The relationship between a micro-influencer (influencers with a reach of less than 50K) and his or her audience should be organic and authentic. In turn, if your brand chooses a micro-influencer that naturally resonates with your message, you’ve established a truthful relationship between brand and consumer.
Chloé Blog sat down with comedian Natasha Vaynblat (@NatashaWearsClothes), a micro-influencer whose love of comedy and fashion created this type of authentic following.
How and why did you start NatashaWearsClothes?
I think when we are starting out in comedy we have a tendency to follow other people’s paths and model our trajectory based on them. We think, “Well, this person did THAT SHOW so I will work to do THAT SHOW as well.” I was tired of doing that; it had started to feel robotic. So I wanted to push myself to do something purely because I wanted to do it without an end goal, and that’s how NATASHAWEARSCLOTHES was born. People still ask me, “What is it, exactly?” and I like that people can’t put it in a box. The answer is: It’s what I like to do.
What are some of your favorite N.W.C. posts and why?
My favorite posts are the ones I’ve done with friends like Sasheer Zamata and Lauren Ireland. I come from an improv background so it’s always way more fun to react to someone as opposed to just make weird faces by myself. The one I did with Yoni Lotan sticks out in my mind because while we were taking the photos in his courtyard, a resident leaned out and started a conversation with us. Turns out he works from home and spotted us in the courtyard and was smitten. It was a great NYC moment. It was like getting a “LIKE” in real life, can you imagine????
What about doing comedy on a social media platform has been interesting for you?
As a comedian I mostly focus on writing, so it’s been really fun working in a visual medium. Plus, I love playing with hashtags. I mostly use hashtags that don’t belong with the kind of image I’m posting, so it draws a crowd that normally wouldn’t see my images. I feel like a little prankster. I love tagging #fashionlover to a photo that’s just me standing pantless next to a dumpster.
How do you compose a post? What’s the process?
I first pick out the outfit and then walk around my neighborhood and try to find spots that either highlight the visual comedy or just pair well color-wise. Usually if it’s a stylish outfit I try to find a dirty/ugly background (If you haven’t noticed, I’m VERY into photos next to dumpsters). If it’s more of a character piece, I look for a place that adds more texture to the character.
What’s the most fun or the most interesting part of the process for you?
The captions! I don’t have them in mind when I take the photos and sometimes they come to me in an instant and sometimes I’ll scrap a series because I just cant figure out what I want to say. They are my biggest challenge because that’s where the voice of the character comes out.
What led you to fashion, comedy, and marrying the two?
My genuine love of both. I truly love clothes in a non-comedic fan girl way. BUT I think the culture around fashion is toxic. I hate the prescriptive nature of it. No one should tell you what’s hot or not, you should just wear what you like. That’s why a parody instagram felt like the right start. Although at this point it’s not a true fashion parody instagram, it’s something I can’t categorize.
Who are some other social media influencers or comedians whose work interests you?
Amy Sedaris and Cindy Sherman are my absolute idols and I think the instagram is a pretty clear homage to both of them.