Find, Use, and Shorten "Your Resume Link" -- Promote your Multimedia Resumes' Shareable URL!

In addition to appearing in Back Stage's online Talent Database, your "Public" and "Confidential" resumes will  appear on your shareable "My Resumes" page via your unique "Promote Your Resumes" link, which you can use to showcase your BackStage.com resumes via a unique URL (your resume's web-address will be based upon your username, so please make sure that you have a memorable username, preferably something that involves your real name or stagename).

Read below to find out more about Your Resume Link, along with tips and tricks on how to get the most out of it and how to shorten it so that it's easier to remember and share:

Your personalized resume link is a secret until you either link to it from other websites or manually reveal it to others (e.g., if you send the link to people via email; or if you submit the link to search engines like Google). However, once revealed, anyone will be able to view your resume (and all attached media items) on this page, even if they don't have a BackStage.com account -- bringing you even more exposure.

Here's an example of a good public-resume-promotion landing page (click on the View/Eye button next to the resume-listing to view the full resume, including all of the resume's photos, videos, and links): http://casting.backstage.com/resumes/link.asp?actor=SRIGORDON

There are a variety of ways that you can promote the shareable version of your "My Resumes" page and/or create shorter links that point to your shareable "My Resumes" page.

For instance, you can use free link-shortening websites to create shorter links that point to your page. Free services like TinyUrl.com will let you use your BackStage.com "Promote Your Resume" URL to create a short, customized link.

As an example, here's a "TinyURL" created for actress-model Kara Willits that goes directly to her Multimedia Resume on BackStage.com: http://tinyurl.com/KaraWillits.

Or purchase a personalized website domain name using a service like GoDaddy.com -- for under $10/year you could buy a web-domain name like YourName.com, skip all of their options for purchasing web-storage and web-design tools, and then quickly set up the website domain so that it automatically redirects everyone to your BackStage.com "Promote Your Resume" URL. That way you get the benefits of having your own very-easy-to-remember website address to promote your Multimedia Resume without having to actually design or host a full site of your own.

"Private" resumes, on the other hand, are hidden from your personal "Promote Your Resumes" page AND they're hidden from the BackStage.com Talent Database. The "Private" setting is useful for actors and performers that need extra privacy and/or resumes that are still in rough-draft mode (e.g., you haven't uploaded at least one photo and/or your basic details to the resume yet). You can still submit your "Private" resumes to casting/job notices -- your "Private" Multimedia Resume will be visible to any projects that you submit the resume to directly.

Quick Tip: For the best experience using BackStage.com's Casting, Jobs, and Multimedia Resume Tools, we recommend the free Firefox 3 web browser.   

Related Links:

• Article: "Back Stage Upgrades Its Multimedia Résumé System" (more info, tips, tricks, and examples)
• Help Topic: Problems Viewing Resumes, Videos, Photos, Notices, Etc. -- Web Pages Failing to Open, Resume Tools Not Working, and Log-In Errors
• Multimedia Resume HELP (all resume help topics and FAQ, including photo-resizing and video-embedding help)

• Creating & Editing Multimedia Resumes

• Email Your Resumes - Submit Multimedia Resumes and Cover Letters to Casting Notices -- And Apply to Projects

   

   

-- Luke Crowe, National Casting Editor, Back Stage