Instagram Butlers Are Here to Help You Take the Perfect Vacation Photos
Back in 2014, I pitched a bunch of harebrained businesses to Mark Cuban and his filthy rich friends from Shark Tank for a story. Predictably, the investors hated almost all of my ideas across the board, but they were particularly merciless toward what I called “Honeyshots.” My plan was for vacation resorts to hire local photographers to tail honeymooning couples for a day and take wedding-quality photos of them during their adventures. It came from a place of love and frustration, as my own honeymoon photo album was full of beach selfies taken at awkward angles.
Though both Cuban and Robert Herjavec called it a “horrible idea”—Kevin O’Leary merely said it was “really bad”—I always thought the plan had legs, and three years later, it turns out I was right. (EAT IT, SHARKS.) While it isn’t completely like my beloved Honeyshots, a five-star resort in the Maldives has introduced a feature that will help vacationers live their best lives on Instagram.
The Conrad Hilton Resort on the Rangali Island is now offering guests complimentary access to its team of “Insta-butlers.” Despite the unflattering name, their job description is simple: These on-staff social media wizards know the most picturesque places on the island, and will help budding influencers take the perfect, most brag-worthy photos possible.
Beyond that, the Insta-butlers will also lead trips around the island filled with stops that are explicitly tailored for social media, and even give photography lessons to curious guests who want to learn secret Instagram tricks, like waiting for the “golden hour” to snap a perfect selfie—that’s right before sunset, when the sun provides the best lighting—as well as the poses that will induce the most likes.
The amenity may be pretty mindless, but it’s also very 2017, and hopefully this means I’m one step closer to finally getting my fledgling business off the ground.