Clerkenwell Design Week events
How to use social media effectively to network and be discovered
With Clerkenwell Design Week 2022 just around the corner and momentum building, we thought it would be a good time to take a look at how you can capitalise on events such as this and ensure your social media channels are working as hard as possible for you as a marketing tool.
CDW has firmly established itself in the design calendar over the years as one of the leading independent design festivals, it is home to more creative talent within just a square mile than anywhere else, with a variety of creative practices including architects, branding agencies and craft studios all within touching distance of each other.
With the festival’s return after a two year enforced hiatus, this year promises to be three days of inspiring and engaging events as always and with over 125 exhibitors and local practices taking part, it’s an opportunity many brands shouldn’t miss.
Connecting with wider audiences
Today, both UK and international brands and companies alike have had to take stock of their marketing efforts and find new and innovative ways to reach their audiences like never before. Whilst the festival promises to bring together a large swathe of visitors from in and around both London and beyond, there will be some that are unable to attend.
This is where social media in particular can help play a significant role in your marketing plans and allow those who can’t make it to experience showroom events, exhibitions and special activities remotely too. In parallel, it can extend the life and reach of your efforts by keeping the conversation going long after the pink line has gone from the streets.
For those attending, it can build intrigue and encourage them to add you to their destination list throughout the three-day event. You can show them where you will be, what you will be doing and make sure they want to visit. And similarly, those who aren’t can still experience all your brand, products and services have to offer.
Planning content for the event
The first and most obvious platform is of course Instagram as it is always popular with the wider design community. We can’t escape the fact that short-form videos, i.e. Instagram Reels in particular have taken off in the past few months. Whilst feed posts and Stories mainly reach accounts that follow you, both Reels and being featured in the Explore tab will reach accounts that don’t. Back when we wrote about Reels in 2020, the functionality was in its infancy but now, our feeds are awash with this type of content. And why? Because they work! And whether they fill you with dread or excite you, there is no getting away from the reach they can give you.
However, they must not be feared and you don’t have to start dancing or lip-synching to have success with them. Our first and best advice is that if you aren’t familiar with them, start watching a few yourself. Save the ones you think you could apply to your own brands and start collating that content.
If all you have is imagery, how can you creatively stitch these together, perhaps with a simple text overlay to tell the story of your new product or event? Pick a trending track to go with it (under audio) and you’re well on your way to sharing that content with a wide audience.
Top tip: if you switch from professional to creator mode with your account, you can access a much wider library of audio tracks.
It’s important to share your activity in advance of the event. Whether you have a series of showroom events, a product launch, a talk or a one-off networking event, make sure you tell your followers (and those that don’t) what you are up to in the lead up to the big day through Stories, feed posts and if you can, Reels too. You want to ensure they have you marked down in their show guide as a ‘must-see’ location.
You can use functionality like Stickers in Stories for countdowns, polls and opinion gathering (A or B stickers) for example, to broaden reach and engagement.
How about a quick walkthrough guide from Farringdon station on how people can get to your showroom for example, following that pink line? A great opportunity for a Reel or Story in the build-up!
Other popular platforms during this event are Twitter and LinkedIn.
Twitter is great for conversation and discussion, particularly during the event itself and is popular with the design press. Engage with people there to let them know what you are up to, but without being too pushy. Follow the #CDW22 and use it in your posts too to be part of the conversation.
LinkedIn is such a powerful networking tool and is often neglected as a ‘dry’ platform but it is a place for thought-leadership, industry knowledge and expertise as well as the perfect place to build those connections. If you are hosting a talk, can you write an article to support the discussion to share in advance to help publicise the event? Do you have a short video to accompany a product launch and start a conversation?
Above all else, this platform is a ‘people-first’ platform so make sure all your employees update their profiles fully ahead of the event, have your company page listed in their employment (so you can hit ‘notify employees’ when you share anything on the company page!) and get them starting their own discussions too about the product, event or exhibition.
The sales team in particular have the opportunity to reach out to the diverse community Clerkenwell Design Week attracts and tap into those people virtually, encouraging them to come and meet you in person.
Start connecting with potential customers ahead of the event so they can see your activity too.
Seize the opportunity
With more architects per square mile than any other UK location, Clerkenwell has been and always will be a hive of activity for the design community. Having a strategic plan on how to reach these audiences and maximise your potential on social media will ensure your success. Don’t be afraid to try new things like Reels and DO engage in discussion with your community so that when we all finally get the chance to come together for the event, those conversations can continue. It’s also worth reading the chat we had with the former event director, William Knight who spoke to us about the London Design Festival last year as many of those tips apply here too.
And if you still feel overwhelmed, then Sandford can help of course! Get in touch to see how we can help you make an impact.
