I Created an Instagram Account for My Dog to Help My Clients. Here's Why.

My dog is the king. No, really, his name is Elvis, so it technically does make him a king. He's handsome, has human-like eyes, and stole my heart from the day we unexpectedly brought him home. But does he need his own Instagram account? Hell no! That would be ridiculous, especially seeing as I don't even have one for myself. Right? Well, I'm actually going to split some rather fluffy hairs on this one. Because I did create an Instagram account for Elvis. Not because I wanted to show the world how much more awesome my dog is than yours (he is, though) but because I realized that a large part of my job is helping clients develop the content and communication strategies for their brand, including their social media outreach. And, I guess I felt like something of a fraud telling them how to grow an Instagram account without even owning one myself. 

So, I did what any rational, level-headed #muthafluffa would do, and set one up. For my dog. Oh the fun we’ve had. Elvis took off. Thanks to my husband’s behind-the-lens skills, my penchant for finding humor during morning, erm, bathroom breaks, and Elvis’ own ridiculous personality, we’ve grown at a rate far faster than my own account would have done. Now, when I say “took off,” I don’t mean Kardashian status. But we did get past 1000 followers in just over a month, and it’s growing every day. More importantly - and as I learnt first hand with brand-building while helping to create www.mizulife.combehind the scenes with its co-founder (my husband) - there is nothing that you can read in a book or course or blog post that compares to actually doing something yourself. Hands-on, mistake-rich experience trumps all other kinds. And that’s what I knew I needed with Instagram.

So, I did what any rational, level-headed #muthafluffa would do, and set up one for my dog instead. 

Now, it has created certain challenges in my life. For example, how much do I stay in character when commenting on friends’ posts? Sometimes it’s really funny to imagine what Elvis would say to them and respond like only a labradoodle on his way to internet stardom knows how. But then there’s other times that I actually want to say something sincere, and it comes out a little creepy from a dog’s mouth. 

"So, I did what any rational, level-headed #muthafluffa would do, and set up one for my dog instead."

And then there’s the very real issue of content creation. Anyone who works in today’s world of digital marketing knows how hard it is to create enough visual content for the pace at which it is consumed, and it’s something I help my clients work around on a regular basis. Well, I have a confession...Elvis’ Instagram account is no different, and because of that there will now be a serious dearth of photos of my two little boys in the 2017 family photo album that I'm going to have to fill with shots of Elvis. Sad, but true. And, as much as my family overseas love the fact we have the best, cutest, most intelligent dog in the world (sorry everyone else,) they still want to see how my boys look once in a while…but in order to keep up with his Insta-demands we only have time to take photos of the dog. But in all seriousness, I have applied similar tactics to building enough content for his account to those I recommend to clients so as to avoid the pitfall of post, post, post...nothing.

 

Creating enough content for a well-curated social strategy is a challenge, and one that needs to be addressed before creating editorial calendars and committing to frequency. It's not just the "What is our voice", "What is our messaging strategy?" kind of questions that need to be answered upfront, but the very real, "How are we going to accumulate enough high-quality, on-brand images (and videos) to keep up with the pace we are setting?" question too.

Anyone who works in today’s world of digital marketing knows how hard it is to create enough visual content for the pace at which it is consumed 

I could run through all the elements of Instagram that became more real to me once I was trying to build a following on an account I owned rather than just running accounts for companies, but really the point I am trying to emphasize here is that when working with clients, the best way to help them is to put yourself in their shoes, learn some hard lessons along the way, and talk from real-life experience as much as possible.

Maybe you’ll even get your own pet endorsement proposal like I did this week. 

Or maybe you’re just looking for an excuse to create an Instagram account for your dog because you’re slightly obsessed with him. (Just saying’.)

Either way, there's nothing to lose by getting your hands dirty in the wide and wonderful world of content once in a while.

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(And next time you're scrolling through Instagram, check out @elvisfromencinitas. He may be a little irreverent at times, but he'll make you smile)