You know that feeling you get when you’re on the subway, and someone sits down next to you, and you just feel… connected?
You can’t explain it, but suddenly your lives seem to intersect in this weird way. And there’s something really magical about that.
That’s how we felt when we listened to jsin’s music.
It’s music that makes you feel as if you’re on a journey with someone else. It’s reassuring, it’s comforting, and it’s also not afraid to make a statement about the times we live in.
You may have heard of jsin if you live in Toronto—he’s been making big waves in the city lately with his debut album Surrender. But even if you don’t live here, it’s time for you to get familiar.
jsin is a musician, and like many artists and creative entrepreneurs, he’s spent years trying to make it as a musician. But as a performer, he knows that building an audience is all about connection.
So jsin got to work creating social media accounts for his music, but he quickly found that posting on social media had become a chore. He was trying to post at random times throughout the day, whichever stories came to him first, and it wasn’t working.
After tirelessly working on his new EP, jsin wanted to release his music out into the world in a meaningful way. He pulled together music videos, lined up a few media interviews and started working with a major publicist in the music industry. He reached out to The Social Media Artist team for help to manage his Instagram as it was the platform that was the most effective for him and his music.
Problem
jsin wanted to reach more fans through social media and maximize his visibility on Instagram. The visualization of his brand was already in place, but he required help in developing a strategy that would communicate the right messages and reach the right audiences.
The challenges jsin faced included:
Creating a social media strategy for Instagram that included posting for stories, IG reels and posts.
Creating a brand identity on Instagram that matched jsin’s existing music brand.
Finding the balance between personal and promotional posts to keep audiences engaged.
Learning how to manage Instagram independent of a marketing agency.
Solution
Our work with jsin started by establishing his brand voice. It was important that his brand would feel like it fit jsin’s unique way of connecting with the world. We used Canva templates to help maintain consistency for his feed—but we also researched the kinds of hashtags that were trending in the music scene in Toronto. This allowed us to help jsin grow his following by joining in on conversations already taking place among musicians and fans.
We helped him create a posting schedule that would help him grow his audience in a more intentional way. Instead of scrambling to come up with posts on the fly, we came up with a plan together and created content that he could use each week. Our strategies incorporated ideas and images from jsin’s own life so that the posts felt authentic to who he is and what his music represents. We also focused on building trust with his followers by encouraging him to show more of himself behind the scenes—we’re talking childhood posts, mental health awareness and personal stories.
We made sure that each post on Instagram had a distinct purpose: meditative lyrics videos featured jsin’s songs playing over soothing video backgrounds, while we encouraged his followers to play games with him on his stories. In this way, he was able to connect directly with his audience—and it helped him become known as an artist who cared about other people.
Results
Engagement increased by 536.1%!
Followers resonated with jsin’s personal posts and shared their own stories with him
A clear content plan including a content calendar with ideas for Instagram posts and stories as well as video and image templates that jsin can continue to use to connect with his fan base!
Now, jsin has an engaged audience of fans who are excited about his music and are ready for more! Here’s what he had to say about working with us:
“My main challenge was figuring out what/when to post. Lara helped me out with putting a plan together for the month and even created content that was published as per the plan. Lara was curious, thoughtful and thorough in getting to know me as an artist, giving me content ideas to build on and always making sure I was happy with it. Easy and a pleasure to work with.”
jsin, Musician
We are so excited to see what the future holds for jsin! He is a talented artist who is passionate about connecting with his audiences. We have had an amazing time working with him and we can’t wait to hear his new album. Check him out here.
Sometimes as an artist, you may not have the funds to work with a marketing agency – and that’s okay! As long as you have a plan in place and a bit of time each week, you can manage your social media on your own. Let us help you strategize, create templates and take the heavy work off you so you know exactly what to post on social. We’d love to help, tell us about your art here.
What do you love most about the Canadian Winter? Maybe you’re a fan of curling up in a cozy blanket with a book and a hot chocolate… or what about walking through gently falling snow with your fingers slowly freezing as they clutch a refreshingly cold ice cream cone?
No? So you can see how an ice cream store might have a problem here. How do you drive more customers to an Ice Cream Shop in the winter? At the Social Media Artist, we’re a bunch of very outside-the-cone creative thinkers, so we came up with two unique solutions to warm people up to the idea of eating frozen desserts in the cold weather. First, we went visual and turned their Instagram grid into a game. Then, we went experiential and had an ice cream photoshoot in the snow.
Problem:
How do you drive more customers to an Ice Cream Shop in the winter?
Solution One: Gamify It.
We created a holiday themed campaign to roll out over the month of December
We gamified the experience of visiting the Ice Cream Shop’s Instagram page by creating a holiday advent calendar with a new post going up every day. Each post included a short video with a door opening. Behind some of the doors were jokes, while some of them had an announcement for a new giveaway contest followers could enter by commenting on the post. This provided a reason for their Instagram audience to keep going back for more!
Results:
Consumer engagements and profile views soared, as the Instagram audience was excited to check the grid for a new door to open each day, and would comment and tag friends in order to enter the draw on prize days. Before, the client was getting an average of 11 profile visits each day, and after the campaign we saw this increase to an average of 24 visits per day with their engagement rate increasing by 82%.
We tagged the winners on Instagram Stories, and they shared these posts to their own networks which increased followers by 5% as more people found out about the Advent calendar campaign. A direct message with an image of a redeemable coupon was also sent to the winner, and this was the message they were to show at the shop to claim their prize.
Prizes included coupons for BOGO desserts, cake for two, and free ice cream, so winners were encouraged to bring friends along when they claimed their prize. This drove consumer traffic to the store, which created more opportunities for social media posts as winners would post their very Instagrammable desserts and tag the shop to say thank you.
Solution Two: Steer into the Cold.
We came up with a catchy hashtag and created a series of posts about how a “true Canadian” still eats ice cream in the snow, and challenged followers to embrace the cold and tag us in their photos
We planned a photoshoot where the models wore summer clothes while posing in the snow with the client’s ice cream and branding. As a team of artists, we were able to round up a diverse group of models, performers, and dancers, and had a successful winter photoshoot that included both snowball fights and sundresses!
Results:
This campaign launched in February, which was usually a very quiet month at the Ice Cream Shop with less user-generated content to share. These photos provided the client with shareable content of customers enjoying the product and interacting with the brand, so their Instagram feed stayed current and populated with faces during the slower season.
We tagged the models in the new posts, and they were quick to share the posts to their own networks and talk about their experience at the unique photoshoot. This increased engagement and followers, and generated buzz around the campaign and the brand. We also provided each of the models with a few professional photos from their individual shoots so they could post and tag the Ice Cream Shop on their own pages.
We love a good social media makeover! This Healthcare Centre had been posting on Facebook and Instagram on their own for a few months, but their existing content wasn’t particularly branded or consistently posted. Enter The Social Media Artist team! Our goal was to understand their audience of vulnerable patients and create content that was inspirational, informative and community building. First, we did a social media audit analyzing what existing content resonated with their existing followers. Through the website and social media analytics, we were able to understand audience trends which helped us create a robust social media strategy.
Too long to read? Watch the video summary.
We designed a new Instagram layout for them, positioning posts with inspiring quotes, upcoming events, and staff profiles into a beautiful pattern of brand colours, matching graphics, and a consistent clean aesthetic. We received glowing feedback from staff, and after a few months, their followers would also comment on posts to say how much they loved the graphics and inspiring content! On Facebook, we shared similar content, but added in links to relevant articles, events, and news reports. We started to see more engagements, comments, and shares as the client’s followers began to trust them as a reputable source for content that they could share with their own friends and family.
This company was particularly concerned about their rating on Google reviews. As a Healthcare Centre that often received very emotionally charged patient interactions, they were worried that their Google reviews did not reflect their company accurately. Patients that had a negative experience were more likely to write a review because they were looking for a space to complain, and they drowned out the patients who had posted positive reviews.
Here’s how our team took on the challenge:
Problem:
A healthcare centre was looking to build followers and engage their clients through social media in order to foster an online community and improve Google reviews.
Solution:
Our team created a consistent Instagram grid aesthetic that boosted the professional image of the company.
We shared posts from the surrounding health care community on both Facebook and Instagram to create relationships and build followers.
We reached out to past clients for their personal success stories and testimonials, and we shared this content as graphics and longer videos to tell their story journey.
These past clients were also encouraged to share their positive experience on Google reviews.
Results:
Organically building a community of supportive followers around this healthcare centre inspired genuine supportive comments and reviews, and we observed a continued increase in followers each month on their social media platforms.
Creating the personal patient journey videos generated excitement among the healthcare centre’s followers to contribute and receive them as a keepsake of their journey. They would comment on each other’s videos and share them with their family and friends by reposting the video on their own social media platforms. These videos helped past and present patients feel seen and recognized during their own healthcare journeys.
After 2 years of consistent posting, their followers increased by 64% on Facebook, and their Instagram following quadrupled in size, growing from an almost brand new account to over 1000 followers who engage at an average rate of 8% per post.
The Healthcare Centre received more positive reviews and their Google rating improved by one full star.
The Social Media Artist Team has been working closely with this client for over 2 years and is consistently pouring in ideas for posts, writing passionate captions and creating new designs and videos that visually represent the Healthcare Centre’s unique brand story. Building engagements through sharing patient journey videos and testimonials have not only improved their Google rating, but have uniquely brought their followers together in a community of past, present, and future patients of the Healthcare Centre. Their social media platforms have become a place for staff and patients to connect and support each other on their unique journeys.
