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Why don't models reply?
Is it just me (complaining again) or do other photographers get no respect - or at least no replies - from a lot of internet models? You send out email and wait...and wait...and wait...days...weeks...forever... Many systems have an indicator which shows if email has been read. Sometimes it's not even read (and that's by models who have recently visited the site and appear to be active), sometimes it's read and not answered. I'd have thought that if you post a profile, you'd be looking for responses. It's easy enough to reply even if you're not interested in the offer. Stuff like: "Sorry, I'm not doing any TFP right now" "Sounds interesting but travel is difficult for me and you're too far away for me to get to easily" "Thanks, but I don't do lingerie shots" "Sorry, I'm booked up through August" "Sorry, but I'm only available on Tuesday evenings" "Sorry, but my minimum rate is $150/hr plus travel and I don't take bookings under 2hrs" or even "Sorry, thanks for your interest, but looking at your portfolio you don't do the type of work I'm interested in doing right now". Don't they realize that half the business is communication? If you don't reply you'll likely never get another offer from that photographer - then again, maybe that's what they want. If you do reply, you might be be put on the "responsible and responsive" list for future work offers. Of course some models DO respond quickly to email, but they seem to be in a minority on sites similar to this one (i.e unscreened, unrepresented models). I guess it's to be expected, but I'm still a bit suprised at how common it is. At least one website has a ranking system based partly on whether a user (photographer or model) replies to received email. It's not a bad idea. Jun 08 05 05:10 pm Link Maybe they just don't like your photos. and they don't feel like responding to each of the 50 crappy photographers each week that contact them. Jun 08 05 05:16 pm Link This again? They could either be too busy to reply, unsure how to tell you you suck in a poilte way or the email never reached them for whatever reason (even if it appears that it did). Or they could just be flakes. The same goes for photographers. You guys don't reply either. Jun 08 05 05:21 pm Link I reply. Even if I have to tell someone to "fuck off" in a nice way, I reply. I have a list of models who DNR to an inquiry. Keeps me from hitting them up a second time. Jun 08 05 05:25 pm Link When I get replies that are serious, they are usually within 24-48 hours tops. If I e-mail and get no reply within that time period...I cross them off my list, and move on. If they reach me later, I'll put em back on the list. Jun 08 05 05:26 pm Link Posted by theda: Oh!! Jun 08 05 05:29 pm Link Posted by Monsante Bey: Nothing creepier than someone who sends you five e-mails without a single response. If I were considering working with someone who contacted me once, repeated attempts to contact me would def. turn me off and prevent me from even considering working with this person. Obsessive behaviour is a big warning sign for me to stay away. Jun 08 05 05:29 pm Link Posted by Lapis: Posted by Monsante Bey: Nothing creepier than someone who sends you five e-mails without a single response. If I were considering working with someone who contacted me once, repeated attempts to contact me would def. turn me off and prevent me from even considering working with this person. Obsessive behaviour is a big warning sign for me to stay away. To be fair, sometimes folks forget they've contacted you. Until I started using Gmail, and can now search someone's name or OMP/MM number, I think I inadvertantly sent a couple of non-responsive photographers more than one email, simply because I forgot I'd done so a few months before. Jun 08 05 05:33 pm Link Going out of town. Contacted one model. Prompt, courteous response. Shoot is set up, so far. Wrote to several photographers, inquiring about studio possibilities. No response. With no expectations, you don't get disappointed. Jun 08 05 05:35 pm Link Let me add a codicil to last comment I made. People who contact me, and then after getting no response in 24 hours send 5 more e-mails in the next 24-48 hours, they scare me. An e-mail, every other month or so...I tell them my rates. Jun 08 05 05:36 pm Link I only contact a model once. I assume if they don't respond they're not interested in working with me and they just don't have the courtesy to let me know. I reply to all models who send me email, even if it's just to say that I don't have any work for them or to explain why I can't offer them TFP. Sometimes email will just strike me as "odd" and I gdon't get a good vibe from it, so in that case I'll make up some excuse why I can't work with that person. I don't want to offend them, but they do deserve the courtesy of a reply. I guess I'd have to say that if a model doesn't want to be contacted 5 times by the same photographer (which is starting to get a bit creepy), she might have done better to say "No thanks" the first time. Jun 08 05 05:49 pm Link ok, looking at your profile, you suggest you will do portfolio shoots for beginners..looking at your gallery, i dont see a portfolio type image in there.. mostly glam and nude.. so who are you asking for what style? if i was looking for commercial models and had a gallery full of glamour, i wouldn't expect to hear back from anyone..if i was looking for glam models..then i might expect to hear back..but i would also expect they reply with thier rates, cause unless your nationally published, your the type of guy thats hiring online models.. personally, i dont contact models, but i can see why you get the response that you do... Jun 08 05 05:50 pm Link Doug - thanks for the feedback. Actually I agree with you. I think the images I have posted here do need better editing and your comments are constructive and useful. Jun 08 05 05:57 pm Link Personally I don't see why models and photographers alike can't copy and paste some canned responses for those they don't wish to work with, regardless of the reason. It's, as has been stated, just a courtesy and at least lets the other party know their email has been received. Off topic... Funny response Hugh and I bet Theda like the smack on the booty... :-) And, does anyone else find it funny that this guy goes by f4 Photography and shoots Canon?? I mean, the F4 was a Nikon camera!! Put away the wet noodles as I know he's refering to aperature, but why not f8!!! Ok, it just tickled my warped funnybone and I thought I'd share.. I'll leave now..... :-) Jun 08 05 06:00 pm Link I actually got this email from a model in Washington State (I'm in Alabama): "Hi Doug, im amber omp number is ****** i would loveto do a shoot with u sometime would u pay for me and my escort like hotel tickets food and a car thanks" I didn't reply yet because I've been laughing too hard... Jun 08 05 06:01 pm Link To me, it seems silly to make the blanket statement, "Internet models don't reply". Granted, you said "a lot", but that's still a rather general statement. It can take photographers a while to respond, too. It seems to me like these things take a while. It doesn't hurt to be patient. I'm not sure if it's average or not, but I've received responses a week and a half later and I'm going to be working with those people in the next week or so. Some people are just busy, rather than flaky. And regarding those who just plain don't want to work with you, I find that a lot of people don't like confrontation. Rather silly, really.  Jun 08 05 06:08 pm Link Posted by DRowan: amazingly enough..i got a very simlar email "refferal" from another online model networking community..she even called me Doug...wait..ok..i guess its not a form letter... Jun 08 05 06:10 pm Link Posted by DRowan: You should say "Sure, $20 should cover it." lol Jun 08 05 06:10 pm Link Well, my two cents. I've known of top models getting from 600 to 1,800 e-mails per day. And like us mortals, there's the "Viagra", "Cialis", Adobe for $89.95", "enlargements" and "second mortgages". Stir in several hundred "Dayum! yo so hott!!", and several offers to hook up. NOW, it's time to add a few serious photo offers. (You have to remember this is on a DAILY basis). You can see how overwhelming it becomes. It's all to easy for things to get overlooked. Most models have an unpublished mail for business, (the trick is finding it). Just don't take it personally if you don't get a response the first time. If it's a model you really want to shoot with, perseverance is the key. Anything worth having is worth working for!!! - CH Jun 08 05 06:38 pm Link Posted by emac: Basically. Jun 08 05 06:59 pm Link You know I gota chuckle at having to even bother put this in the FAQ: Q:Will I be safe? A: Of course! All shoots are conducted in a fully professional manner. You're welcome to bring a cell phone and call a friend at pre-arranged times (or have them call you). Anywho the biggest problem I *might* see with a model looking at your portfolio, is the lack of variety in the shots, they're all typical headshots/standing shots.... but they all look the same in some manner or another.... Jun 08 05 07:05 pm Link Most of the models I contact don't reply, whether it be through OMP, this site or some other message board. I have also gotten some very enthusiastic responses, and some polite (and not-so-polite) declines. One of my favorite responses - I actually had a "model" from OMP with only webcam pics tell me she was asking $200 per hour. When I was done laughing, I informed her that I've worked with published models who didn't ask for half that much. I love it when inexperienced amateurs who nobody's ever heard of think they can demand as much as someone like Erica Campbell, who's shot for Playboy, Hustler, and a slew of other men's magazines, and has a huge internet following and actually ranks in the search engines... Or maybe that was just her way of saying she didn't want to work with ME. Ah, well, just move on to the next model and hope for a better response. Jun 09 05 12:22 am Link I did make another post kind of like this about photographers not replying back after they ask for a models rate. Guess we both are a little curious why both parties don't reply back. Jun 09 05 12:25 am Link Posted by * Visual Mindscapes *: Posted by emac: Basically. YUP! Jun 09 05 03:56 am Link I understand where you're coming from, but I think if someone took the time to even notice and write to you. You should message back a simple answer. Thats not hard to do right? Jun 09 05 04:04 am Link It actually takes an effort to reply to each photographer and make a decision whether their work is what you want for your portfolio. If you like their style. But it is really worth it to reply if you are unsure. And some girls get a million emails a day! Hey, it's true, and you just have to try to stand out as much as possible right (photogs and models)? So yeah, I am trying to respond more to my emails so write me guys! Oregon is not so far away .............. .......................... .................... ..................... ......only that far lol Jun 09 05 04:33 am Link Some time ago, I've had some problem with my email account and I did lost everything people sent me in for two weeks [this also happened on OMP, it didnt redirect me the emails and I've write the photographers back with some delay  , which was quite embarrassing]. I felt terribly ashamed, I've put a notice on my website stating I didn't get the email and I'm sure not everyone read it and thought I was a noob. Sigh. I agree: both models and photographers should *always* reply even if not interested. 'Some days delay' is still ok [things happen] but *ignoring* requests it's not only not professional, but not polite. There's just one kind of email I don't bother of: sexual related and gross ones. But I don't think I'm wrong doing that, right? Delilah Jun 09 05 05:10 am Link Remember that these online forums are just another form of advertising. In advertising a 2%-3% return on number of people is average. So for evey 100 people that see these messages, on average 2 or 3 will reply. That's why you see GM, Ford, Heinekin, Miller, etc... CONSTANTLY advertising, even though we already know what products they make. Oliver Cole Jun 09 05 05:44 am Link I guess I don't expect them all to reply, only the ones who are interested. They've got to get tons of request every day and that's on top of the hundres of spam messages. Amber had a post like this about photographers not replying when a model replies with pricing. I stated then that I thought the model's reply ended the conversation. Based on feedback I got in that thread I am now going to give models the courtesy of a reply. Jun 09 05 08:20 am Link Well from a models point of view, I sort thru at least 30 emails a day. And I love getting mail because it means I am marketing myself properly. However, a lot of newbies dont treat this as a business and dont have business manners. If someone takes the time to write, I can take a minute to respond either way. Its just PROFESSIONAL courtesy. Jun 09 05 08:30 am Link I'm a photographer (well, novice amateur one), and a mom of a model ... so I have twice the emails to sift thru on a daily basis. My daughter (MM 229) is 15, gets tons of emails a week, photogs asking for tfp's, tests or paid shoots, I look thru every portfolio, and if I don't feel the photog is at the level to improve her book, I reply, thanks, here are her rates, and send a link to her rates page, 99% never respond past that, they just want another girl to shoot. As a photographer, I am constantly being emailed by models I have no interest in shooting (they're just not my style) so I politely send them my rates, same thing, never hear from them, if they push the tfp, I have a pretty deterring form letter I send, 10 questions going in depth why they want to model etc ... make them work for it ... if they are serous (only 1% are) I'll take the time & give them a couple of hours of shooting. The models I contact 75% response rate to my emails, all resulting in shoots (I don't approach many) every one who emails either one of us does get a reply, always polite, not always ending in a shoot, but that's life. Right now I'm waiting to hear from two photogs about tests on my daughter (36 hrs & holding), and every model I've emailed in the past week, has responded within 12 hours (and I sent to a couple of brand new, web cam, models on that other site) Jun 09 05 08:52 am Link Yea, some photographers don't reply either !!! It's a two way street. Even after I e-mail them SEVERAL times. So I figure they're too busy to work with me and I just let it go. Life isn't worth getting worried !!! Be happy !!! Jun 09 05 09:07 am Link Posted by Venus: I hear that! I figure, why bother a third or fourth time? There are plenty of photographers that are more than happy to oblige, no worries! Jun 09 05 10:01 am Link I reply... oh wait... I am neither model or photographer... Jun 09 05 10:05 am Link Reese, Good one, but we know you have strong opinions anyway! :-) Jun 09 05 10:15 am Link Posted by NinaS: Hm. I've seen that from other photographers, too. That does not happen to me very often, although it's a compliment when it does, and I'm happy to respond. Jun 09 05 10:33 am Link i like to have my photos taking. and i have never stood anyone up.. you come here and we can shoot but i have been stood up by photographers kristy Jun 09 05 10:45 pm Link I always reply. It's just common courtesy. I also agree with what Nina was saying - often I reply with a few questions. A significant percentage of the time the questions are either ignored or glossed over. That's how I know if someone's serious or just a CWS. And I don't inquire of many models, just due to my time, but when I do it seems like a mixed bag (like you all have said - same with photogs, I guess) - some reply and some don't. In fact, just last week I saw a new model on OMP (believe it or not) in my area who had a look I was excited about. Dropped her a note. And this is what I heard: http://www.citrano.com/crix.mp3 Jun 09 05 10:54 pm Link This is a question on replying I asked of another photographer on another site. I like a quick honest response but I understand the levels where on both sides that is not always possible. Especially when some people will not take no for an answer. this is it.. Some others seem to have your view so I am not trying to pick on you. Anyone with a similiar view to his is welcome to respond. But you wrote, " If, I sent you an email asking you to model for me, And you replied, "I am sorry but at this time I am only accepting paid offers as my schedule is too booked. However, If in the future, I am available, I will let you know.", Even if you have no intention of ever getting back to me, I walk away with a sense of "Wow, This is a model that knows what she is doing. If I get back something like. "No thanks. I am like, Hmmm, ok. She is not the type of model I want to deal with anyways." So you find it more "professional" if someone lies to you. I understand the idea of politeness. But the person took the time to give you a honest response. The truth may hurt but I have a hard seeing where it is unprofessional to do so. The responder did not state that she thinks you work is terrible but just "No thanks." I also do not understand this statement. "It is all about perception on both ends. Also, If you send to a photog that has TFP only in his profile, and then tell him you want pay only when he responds with a TFP offer to you (I have had numerous times) you begin to look really bad." ?Why is it impolite to respond stating that you work for money? That is unprofessional and makes a person look bad? ?Do you want more lies? How is the model to respond if she does only do this for pay, how about a photographer, what is the difference??? I am sorry but I do not get it. Jun 09 05 11:00 pm Link Why don't models reply to e-mails? For the same damn reasons (excuses!) that photographers don't reply to e-mails! Jun 09 05 11:40 pm Link |
