REFLECTION: My Management of the SailPack Instagram

I took charge of the NC State Club Sailing Team's public Instagram in January of 2018. I was an eager college freshman who was just voted to become the club "Community Outreach Officer" coming May 2018 - but I made an effort to get a head start.

During my time running the Instagram from January 2018 through May 2019, I was able to roughly double the follower count (from ~500 to ~1000), increase consistent engagement, and build a more consistent 'brand' image. I worked to introduce more variety into the type of content that was posted, such as "Senior Spotlights" and posts highlighting the club's activities outside of racing. A lot of my contribution came in the form of content creation, as I made an effort to get photos of the team at a variety of different events, adding to the content variety of the feed.

In addition to photos, I began experimenting more with video production as the manager of the instagram. See some of the short videos I created during this time below:

⛵ Sunset Sailing for Instagram (Feb. 2018)

⛵ Tacking Loop for Instagram (Feb. 2018)

⛵ Senior Toss at "Home" Regatta in Oriental, NC (Mar. 2018)

⛵ Drone Recap of "Home" Regatta in Oriental, NC (Mar. 2018)

I dabbled in some "graphic design" making merchandise for the club, as well. I say graphic design loosely as my methods were very ridiculous. For example, the t-shirt design below began as a photo of my hands that was then thrown into some unknown photography app in order to up the contrast and exposure through a filter so that my hand became an outline. Next, I edited in a main sheet (the rope in the hand to the left) and a tiller (the stick shape in the hand to the right) using... Google Drawing. I know, I know. We all have to learn somewhere! The remaining rectangle and text were then added in the built-in design software of Custom Ink's website, so I can't take credit for those components. My methods were somewhat convoluted but the final products looked pretty good for my experience if I say so myself. 😎

All in all, it was an extremely useful lesson on the work it takes to build a cohesive brand and was a great introduction to social media management. I gained experience working to plan content, strategize an Instagram profile, and organize an organization's marketing materials. I am grateful for this experience, as I wouldn't be pursuing social media marketing today without it!