RETURN TO CRAWLING 101 OVERVIEW  

SOCIAL MEDIA QUICK TIPS

Facebook

If you have an established Facebook Business/Fan Page, make use of both this and your personal Profile page to spread the word about your participation in the Eastside Culture Crawl. If you currently don’t have a Business page, you will be better off focusing on use of your Profile page rather than starting a new Business page.

Instagram

Instagram is all about the image, so it’s a perfect social media platform for visual artists. While the focus is on the image, you can still include basic text. It is best not to repeat hashtags over and over with no variation as this can potentially lead to what some have called the Instagram Shadowban. What this means is while we encourage artists to make regular use of core hashtags, you should keep other hashtags fresh and associated with the image you’re sharing. Instagram considers constant and repeated repetition of the exact same set of hashtags as “spammy”. If you are subject to a Shadowban you will see limited or no reach of your posts outside of your core followers.

Keep Your Pages Updated

In general, plan to make use of the social media platforms where you already have an established presence. Keep your content fresh and connected to your preparation for the Culture Crawl. Tell your story!

In the lead up to the Culture Crawl and across all social platforms, share the story of your preparation, your process, and your work. Always remember that while the Culture Crawl is a fixed point in time, it is a great opportunity for connecting with new fans/collectors and can yield benefits for months and years to come. 


TAGGING

Official Event Hashtag

When sharing an image or update on Instagram or Twitter that pertains to the Crawl – please do use the hashtag:

#eastsideculturecrawl

Our social media team will be monitoring anytime this tag is used – and will share the post on, where time + space allow.

Official Accounts

When posting to Instagram or Twitter – you can tag us within the update by including:

@CultureCrawl

When Posting to Facebook, begin by typing the ‘@’ symbol – and proceeding to type out ‘Eastside Culture Crawl.’ You will shortly see a drop-down option for our page that – when clicked – will add a link within your post.

Tagging the account in this way will create notifications, so that the Crawl can share your posts accordingly.


POSTING TO CULTURE CRAWL CHANNELS

The Culture Crawl does not allow posting from third parties on to its Facebook Page – HOWEVER we do allow such posts to be shared on the official Facebook Event Page for each year. You can find the current year’s official Facebook event on the Crawl’s Facebook Page here.

If you wish to show or share works with potential visitors, we encourage you to post there. PLEASE NOTE: Due to the number of participants, we do request that you only share ONE post in lead-up to the event.

Additionally, you can support the Eastside Culture Crawl as a whole by inviting your personal contacts to RSVP for the Facebook event.


CREATING YOUR OWN EVENT ON FACEBOOK

We encourage artists to make full use of the official Facebook Events that are created by the Culture Crawl. You can find the current year’s official Facebook events on the Crawl’s Facebook Page here. If you wish to create a Facebook Event for your studio, here are a few things to remember. 

  • If you are showing out of a solo studio and not a building with multiple artists, consider creating a dedicated Facebook Event and use the event page for communications around your studio. If however, you are part of a building/studio with multiple artists, you may be better served to coordinate use of a single event page for the building with other artists.
  • Naming conventions: Please make sure to list your personal Artist/Studio Name first.
    Example:  Studio Name | Eastside Culture Crawl
  • Imagery: Your personal logo/artwork/images OR current year’s Eastside Culture Crawl graphics (email admin@culturecrawl.ca or download from our Facebook Page).
  • Privacy settings allow you to specify whether your event is by invitation or public.

You can find full instructions for how to set up a Facebook Event here.


#CrawlCountdown

In lead-up to the Crawl, we know that many of you will be doing preparations around your studios.

Share a photo of your studio in mid-preparation on Instagram and include the hashtag #CrawlCountdown – we will select a few studio photos to re-post to our network and link to your profile.


CONTENT SUGGESTIONS

If you are looking for ideas on what types of content to post in lead-up to the Crawl or over the course of the weekend, consider some of the following:

New Pieces and Work In-Progress
Are you creating something special just for the Crawl – or in the midst of crafting 100 versions of a favourite piece? Consider taking a photo mid-process and sharing it in preparation for the Crawl.
 
#TBT
Do you have photos still on your phone from last year? Consider sharing them on a Thursday with the hashtag #TBT (Throwback Thursday).
 
Your Space
Does your studio space/building tell a story? Share a photo with the hashtag #EastsideSpaces. Consider using a caption encouraging Crawlers to come by and see it for themselves.
 
Engage Your Fans
Encourage your best supporters and close friends to share memories of visiting you at the Crawl to build excitement for the event and your participation. When posting, include captions with direct calls to action to encourage your fans to stop by during the Crawl weekend.
 
Visitors To Your Space
Don’t forget to take and share shots of visitors stopping by your studio during the Crawl itself both in social media newsfeeds and Instagram/Facebook stories.
 
 
Special thank you to Brian and Pamela at Murray Paterson Marketing Group for helping us develop this social media guide