hacks and tips to busy mums and dads about laundry. There are only so many brands in this category and frankly if I were a brand and saw that this laundry expert had worked with my 2 main competitors, chances are I would steer away and try and find another influencer that could work exclusively with my brand.
Niche can be good but I would ensure you broaden it out a little. You might be a great DIY person but also great at styling, cleaning and cooking. Or you might be food content creator creating recipes but also talk about appliances, cooking for various occasions like picnics, camping trips and suddenly you’ve incorporated lifestyle in your content too which means you’ll have broader appeal.
If you’re a content creator that chooses to start an Only Fans account (and it depends on your Only Fans content) you may find that this may limit the number of brands and categories interested in collaborating with you. There certainly are brands that would complement your Only Fans content and this may include for eg: if you are a female content creator, lingerie, swimwear, beauty, adult entertainment etc
What are the common misrepresentations talent have about seeking representation?
The biggest misconception that talent has is that they think the talent manager will make them a big star overnight and or that a talent manager will get them invited to all the big VIP events.
They probably have this misconception from seeing where someone has come off a reality show and suddenly, they are now hosting their own show, have a radio show or are working with an incredible line up of brands. This usually hasn’t happened overnight. They usually have been working hard for many years to build their audience, build their brand and together with their talent manager seek out the right opportunities for them at the right time.
Remember too that a talent manager is not a PR and publicity person. If you want them to manage this, then you’d need to be prepared to pay them a retainer and ensure they have the credentials to manage your public relations and publicity. Yes, invites quite often come via talent managers which they can pass onto you, but Talent Managers don’t get paid for invites and publicity.
You’re best engaging a very good public relations and publicity manager on a retainer to look for media opportunities for you and manage what you are invited to and attend. This can be expensive and perhaps something you carefully consider when you are a rising star. It can also be really helpful especially when there is a crisis to manage or negative publicity that has been in the press to which they can respond to on your behalf.
And the final piece of advice I can give here is that you shouldn’t just turn up to every single event on the calendar. Find out what the event is for and if you have a genuine connection to it eg: a brand launch and what benefit you’d have by attending; who might be there that you could network with; what media coverage there is and so on. If you start to show up to the ‘opening of an envelope’ as they say, then this could cause fatigue for your brand and audience, get negative press in the media and also within the industry.
What do you look for when deciding to represent a celebrity, an influencer or content creator?
Different talent managers look for different things. Some are obviously more interested in working with talent that can instantly bring in revenue and some are looking to have the biggest range of influencers on their books so they can be a one-stop shop for brands looking for multiple influencers for a campaign.
I personally look for interesting talent that have multiple talents and income streams with a strong and engaged audience. Most of our talents have good social media followings, produce creative and engaging content, have had or have a television or screen presence, are motivational speakers, have a podcast, are authors, are in business for themselves and so on. I have signed on up and coming talents whom I think have that something special that could land them a hosting gig however these things all take time and if you are willing to invest that time, it could very well pay off down the track. I think the number one factor I look for is relevance. Are they relevant to the market, do they have that special something, are they willing to put in the hard work, are they a good communicator, do they have a network? And lastly, I have built a reputation over a 30+ year career and am well respected in my industry. I don’t want to risk taking on a talent that could easily destroy that overnight so I am quite picky when it comes to signing talent based on how they conduct themselves on and off screen and on social media.
How does a talent go about building a personal brand and maintain their brand identity?
Building a brand takes time, effort and investment. It’s about purposefully and strategically showcasing your authentic self to your audience and consistently doing this over time. To begin the process you need to absolutely know who you are, what you stand for, your values, your mission and vision, your story of where you’ve come from to today and be consistent and authentic in your content creation and how you show up on social and in person.
Yes, over time this can evolve but at the heart you are still you and remain true to yourself. Your uniqueness makes you and it’s important to always focus on this.
Some of our talents absolutely have their personal brand nailed when we start to represent them and others we have helped nurture over time. A personal website is always recommended which reflects your personal brand and has everything included to help build your brand. It is also a great way to build your own database to communicate to via newsletter, an online store for your audience to buy branded products created by you, a media kit, your publicity pieces and a showreel of your talent.
Is there a use by date for influencers and content creators?
Yes and no. It really depends on the influencer and how they grow and pivot as time goes by. For instance, you may be an influencer family sharing life raising kids who are all on the platform too but once they reach mid teens they may not be interested in being on socials and therefore the audience starts to drop off; or you are a pet influencer and your pet dies. How then do you maintain that audience and continue to engage them? In the case of the family, the teens may jump across to their own social media handle and have their audience follow and continue to influence and the pet influencer may get another pet of the same breed and continue to entertain the audience with the next generation of pet.
A movement we have seen over the past few years has been ‘cancel culture’ where an audience can quickly turn on a talent and suddenly they are cancelled. The audience diminishes, brands pull away and no invites are coming their way. Sometimes a talent can come back from this but more often disappear from social media and have to look at what’s next for them. Unfortunately, there is no quick fix for this.
How do you help your talent secure brand partnerships and collaborations?
We are a proactive agency that constantly scouts on behalf of our talent targeting relevant categories to their niche or the type of content they produce. Some brands contact our talent directly and our talent can inward refer this to us to negotiate on their behalf.
When looking to secure a campaign, we do a very detailed Scope of Work or Quote that absolutely outlines everything in the deliverables as well as additional upsells. We also ensure that this also clearly defines the inclusions and exclusions.
What are some of the common mistakes talent makes that might hinder their income potential?
The most common mistake a talent makes is when they post something without really thinking of the consequences which can get immediate attention by their followers, the media and the brands they are working with. This could be a photo showing the talent doing something which is against the law, a video of them intoxicated and ranting, an image of them using a competitor brand when they are the brand ambassador for a brand, commenting on social media posts with negative and harmful words, saying and doing something that is potentially controversial on national television. We have seen all of these things happen and the immediate cancelling by brands, contracts ended and budgets pulled. When you are trusted by a brand to partner and work with them, they rely on you to act professional at all times and yes be authentic but not be disrespectful and unprofessional.
How do talent managers earn their commissions and fees?
Talent managers earn their commission from the work secured for a talent. What talent needs to understand is that their talent manager spends many hours each week or even each day scouting, pitching and negotiating on their behalf for no hourly fee. Only when they secure the campaign do they get paid.
Talent managers take a % commission from the fee secured for the talent of anywhere between 15-25%. If a campaign was inward referred by the talent to the talent manager, a fee of 10-15% commission is applicable. And to cover off all of the administration time, other team members working on the execution of the campaign and the number of hours dealing as the middle person between the talent and the brand a talent agency may charge an Agency Service fee of between 15-20% to the brand or agency they are working with on the campaign.
There are many brands that offer influencer budgets under $500 to influencers and whilst these can add up for an influencer, they are not worthwhile for talent managers. A talent manager could spend several hours going back and forth with a brand and the talent to set the campaign up and for their % of $500 this would not even cover 1-2 hours of their time.
A talent may be thinking why do I need to use a talent manager? It’s because a talent manager has the experience in scouting, pitching, quoting and negotiating the highest possible fee and also has the experience of being able to upsell in a campaign for eg: securing additional fees for add-ons or paid boosting of content which a talent may have no experience at all in negotiating. A talent manager also can really help with ensuring that the campaign runs smoothly and professionally and that everything is ticked off such as legals, contracts, quotes, content approvals, timelines and reporting.
Another way talent managers can be remunerated is by retainers. This is when a talent pays a fixed retainer fee for a certain number of hours per month to pitch and negotiate on their behalf. Usually, a celebrity talent would opt for this type of remuneration. The talent manager may also get an agency service fee on top of the retainer which is paid by the agency or the brand when a campaign is secured for the celebrity talent.
Talent often juggle content creation, brand collaborations, personal brand management as well as FT or PT work commitments. How do you help them prioritise and manage their time effectively?
A good influencer or content creator has to be organised and hard-working. If you’re lazy, miss deadlines and can’t be bothered then the likelihood of getting your next paid campaign will be limited.
Mapping out your week is really crucial. You should have a plan in place about what organic content you are planning to publish on your channels along with what paid campaign content you are publishing. Publishing paid content day after day will soon lose the interest of your audience so it’s important to ensure you have plenty of organic content in between. If you are securing brand work via a platform they aren’t going to know what other campaigns you are working on so it’s a good idea to manage your branded content posting to space things out. And please don’t pick up conflicting campaigns thinking you can post one on one day and the competitor the next.
A talent manager can keep track of the paid campaigns, turn down any competitive campaigns during the term and keep you on track with deadlines for content approval and posting.
For our talent that work full or part time, we are fully aware of their roster and ensure we manage the realistic number of brand collaborations they can work on each week as well as the deadline expectation for content creation, approval and posting with our clients.
What’s your take on talent transitioning into mainstream media or launching their own product lines?
Every now and then a talent has transitioned from a reality show or social media to mainstream TV or radio however it really is one in a million. It’s often the right place, the right time and gets noticed by a network executive or Executive Producer. And sometimes it can happen when a talent manager either proactively pitches them for a gig or through their networks knows when casting for shows are happening.
If a talent genuinely has an interest in progressing into this space, there are a few courses and training programs that they could sign up for. This doesn’t guarantee a gig but helps refine and craft their presentation skills in this area.
Many talents, depending on their area of expertise, look to launch their own product lines. This can be in collaboration with an existing successful brand or something they choose to produce and sell on their own channels. In the case of working with a brand it could be a makeup line in conjunction with an influencer name that is well known. If you are a cook, it may be your own cookbook or if you are a fitness influencer, a line of athletic wear designed and produced by you.
When launching your own product lines you need to think very carefully about what it is you are producing and will your audience buy it? What is the cost outlay, who will produce it for you, how will you sell it, how will it get distributed? You physically would find it challenging doing everything yourself so think about the investment of time and money vs reward and profit.
When collaborating with a brand to launch a product line with your name on it some of the things you might need to think about include: how much are you getting paid for this, what is the term, is the product authentically one you would use, how will it be promoted, where is it being distributed and are you getting profit share.
There have been cases where talents have been stuck with stock that hasn’t sold, can’t keep up with demand, have huge delivery delays and disgruntled customers which often creates negative publicity. Think really hard about product lines before you jump feet first into them.
What tips and advice can you give influencers and content creators about building relationships within the industry?
Networking is key. Build up your confidence to introduce yourself, talk to people at events, follow through with new connections by connecting with them on social platforms and sending them a message and the most important key is being authentically you. I can’t tell you how many talents I meet in person that are nothing like what you see on their social media, and this could be a red flag for brands.
What about influencers and content creators moving around from agent to agent? Does this happen because they have not carefully considered the agent and vice versa or because they see what others are doing and think that they can do this for them?
Don’t jump around from manager to manager in a short period of time. It’s a long-term partnership that takes time to build and nurture. It’s a small industry and we talk. Sometimes we understand that a move is essential due to not being the right fit or not being on the same page but if you are jumping around because you want what someone else is getting then it’s likely it will not reflect well on you.
When looking to sign on with a talent manager, I would suggest you meet with 3 and ask them lots of questions and get a feel for how they work so you can make an informed decision that’s right for you.
What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to influencers and content creators looking to be signed by a talent manager?
It’s like when you are applying for a job. Your potential employer meets and interviews you, finds out why you’re looking to join their company, wants to understand your shared values and wants to understand what your goal plan is moving forward. Your conduct on socials, in the media and on TV shows also would be reviewed by a talent manager as they essentially are going to pitch you to their valued client base.
Remember what I said earlier… first impressions count so make it a great pitch!
