Welcome to the ultimate destination for dog enthusiasts and social media mavens alike. At Dogfluencers, we're passionate about showcasing the best and brightest in the world of four-legged fame.
Whether you're looking for adorable photos, heartwarming stories, or expert tips on how to turn your own pup into a social media star, we've got you covered.
Today we got the honor of interviewing Katie (Raymond James's Human). You can find a direct link to their Instagram here.
Here is their story:
Can you tell us about your journey to becoming a dog influencer? What inspired you to start sharing your dog's adventures on social media?
Castellvi: My sister in law started an Instagram for her pup (shoutout to @willow_the_best_gsd) and convinced me to start one. I’m so grateful I kept up with his accounts since I have made some of my closest friends through his accounts.
What do you think sets your dog apart from other dogs on social media? What makes them unique or particularly interesting to your followers?
Castellvi: I don’t think my dog’s account is anything special. And realistically, he probably hasn’t been set apart from others; I feel like he gets very lost in the border collie world, specifically, since he isn’t much of a “trick dog” like most border collies. I do think his content is funny. It’s all lighthearted on his socials. Nothing is ever taken seriously in the Raymond James world and I think that’s how it should be on the internet.
How do you come up with ideas for your dog's posts and content? Do you have a specific creative process?
Castellvi: Honestly, Raymond’s content has virtually zero rhyme or reason. I post content on his accounts completely selfishly. I tend to stick to posting videos I find funny. If I like the content, then onto his accounts it goes. If I edit something and then end up not liking it, it stays in the drafts for months until I rewatch it and decide to post it. Of course, those are always the videos that get a TON of traction on his pages.
Have you ever faced any challenges or negativity on social media, and how have you dealt with it?
Castellvi: Oh my god. The amount of hate comments my dog has gotten on his page is CRAZY, especially when you take into account that he has around 3k followers. I truly can’t take any of these comments seriously. At the end of the day, there’s a random person on the internet leaving a hate comment on a DOG’S social media account. Like let’s truly think about what is happening here. You can’t let people like that take up real estate into your head. They have bigger problems then my dog, clearly.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to start their own dog influencer account or share their dog on social media?
Castellvi: POST YOUR CONTENT 👏🏼 Absolutely do not take anything seriously on social media. People never want to post their negative moments and you have to keep that in mind. Don’t compare yourself to your friend’s accounts. You’re your own person (and dog) it’s your little world. Post selfishly and happily.
How has your dog influenced your life outside of social media?
Castellvi: The amount of genuine friendships I have made through Raymond’s world is insane to me. I found a girl in my community who was also a medical student like me, running an Instagram for her dog, in my city. I reached out to her and we’re best friends who bounce off the trials and tribulations of being a dog mom while in medical school. Shoutout to the queen @riley.the.shiba and her mom Nikki. We are genuine friends; through Instagram accounts we made through our dogs. After she moved away, I went to visit her and Riley in Chicago to go see Beyonce (Riley wasn’t allowed to go, she was probably pretty upset about that). I think about it often that if my sister-in-law didn’t convince me to make this account I wouldn’t have ever met Nikki, outwardly the best thing to come out of Raymond’s Instagram.
Can you tell us about a particularly memorable or funny moment you've had with your dog during one of your photo shoots or adventures?
Castellvi: Ray and I are from Tampa, which has a pretty big dog community. There’s an Instagram account called @thedogmomsoftampabay that coordinates a lot of activities like pack walks or markets for dog moms. This group decides to make a calendar featuring dogs in the city and giving proceeds of sales to charity. Raymond was chosen to have the month of September and his pictures were ADORABLE (I might be biased. Who’s to say really?!). It was in front of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stadium, which is what my dog is ~loosely~ named after. It was Raymond James in front of Raymond James. Very meta. Very Tampa and I loved every single second of it.
What is your favorite thing about being a dog influencer?
Castellvi: I’d have to say never having any storage on my phone. No, in all actuality, I feel like it’s going to sound crazy: I truly believe this has made my dog and I closer. Realistically, I know it makes no sense, because he has no idea his accounts exists, but I swear it’s true. Maybe he does know the content we make exists, because why else would he be so willing to put up with SO much nonsense I have him do in videos. These silly little videos have had him work with brands we organically use and I do think that’s probably one of the cooler things that has come from this account. Also, I just love that being a dog influencer it gives me more of an excuse to talk about my dog, as if I needed anymore reason to talk about that little freckled cutie.
Lastly, what's next for you and your dog on social media? Any exciting plans or projects in the works?
Castellvi: As of right now, we have nothing in the works. Ray and I are just going off vibes lately. Being in grad school eats up a lot of time, so it’s difficult to balance his account and my future at the same time when things are intense in the school front. While I’m appreciative for all his account has offered me, I have to keep my eye on the prize in the “real world.” If projects fall into our lap, then I look through the campaign to see if it aligns with us. If it does then we’ll do it; if not, we won’t. That being said, I much prefer doing content creation for brands rather than paid advertising on his page.
