Because Barnaby refuses to pose or really do anything other than exactly what he wants, I figured the theme of @TheHoundBarnaby should be uncompromising realism.
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“Eating trash, staring at wall, peeing on floor,” I wrote for his profile — a breath of fresh air in a brandscape choked with pooches cutely cocking their heads at the camera or sitting at tables laden with Champagne flutes.
I told my plan to Loni Edwards, the founder of the Dog Agency, a firm that represents top Instagram pets.
Bad idea, she said. @TheHoundBarnaby needed to have “interests” that humans could relate to.
“If you’re trying to turn him into an influencer that brands are going to want to work with, the more humanized the better,” Ms. Edwards said. “For example, my dog’s themes are fashion, travel and charities.” Her dog, @chloetheminifrenchie, has 170,000 followers.
“Things that are unique help, too,” she added. “A lot of dogs have accidents and like to stare at things.”
Well. This was going to be tough. But all I could do was work with what Barnaby gave me.
We went for a walk. He grabbed a plastic wrapper — his favorite streetfood — before I could yank him away. Click! The wrapper said, “Oven Delights Strawberries and Cream Danish.” Product placement! I posted the photo and waited for sponsorship offers to roll in. I pictured a truck pulling up to our house with thousands of plastic snack wrappers. Nothing.
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Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/20/insider/meet-my-dog-barnaby-aspiring-instagram-pup-fluencer.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
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