Boost Ticket Sales for Your Event, Festival, or Retreat with These 5 Instagram Tips
Exploring Central America: My Upcoming Adventure to Nicaragua
Soon, I’ll be heading to Nicaragua to explore the beauty of Central America. This journey is fueled by my curiosity and the love I developed for the region after falling for Costa Rica a few years ago. While I’m there, I’ll be making a special stop at the Ometepe Gathering, where I’ll be hosting a workshop on strengthening the heart chakra through Kundalini yoga, meditation, and breathwork.
If you know me, you know how much I value work exchanges. For offering two workshops, I’ll receive free entry to the festival, along with accommodation and meals—an amazing tradeoff for sharing something I’m passionate about.
On top of leading the workshops, I also volunteered to provide the organizers with some advice on how to make their Instagram profile more engaging. Below, I’m sharing the info I sent them, filled with tips you might find helpful for your own projects. While these ideas are tailored to events and festivals, they can be easily adapted for other uses!
Boost Ticket Sales for Your Event, Festival, or Retreat with These 5 Instagram Tips
Establish a Consistent Brand
Choose a set of branding colors and fonts, and use them consistently in your posts to create a cohesive look.
Use Templates for Posts
Make your Instagram posts more visually appealing by designing them with templates on Canva.
Tag and Engage Facilitators
Whenever you feature a facilitator, tag them in the post and encourage them to re-share it.
Leverage Short Videos
Share quick videos of facilitators talking about their workshops or what excites them about the festival.
Have the festival organizers introduce themselves with a short video to build a personal connection with your audience.
Content Ideas for Posts (These can be repurposed for both Instagram and Facebook):
Spotlight a workshop facilitator or artist.
Share a fun fact about Ometepe Island or Nicaragua.
Provide logistical details like transportation options, nearby accommodations, or camping tips.
Post a packing list for festival-goers.
Highlight family-friendly offerings.
Share what attendees can expect for meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner).
Put out a call for artists or facilitators.
Talk about what the project site is like outside of festival season and share the backstory of the project.
Create lighthearted memes or inspirational quotes to add a fun touch to your feed.
That’s all I have for you for now! Using these tips will help you diversify your Instagram feed, keeping your content fresh and engaging for your audience. By showcasing a mix of facilitator spotlights, logistical details, fun facts, and behind-the-scenes moments, you’ll pique interest and create excitement around your event.
This variety will not only increase your ticket sales but also boost engagement, bringing more awareness to your project. An active, thoughtfully curated Instagram feed can transform casual viewers into loyal followers and enthusiastic attendees, ensuring your event reaches its full potential.
Have you ever attended or contributed to a festival like this? I’d love to hear about your experiences or any additional tips you might have for making events unforgettable!
Crafting a Content Marketing Strategy on a Shoestring Budget
I recently started a housesit outside of Olhão, Portugal. The house backs up to acres and acres of beautiful wild land; wildflowers, creeks, and rolling hills.
While walking around the land with the homeowner recently, I was admiring the landscape. That’s when he informed me of their dilemma last year. A large solar energy company sought to transform acres of pristine land into a sprawling energy farm, jeopardizing the delicate balance of the surrounding ecosystem.
Why couldn’t they just slap some panels on top of existing buildings/eye sores like grocery stores? Short answer…money.
This determined family organized under a former NGO, and were able to thwart this imminent environmental disaster. Through advocacy and activism, they emerged victorious, but the fight is not over. Now the family wants to make sure this can’t ever happen again. For that, they’ll need to raise more funds and get a formal land conservancy status from the Portuguese government.
They asked me how to help them shift the focus of their NGO to fundraising and community building, in case another crisis pops up? Below is the advice I gave them. My purpose for sharing this information is so that if you are an NGO, and have limited funds, you can scrap together a content marketing strategy that will help you achieve your goals. Before I deliver the goods, though, I want to stress one key point. In order for a content marketing strategy to work, you’ve got to stay consistent!! Now let’s get to the good stuff…
Crafting a Content Marketing Strategy on a Shoestring Budget
For grassroots organizations with limited funds, an effective content marketing strategy is key to amplifying your message and garnering support. Here's a step-by-step guide to building a robust strategy:
Step 1: Establish four marketing pillars.
These pillars will be the themes you will use to derive ALL your content. This will help you keep focused on the stuff that matters. Examples of pillars I’d recommend for the aforementioned organization include:
Environmental Conservation Advocacy
Community Engagement and Empowerment
Fundraising Initiatives
Event Promotion and Participation
Each post, piece of content, or talking point your organization delivers to the public will have to fall under one of the above categories. If it doesn’t fit into one of the categories, it doesn’t need to be said.
Step 2: Create a content marketing strategy (or just copy the one I have for you below :))
My suggestion:
1- Write one blog every week or every other week.
2- Derive 2-3 original posts from the blog and share them on one social platform of your choice every week. You can repurpose those posts onto other social platforms but it’s not necessary. Best to focus on growing one platform.
2- At the end of the month, send out a newsletter to your subscribers with a short personal message from you, including any relevant information about the NGO, any important events, and links to the blog posts from the month prior. Newsletter sites like Mailchimp are free up until a certain amount of subscribers.
3- Engage on social media - Follow members of your community, re-share their posts, tag local businesses, and use hashtags.
Step 3: Create a content marketing calendar.
I recommend using Google Sheets for this, it’s free and can easily be shared with other members of your team. Outline what kind of posts you will be sharing monthly. You can also write the posts in the Google Sheet if you need it to get approved by other members of your organization.
Step 4: Plan Community Building Events
1- Aim to provide a community-building event once every 1 to 3 months. These can look like clothing swaps, open mic nights, artisan markets, workshops, tours, concerts, lectures, etc. Partner with other organizations and co-host events with them. At every event make sure to give a short presentation about your organization and why it’s important to the health of the community. You can make these events free or charge a small fee, all of which will go back to the organization. COLLECT EMAIL ADDRESSES!
2- Aim to provide a higher-end community event once every six months. These events are aimed to attract those who can donate a substantial amount of money. These events can look like silent auctions with prizes collected from members of the community (massage by local therapists, workshops by local artisans, products made by local artisans) or black tie events that require a higher-cost ticket to enter.
Step 5: Implementing the content marketing strategy
1- To help you write things like blog posts, newsletters, social media posts, and fundraising proposals, fire up ChatGPT. Now use this step with caution. Chat GPT is a robot, not a human. That means it’s not funny, it lacks empathy and is just not as good of a writer as a human. But it can help you structure your content and eliminate any writer’s block. You can use the platform to get ideas and spark inspiration.
For example, you can enter a prompt such as:
can you write a fundraising proposal geared towards wealthy funders for a nonprofit that is trying to get protection status?
—> Tips: You can get very specific by adding an exact word count, adding the tone you are aiming for by expanding upon the ideal demographic, or by requesting a tone to sound like a certain public figure (ex. please rewrite this in the tone of Oprah Winfrey).
By adhering to these strategic steps and maintaining consistency, grassroots organizations can amplify their impact, rally community support, and safeguard precious natural resources like the wild lands of Olhão, Portugal. Together, we can make a difference.
Want to learn how to craft a killer content marketing strategy with the help of ChatGPT and other AI tools? Book a one hour session with me where we will deep dive into your business and I’ll show you exactly how to create content effortlessly. More details can be found here.
When It Comes to Building an Audience, Engagement Matters
As a content marketer, I can get so wrapped up in the process of creating fun and exciting content that I leave very little time left over for engaging with my current or future audience. But when you are building an organic, sustainable community, engagement is ESSENTIAL!
Think of engaging like dating. You probably wouldn’t like it if all your date did was talk about themselves. What if your date never asked you how you were doing, what makes you tick, or how you felt or thought about a particular topic? What if they never commented on the things that fired you up? You’d likely never go on a second date again - or you might even ghost/block them.
Building a community follows the same logic. Yes, spend time creating relevant, unique content, but also make sure you allot enough time for engagement. It’s important!!
Here are some tips on how to engage well with others…
Follow folks who produce relevant content, either direct competitors or folks with similar values.
Like other people’s posts (including dream clients, past clients, brands who hold similar values, brands you’d like to collab with, and brands who are direct competitors)
Reshare others’ content and make sure to add your own thoughts, opinions, or spin on their content.
Comment on other people’s posts.
Post content you didn’t create but that resonates with your marketing pillars directly on your feed but make sure to tag the original creator/brand.
Partner with a relevant brand/influencer and run a simultaneous promotion, that way you can tap into THEIR audience.
Don’t have time to engage with your followers? Don’t fret. While I always encourage clients to engage with their audience when they have time, consistent engagement just isn’t feasible (or enjoyable) for busy entrepreneurs. If that’s the case with you, feel free to outsource your engagement to someone else (like, uh, ME! )
Stop Being So Elusive, Already
As a lot of you know, I am currently in the process of creating my own Desert Animal Oracle Deck.
When I submitted my proposal to the publisher, I included my own digital concept of what I wanted the cards to look like. Needless to say, the publisher had another vision. Instead, they wanted to bring in an outside illustrator to help with the design.
I wasn’t upset, in fact, my original intent was to do the same but the reason I didn’t was because of budget constraints. Instead, I relied on my minimal Canva skills to whip up some sample cards.
Flash forward to now and we have both been on the hunt for an illustrator — someone who preferably has a connection to the Southwest, a love of animals, and a knack for Scientific skill-level detail when sketching said animals.
How do you suppose we have been conducting the search?
Well, first we asked people we already knew. I asked friends who had Tucson connections if they could recommend someone.
Next, I searched around my community. I went to a local bookshop and looked for any animal stickers, notebooks, or notecards on display near the checkout counter, and noted down the names of their illustrators.
Lastly, I looked at Instagram.
Why am I sharing this with you?
Because I want you to stop being so elusive and private about the gifts you are here to share with the world. How else are people going to find you, if you don’t put yourself out there? I used to think social media was vapid and a big waste of time, but what I am learning is that it is what you make of it. When you have a purpose — to share your gifts with the world — it becomes much easier to open up and let others into your creative process.
Sure, I still get shy before I am about to post something on Instagram. Last night I hesitated a few minutes before pushing that button, but then I did. Why? Because I want others to see what I am creating, so that it inspires them to put love and energy into their own creations. I also want to keep people in the loop because I believe that my oracle cards can help inspire others to protect the beautiful creatures of the Southwest as well deepen their connection to their own inner knowing.
“Happiness is only real when shared.”
As Christopher McCandless, the author of Into the Wild wrote, “Happiness is Only Real When Shared” and I just love it so much. For so long I felt like I had to hide who I was. I was afraid that people would think I was a fraud or that I was taking up too much space. I didn’t think my writing or creative endeavors deserved to see the light of day. But in the end, these are all limiting beliefs that keep me from reaching my highest potential. And I am just over it!
So there you have it, don’t be shy. Or try to play cool and mysterious. Share what you are working on and let others be dazzled by all that you are. Sure, there might be haters. But there might also be a whole lot of people who you help in the process!
Need someone to help hold you accountable when it comes to putting yourself out there? I am now offering a Content Marketing Accountability Coaching program. Head here for more info.
How Important is Social Media When Growing Your Conscious Business?
Well it depends on who you ask but since you asked me (or did I ask you?) I digress…
Social Media is pretty damn important.
I recently interviewed Tammy Tamuno, the lead education consultant of purplebook.ng, for the Transparent Voices series and she said she grew her entire business on Instagram. Her advice? If you want to grow your business you have to go where your ideal clients hang out. If they’re hanging out on Instagram then, by all means, you need to be on Instagram.
As a Conscious Business Owner, I’m not a big fan of anyone spreading themselves too thin, especially when it comes to social media. That’s why I recommend that my clients focus on one, MAYBE two, social media platforms that they resonate with most and then just deep dive into them. Now, I realize that this is contradictory advice from the big social media guru Gary Vee, but unlike Gary Vee, I’m assuming you don’t have a big social media team whose sole job is to repurpose content for you, am I right?
So, where do you go from here?
Well, you pick one social media platform that you vibe with. For me that’s LinkedIn.
Though I tend to use Instagram more in my personal life, I feel I already spend too much time on that app. And I didn’t want to just all of the sudden start posting about social media and digital marketing when my “followers” have grown to expect travel pics and funny shit I find on the street. In other words, my Instagram profile already had an identity, and I didn’t feel my business would be able to exist peacefully within the constraints. I also didn’t want to start a separate business Instagram profile for myself because ugh, that seems so exhausting.
That’s how I settled on LinkedIn and so far it’s been great! People are friendly and professional over there, and I feel like I have a safe space to share my knowledge and expertise. But that doesn’t mean it would work for your business. Do what feels good to you.
To finish up this blog post, I want to reiterate the importance of having a social media presence, not only to grow your current audience, like Tammy did, but to help you gain clout in the space. Case in point, I am organizing an interview series called Transparent Voices for a client and I reached out the World of Women (a renowned NFT founder) for an interview. Her assistant responded saying they weren’t interested. Being the bold bish I am, I replied asking her why considering my client has over 7 million visitors to his site every year. Her answer? My client didn’t have a very big social media following.
What? So, if my client had purchased followers, like many influencers and brands do, she would have happily agreed to the interview? Perhaps. Who knows. But one thing I do know is that social media still matters. And that key gatekeepers and potential clients still judge you based on your number of followers. So take it from me, get in the habit of posting regularly and soon enough you will see it pay off in the form of new clients or partnerships.