Canine Social Media Influencers W R I T T E N B Y : A LY S S A H E L M S , S O C I A L M E D I A CO O R D I N ATO R
The social media craze is a real thing; raise your hand if your screen time has gotten higher because of last year! You may find yourself glued to Tik-Tok and Pinterest for hours, or perhaps find yourself checking out social media pages with lots of followers and end up following them because they appeal to your interests. Influencer marketing reached an estimated ten billion dollars in 2020 and the value of the market will only exponentially expand because ANYONE can turn themselves into an influencer. I’ll simply be focusing on those who have fur and are four-legged. If you are a creative dog owner or have a unique dog who you want to get involved in the influencer world, here is your personal tip-guide to social media success, as well as some insider secrets from pros who are already slaying the game. The start-up is always the hardest… you may be skeptical of whether or not your dog-fluencer account will thrive. Every dog-fluencer’s owner is infatuated with their pet, but so is every other dog owner without a large fan base on Facebook or Instagram… So why not try? Ask yourself what you love about your dog. They uplift your spirit everyday and have opportunities to uplift others too! How are they different? What are their quirks? Maybe they have a signature pose or stick their tongue out a certain way. Every dog has its own personality and that should be the first thing to
consider when beginning a social media account for your fur baby. Find out what is so special about your dog and capture it in pictures and videos, your followers will see it too! Scroll through your camera roll right now (or after you check out the rest of the magazine), I’m sure your pets will appear pretty often. Making your dog a social media star is very time consuming and will require many (and I mean many!) photoshoots. Some dogs are born to be models, but most have to bribed with favorite treats, toys, or even humans. Kelly Trout, the owner of @maddythesharpei, says her model of a dog is just being herself when she poses for her mom, incredibly sweet, protective, and loyal. While it is great to have an Instagram, Youtube or Facebook famous pet, it is going to take a lot of effort and passion to be successful. Content must constantly be created so dog owners must be prepared to have and take plenty of pictures. Most of the famous influencers use their platform to post multiple times daily. By capturing more than one picture or video, you are capturing all the cuteness, thus keeping the attention of your followers who are always looking for more content from you and your pet. To start up, post content to one platform and if you are successful and have the time, cross pollinate and go to multiple platforms. Spreading the word about your account and staying active will help your dog-fluencer rise to success!
