When Soap Opera actors start receiving pay cuts then you know the economy is on a slippery slope. But it is true. Yes, true…cue in the ominous organ music. According to an article in AdAge, Susan Lucci and others actors will be learning to live with less. Aren’t we all?
I suppose one could say this is where art, if you call it that, imitates reality. The loyal Soap fans are suffering, so why not the actors? Well, maybe the viewers aren’t so loyal anymore. Ratings are down. Ad revenue is way down. Not just for the networks, but affiliates are also looking at declining revenue. Not many car commercials between gripping moments of human baby. “She is having my secret, illegitimate, baby.” Maybe. But not in this car.
In some cases, due to the budget constraints resulting from this economic downturn, actors have been let go. Maybe they aren’t really fire but just laid off, until they can make a dramatic comeback in better times. “I survived the fire that killed by parakeet, but times at least are good now.”
When shows are renewed, the networks are renewing them at reduced license fees. That is the fee per episode the network pays the producer. Writing staffs have been reduced. I have a friend who is a longtime soap writer and producer, and he could vouch for that.
Some claim it is the reduction of characters or the permanent sets, which are now used to save dollars. Others claim the stories and characters are not what they should be. Some say the loss of older characters and the older storylines are causing a problem. Viewers like characters with pasts and the background history they bring to the drama. But the audience is tuning out, that is for certain.
Does this sound like your business? Being forced to cut back and lay off people? If so, as some have suggested about the Soap Operas, maybe it is time to return to a more basic business principle. Everyobdy likes service. And, as everyone likes actors who can deliver rich characters, everyone likes workers who can deliver the service. Customers not only like the service but respect you for providing it, especially in critical times when others are cutting back.
So maybe it is time to hire people. And if you do, check them out before you hire.
