How to turn your pet into a social media superstar

The era of the pet celebrity is upon us. It’s hard to scroll through any social media platform these days without coming across a cute/funny/heart-warming photo, video or article about an animal. And it’s easy to see why. Cute animals make people happy. And in some cases, it’s making their owners very rich!

A recent study found that dog owners post about their pet on social media six times a week. If that’s the case then it makes sense to create their own account for them doesn’t it? It also found that dog owners watched canine videos or looked at doggy photos about three times a week so there is certainly a high demand for cute and fluffy content!

And we’re not kidding when we say this is big business, there are even agencies popping up to represent those with the biggest followers.  In New York, The Dog Agency represents accounts like Tuna Melts My Heart and Crusoe the Dachshund as well as managing their own accounts like Cats of Instagram, which has nearly 9 million followers. The pets on their books can earn as much as $15,000 (£11,000) for one post and their clients have partnered with brands like Nikon, Google and Dyson.

And it’s not all about the dogs either, in 2014 it was reported that Grumpy Cat and her owner banked £64 million from movie & sponsorship deals, books and even their own product line in association with Primark and Target.

So, where do you start? Here are our top tips for social media stardom!

1.Be social!

It’s not called ‘social’ media for nothing you know! Get involved in the community. Interact with other social media pet owners using popular local hashtags and be generous with your likes and comments. This will encourage others to visit your profile and build your following.

2.Post good content

Nobody wants to see a dark, blurry photo of anything, let alone of your pet. You don’t need to rush out and buy a fancy camera but your images will have to have a certain level of style to them. Tap into your pet’s individual personality to make funny, engaging content that will make your account memorable.

3.Use hashtags

If you’re using Instagram to propel your pet into social media stardom, be sure to use plenty of hashtags to attract new followers and extend your reach. You can look at the hashtags that other similar, popular accounts are using and use these as a starting point. Try to mix it up and not to use the same hashtags all the time though as Instagram sees this as ‘spammy’ and may block your account.

Hopefully with these tips at hand you have everything you need to turn your pet into a super celebrity! We’ll look out for them on the cover of Vogue!

Fri Dec 29 2017