FITNESS MODEL MANAGEMENT INDUSTRY INSIDER 101 BY DTEFLON
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FITNESS MODELS WHAT IS YOUR PLAN AFTER COMPETING?
So you just competed in multiple WBFF, IFBB, OR NPC fitness shows,
You didn’t place but have spent a fortune on diet supplements, competition suits, trainers, registration fees, travel hotel, and food and your contest is over, so now what? What is your plan?
How are you keeping your name in the game?
Be a walking billboard!
This blog was inspired by the many emails I receive seeking advice on what it took for me to launch 🚀 the careers of many models and talents I have worked with over the years especially of former First Lady of AE Aylen Alvarez
Aylen was the Alliance Entertainment Spokesmodel from 2000-2006 and most have asked me over the years what was the secret to creating and building the million dollar brand for her that allowed her to retire from the modeling industry but make such an impact right out the gate at such a young age and build a global following
I won’t give away all my secrets for free on the work it took and what the formula is to becoming a brand and not just a model you will have to sign up for my workshops for that but what I will say is when I discovered her at the young age of 18 when I was living in Miami and she was working at a local bar and we happened to live only a few blocks away from each other by chance.
Aylen had just started competing and we were building a older brother little sister relationship at that time and helping her navigate through the waters of the biz as she barely spoke any english as she was fresh to the United States from Cuba 🇨🇺
After doing a few shows she reached a point like many new models do that she wanted more and one day she just asked me the question I still get today is what one should do after they have finished competing. She asked me to mentor and manage her and we went to work on executing the perfect marketing plan and creating I believe the first true blue print before social media really became a thing
I decided it would be the perfect time to expand my company in areas that I really hadn’t in combining her beauty and sex appeal into a market that had never seen anything like her at that time and then with my business background in the entertainment world made us at that time the most unstoppable team
I decided from that point once she agreed to let me manage and guide her instead of investing $$ in these pointless shows for exposure we created our own in investments into the Brand and created a marketing campaign that at that time was unmatched and by the time she was 20 she was the first model to ever get 40 covers of magazine’s features in major publications in a year that led to her getting called to audition for WWE which I had been working for at the time and they had just launched the diva search and what better way to get her face known more regardless if she won or not.
I knew promos and speaking wouldn’t be her strong point which you need to be able to have more than just a look for sports entertainment but the exposure alone I knew would open an audience to her that never ever would have known who she was if she hadn’t entered which led her to other opportunities within the industry .
After 10 years when we started on this ride and her being the face of AE for 6 I felt we had reached a point where the steam had died down and she had goals of settling down and her priorities shifted in what she wanted career wise,
I knew it was time that it was time to move on and l felt we had accomplished what we set out to do and I knew I had accomplished my goal that I wanted for her so I decided it was time to bring in a fresh face
So I said if I can build this I can do this again as I now had the confidence from the success and the failures and mistakes along the way that’s I knew we could take this to the next level and then the AEMT brand was really born and myself and my team has been dedicated since to helping and managing and building of the development of new talent in all areas of the entertainment and modeling all over the world.
It also made me realized that shit I was kind of good at this management when everyonne kept reaching out wanting to work with me as they saw how much care and investment I did into her and how protective I was of her.
I had many models at our expos had said they wish they had that type of relationship with there agents or managers that family feel like you do at AEMT who really care and are present for their clients then it just being about money.
To me I still stand by if I want someone to be that way for me and if they aren’t in personal we could never be doing biz cause I know they won’t have my best interest. And a lot of these agencies and companies don’t have the same approach we do and for that I’m glad
To be honest though the funny thing is even though this model management was more of my ex girl dream who who I ran the management division thing with who was a fitness model and I saw all the drama that came along with the industry.
I really didn’t want no part of it as I already had my own career outside the biz but she kept getting tired of people coming to me for advice on the biz and me giving my advice for free she said start making people pay for your time if they really want that knowledge and expertise and I guess I needed a new challenge for myself and I believed always in what my mentor Sydney Pollack said to me was when it comes time to pay it forward so that and I wanted to for her cause I believed in her and saw a bit of myself in Aylen
But here we are still going strong going into 30 yrs so I guess she was right but now I have a team that helps take some of the weight off I can choose now more who I want to invest my time and energy into cause thanks to social media everyone wants to be famous but nobody wants to do the real work anymore,
It amazes me still to now how fitness athletes will dedicate so much time to preparing for their contest, from their meals, training, suit selection, hair, makeup, tanning, you name it yet the day they finish competing as well the thousands of dollars they spend to be on a stage for a few minutes to enhance the brand of the ifbb or wbff for just to say I brought my best package but I didn’t win 🥇 only to do it all over again and again then invested that time money and effort into there own brand .
MOST IF NOT ALL THEY HAVE NO PLAN especially for a pro card that means nothing more than a personal accomplishment but after that it doesn’t do anything for them as the industry is not what it was in the 80s and 90s where it was a lucrative payday for winning the competitions on stage .
Most I I realized have Just dreams with no real action …
Whether you placed 1st or 15th, it doesn’t matter, so now what? What is your action plan?
AMRIT DHALIWAL NANCY DINNINO LYZABETH LOPEZ DTEFLON @ALLIANCE ENTERTAINMENT MODEL EXPO
I have always stressed the importance that success plays off stage as a fitness model to off the set until you become an actual working model are important to act as a catalyst to your marketing endeavors off stage and offset, it should not impede your plans to cultivate business or marketing opportunities.
If you are serious about turning your passion into a career you need to put the same commitment that you do toward your competition prep toward your marketing and business goals.
The reality is, the stage is a great place to win some hardware and get noticed by photographers but the financial gain is next to nothing unless you are in the top 3 at the most prestigious events such as the Arnold or the Olympian.
Just because you are a “Pro” doesn’t mean you will be summoned with an influx of working opportunities.
In most cases, you have gone way beyond your budget to pay for your competition preparation and now are spending most of your time trying to pay off credit cards to get back on track.
Ladies, if you are willing to spend over $1000 for a Figure or Fitness suit, how about putting that toward your long term goals of branding yourself.
Look at the larger picture.
My suggestion is to identify your niche and mark your talent, set your goals, and attempt to market yourself according to, in turn, generate business for yourself. It’s all about what you can offer to the business of the sport. Two main ingredients are needed to have a successful career.
First, you must be your own self-marketer and own walking billboard.
Secondly, you must use your personality and life skills to cultivate good working relationships with industry personnel that will respect you on a more professional and intellectual level, aside from them viewing you as “just another athlete” who competes. Certainly, I wish more people in this sport would understand this.
Having said that marketing and creating business opportunities for yourself are much more valuable for you and your fitness career.
Develop your action plan once you have defined your goals and seek guidance from other industry professionals or those who have succeeded in their personal marketing business endeavors.
Depending on your goals whether it be related to acquiring sponsorship endorsements, building your personal business, gaining exposure, getting into the magazines, writing a book, developing a product, or simply branding yourself,
Some of the questions you need to ask yourself FIRST IF YOUR SERIOUS ABOUT TAKING YOUR CAREER TO THE NEXT LEVEL IS are:
What research do I need to do?
What companies do I want to work with? Who do I need to contact?
What value and skills do I bring to a company?
Who do I need to build alliances with?
How can I generate an income? What services and products do I want to offer?
How do I cultivate a dedicated fan base and clientele?
What do I need to do to brand myself?
Do I have the proper marketing materials and promotional items in place?
Think about it …if you are willing to put the hard work and commitment toward cultivating a killer physique then why not shift your focus and energy toward something that can give you further personal recognition, exposure, and financial gain. After all, you are your own walking billboard.
What do you want your billboard to say!
I continue to represent some of the most known faces today and along with my team at Alliance Entertainment and AEMT Management
Let me know if you are interested as I offer several different packages depending on your needs. Social media & Brand Management is the wave of today, tomorrow, and the future.
It can take you as well as your business you or your Brand to the next level if done and maintained right. So if you think this is you and your ready to stop wasting time doing these pointless fitness shows spending money on someone else rather than investing that money into your own brand…Then contact me today by leaving a comment below and I will get back to you
Visit us at www.aemtmanagement.com and www.aemtmodels.com
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