Q&A 6 years ago How To Make Your Dog Instagram Famous
I don’t know about you but I just love following pups on Instagram.
They bring a huge smile to my face and while I follow maybe a dozen or so doggie insta-stars, Ella Bean was probably the first I started with. I mean… how adorable is she? Super stylish, super savy and just hands down entertaining. I first met Ella’s Mom on a press trip to Florence {pre-Instafame} and we immediately bonded over many bowls of pasta and wine. Hilary is super smart and witty, so I knew when she created an account for her cute pup that we were all in for a treat!
I recently sat down with Hilary to ask how she rapidly turned an idea into a very strong reality of making her pup, Ella, Insta-Famous!
First off, tell us a little bit about Ella?
Ella Bean is a puppy mill survivor rescued from a South Florida shelter. She’s about 10 years old, but much like a real celebrity, the older she gets, the younger she looks!
What inspired you to make Ella her own Instagram account?
I work at ShopStyle on our fashion & lifestyle influencer business and as I saw influencers rising in popularity and importance in the fashion world, I thought it would be fun to create a lifestyle & fashion account with my dog and position the account similarly to my favorite influencers, dressing her like a real fashion girl, not simply a cute dog. Turns out I wasn’t the only person to enjoy the concept!
What are your top 5 tips for starting a successful Instagram account for your dog?
- Your dog should be having fun!! Your dog MUST love to have her photo taken. If he or she is not into it, it’s not fun for anyone. Dogs are like people and some love the attention and others just want to nap. Respect your dog’s nature!
- TREATS! You are working with a live animal. In addition to respecting her personality, reward her for participating.
- Consistency: consistent posting, consistent photo quality and consistent ‘voice’. Ella’s captions help drive engagement and give insight into her personality. I have pretty strict ‘brand guidelines’ that I always adhere to, even if it means pushing back on brand partners. Ella’s fans know what to expect, I’ve even had some comment to remind me if I leave off a #BeanInBed hashtag!
- Tell a story. We all know our dogs better than anyone else. Ella is a DIVA. She is a sassy dog, she’s dominant with other dogs, she prefers to lie on cashmere blankets and faux fur to lying on the couch. All of those qualities helped me shape a narrative that tells the story of who she is. Use inherent adorable quirks to shape a persona that matches your dog.
- HAVE FUN! It’s a dog on Instagram, nothing can or should be that serious. People will look at you like you are ridiculous when you are propping your dog up at a cafe to get a shot of her with a latte. Own it!! If you take yourself seriously, this is not the job for you!
Ella is quite the well dressed pup, where do you find her cute clothes and accessories? Where are your favorite places to shop for her?
A lot much of what we dress her in is custom – I sew and copied looks that I was seeing real fashion bloggers post. I order a LOT directly from South Korea, their dog clothing is very human fashion inspired, but not a ton is sold in the US. Ella also loves cashmere from Ruby Rufus, a British brand, her amazing puffy down coats are from Italy and are basically Moncler-quality down for dogs – you can shop them at ILoveMyDog, and my newest favorite multi-brand retailer, Chewsy, just launched and Ella has done some modeling for them – they have everything! Her accessories, like her Hermes & Louis Vuitton bags are custom miniatures made by the artist Philip Nuveen. He’s incredible.
Let’s talk content creation. Do you set up specific shoots and plan out content that will be featured on Instagram?
Yes, we plan very carefully. About two months after I started the account I actually met you on a press trip to Florence. I learned SO much from watching you work and took that all back home to create a real content creation strategy. I plan shoot locations, coordinate outfits to the location and shoot with a mix of iPhone & real cameras. Sometimes life situations and random in the moment photos happen and I love mixing those in with the more styled photos. My husband creates video content for his full time job, so I’ve got a built in video team – that content takes a lot longer, but it’s so much fun!
Ella is such a natural in front of the camera! I have to know: how do you get her to stay posed and look at the camera? Any tips or tricks?
Ella really started posing on her own, to be honest. She loves the attention and her ability to obey the ‘stay’ command is amazing. To get her to look at the camera, I mix it up between shaking a bag of treats or making noises at her. She enjoys it so much now that she often starts posing on her own even when there’s no camera around!
Everyone has their own process when editing Instagram photos. What apps do you use?
Well, again I have to shout out you! You taught me about Snapseed and VSCO. I also use Retouch for fixing any imperfections and Facetune if Ella has an errant furball. I’ve recently started using Adobe Lightroom for mobile and I’m kind of obsessed with the amount of detailed control it gives, especially when shooting raw.
Is there a specific kind of picture that does particularly well for Ella on Instagram?
Yes! Everyone loves a fluffy pup in bed and we bucket those photos under hashtag #BeanInBed – they always do well. Our travel content can be found under #JetSetBean and people love to see a rescue pup living the good life! People also are very responsive to her more creative outfits. We also added a new Bean to the family in June of last year, we rescued a little Chihuahua we named Coconut. Ella’s followers adore Coconut and photos with Coconut tend to have even better engagement than Ella alone.
Ella’s had some fun partnerships and collaborations. What have been your favorite so far? Have the brands typically come to you or do you ever do any kind of outreach?
We’ve been really lucky to transcend the ‘pet’ space and achieve my goal of working with fashion & lifestyle brands. I think this proves to all influencers (human and pup) that to attract the brands you want to partner with, your organic content must be aligned with the brand’s target audience. Ella has been in campaigns with Moda Operandi, Barneys and Ralph Lauren, but my favorite was our Neiman Marcus collaboration. Ella was on the back cover of their Fall 2017 shoe & handbag catalog! That was such a highlight for me. We’ve also partnered with The Ritz Carlton to showcase the dog friendly offerings at their properties, those partnerships have been incredible experiences for both me AND Ella.
Everyone has been talking about the dreaded Instagram algorithm and how it’s been affecting their accounts. Do you have any tips or suggestions for increasing engagement and growth?
We’ve absolutely been impacted by the algorithm and it’s impacted both growth and engagement. I’ve found it really goes up and down and have decided I can’t live or die by it, I can only keep creating fun content that I’m excited to share. My biggest tips for other creators are to be creative and create original content that speaks to you. Ella Bean’s audience is animal loving, fashion and lifestyle savvy and passionate about animal welfare and rescue. They are excited for content that continues to evolve within the confines of that niche. Content that makes people laugh tends to drive followers and engagement, but I can’t always predict what will work! I posted a photo as an afterthought from a trip of Ella Bean in the bath with bubbles on her head and it exceeded my wildest expectations and to date, is still our most liked post ever. I also believe in the power of the caption. A witty caption can generate a ton of engagement.
I’ve found it really goes up and down and have decided I can’t live or die by it, I can only keep creating fun content that I’m excited to share.
Have you found using specific hashtags successful for fostering growth?Which hashtags have you found most helpful for Ella’s Instagram?
I have two niche verticals that I focus on: pet themed hashtags and fashion themed hashtags. They both do well, but hashtags around adoption and rescue seem to drive the most engagement. One thing to remember is to mix it up and only use relevant hashtags. My best guess is that Instagram wants to know you are creating unique content and using hashtags for relevant discovery only. You absolutely can drive growth. When I take the time to engage across relevant hashtags that I’m using by liking or commenting, it pays off. The caveat? No bots please! Only authentic and meaningful comments work.
Why do you think Ella’s account has been so successful?
The ‘glam’ factor of Ella’s jetset lifestyle serves as a fun and aspirational backdrop to educate about rescue and raise money for rescue and anti-pet store awareness makes the content fun AND meaningful – which I think people respond well to!
I also have a unique vantage point working with influencers for my full time job – I can observe the behind the scenes and apply that information. Example: you had a mobile photo card reader for your phone when I met you. This meant you could use your awesome camera and then immediately access, edit and upload photos so your Stories matched your posts. I ordered one the moment I saw that trick and now keep a bunch handy. I also learned from observing that it’s not all glamourous. Location scouting, outfit curating, planning content engaging with the social media community and upholding quality takes a huge amount of time and effort. I have a full time job and I have to work doubly hard to balance both. I think Ella Bean’s followers appreciate and look forward to the creativity we deliver and that has driven a lot of our success.
What’s been the coolest thing about Ella’s Instagram account so far?
Every email and DM I’ve gotten saying we inspired the person to rescue their pet makes my heart happy. Those messages inspire me to keep going. I also once got a note that someone’s mom has Alzheimer’s and the ONLY time she smiles is when her daughter shows her photos of Ella Bean. That brought me to tears! Knowing we make people smile and help animals in need is literally the best feeling ever and not something I ever expected would be part of this journey. It’s a big world and it’s rewarding to send something positive into the universe.
You’ve said “The key to being successful is always having that next goal”. Do you have any specific goals for the future of Ella’s Instagram account?
ALWAYS have a next goal! On my list: I think Ella would be an adorable guest star for Ms. Honey on @BarbieStyle, a collaboration with a camera brand, a book, and I want to create some sort of Bean themed product line…I could go on! And of course, bringing an end to puppy mills!
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