Q: My friends and I love to use YouTube to make videos and share them with others, and we also spend a lot of time on MySpace. I've heard that some people are getting famous from their videos on YouTube. Can I really get discovered on YouTube?

A: I detect a hint of skepticism in your question! You're right to be a little wary. Sharing services like YouTube and MySpace (also called "social media" or "Web 2.0") are great fun, and it's easy to spend hours and hours looking at other people's funny videos. And we're all in favor of having a MySpace profile.we do! But let's be realistic and keep a few things in mind:

• There are millions and millions of videos on YouTube. Making a video that stands out is really challenging.
• Most of the videos that get noticed on YouTube are there because they are absurd, silly, gross, or have some kind of novelty value.
• YouTube is there for entertainment purposes - it is not a professional tool and it is not geared towards the entertainment industry. It is highly unlikely that casting directors are trolling the videos looking for the next big thing.

This is not to say that YouTube is useless. By all means, if you have videos of yourself that reflect well on you and might "catch on" there's no harm in posting them on MySpace or YouTube or any other sites.

If you are really looking to get noticed on the Web, here are a few hints to make your efforts worthwhile:

• Start with a great InstantCast profile. We've just added features that allow you to upload multiple pictures of yourself and add much more information about your professional experience and aspirations, and who you really are. Hundreds of casting directors belong to InstantCast, so it's a great place to establish a professional presence.
• Enhance your InstantCast profile by linking to your MySpace page. Many of our members also have a MySpace page, and there's now a place on your profile to add links to your profiles on MySpace, Friendster, Facebook, and more. That way, you can attract online fans from multiple destinations.
• Whether you stake your claim on YouTube, MySpace, InstantCast, or all of the above, remember, videos don't promote themselves. You need to get your friends to click, watch, and link to you. Then you'll begin to gain popularity, and it's the popular videos and profiles that get noticed the most.

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