Identify the service and organisation
Record the business identity and independently checked contact details, then ask whether the offer is agency representation, a school, photography or another paid service. The FTC distinguishes agencies that find work from training programmes. A message praising appearance does not settle that distinction. Do not treat a social profile or a familiar client logo as proof of an authorised relationship.
Write down the money and promise
Ask for the proposed contract, commission or fee basis, any required purchase and the actual service supplied. Keep a promise of auditions separate from a promise of paid work. FTC guidance warns about guaranteed jobs and demands to pay to secure a modelling job. Do not infer that paying for classes creates representation or that a portfolio purchase guarantees an assignment.
Limit the image request
Ask why particular images or identity details are needed, who will receive them and what publication or reuse is proposed. Avoid sending sensitive documents or intimate images to an unverified contact. For a child, involve the responsible guardian and the appropriate professional and safeguarding arrangements; this sheet does not provide a child-employment or consent form.
Verify before a commitment
Compare the written offer with independently obtained information and the relevant consumer guidance. Record missing answers and take time to obtain appropriate advice. Do not let an urgent deadline replace basic verification. Keep evidence privately if you need to contact the relevant authority about a concern. This page neither endorses an agency nor determines that an individual business has committed fraud.
Read the drawing as text
Representation, classes and photography are different offers. Keep the payment and deliverable attached to the service actually proposed.
Work through an example
A fictional invitation mentions agency representation but the document offered is a paid class package. The reader records the class fee and asks whether any separate representation agreement exists. An advertised chance to audition remains different from confirmed work. No real agency, casting or income is represented.
Illustrative example; figures, people and organisations in the worked record are fictional.
The example record
Service
- Evidence
- Paid class document
- Example state
- Not representation by itself
Payment
- Evidence
- Fee and supply scope
- Example state
- Obtain full terms
Promise
- Evidence
- Possible audition
- Example state
- Not guaranteed work
Images
- Evidence
- Purpose and recipient
- Example state
- Verify before sharing
Download blank worksheet (.csv) ↗Download worked example (.csv) ↗
Keep your own record
Use the result within its scope
Use current local consumer and employment guidance for an actual agreement. A careful enquiry can expose unanswered questions without becoming an accusation or a promise of modelling success.