social media for the campground industry

1. Posting Like a Pro
Ann Illig
WACO Convention
Stevens Point, Wisconsin
March 2015
How To Take Your Social Media Up a Notch

2. • Facebook
• Pinterest
• Twitter
• Instagram
• Google+
• Other?
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1. WHAT
SOCIAL MEDIA
ARE YOU USING
IN YOUR
CAMPGROUND?
Quick Survey

3. • Campground owner
• Campground staff member
• Outside firm / person
• Other?
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2. WHO IS primarily
DOING YOUR
SOCIAL MEDIA?
Quick Survey

4. • > 10 hours
• 5-9 hours
• 1-4 hours
• As little as possible
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3. ROUGHLY HOW
MUCH TIME DO
YOU SPEND ON
SOCIAL MEDIA
PER WEEK?
Quick Survey

5. The Need for Strategy
If you’re going to spend TIME on social media, make sure you’re
being strategic. Know your objectives. Are you trying to GROW
your fan base, find NEW customers, get previous customers to
come back, keep your campground top of mind?
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6. Where are your
customers hanging out?
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71% of online adults use Facebook.
58% of all adults. Usage among
seniors (65+) continues to
increase. Women are more likely to
be on Facebook then men.
28% of online adults use Twitter.
Only 26% of online adults use
Instagram, but for young adults
(18-29) this number jumps to 53%,
up from 37% in 2013.
28% of online adults use Pinterest.
Women dominate this channel.
Bottom Line Facebook remains the most popular channel
Social Media Update 2014, Pew Research

8. Get out of the Rut
Are you in a rut when it comes to generating new ideas for what
to post? You are not alone.
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9. The 80/20 Rule
Use just 20% of your posts to promote your brand, and dedicate
80% to stuff that really interests your audience and engages
them in conversations.
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People use social media to be social. They really don’t
want to be subjected to your online sales pitch.Bottom Line

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1. POSE A PROBLEM
AND ASK FOR ADVICE
Bottom Line People LOVE to answer questions and help
solve problems.
• “What would you do if…
• “I need to make a decision and am looking for your
feedback…
• “We need to name our new inflatable. Any ideas? …

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2. RUN A POLL
Bottom Line Polls are great for generating discussion AND
gaining valuable insight from your fans.
• “What color should we paint the showers?
• “What candies do you want to see in the camp store this summer?
• “Which Bloody Mary topping is more important? Cheese or
Sausage?

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3. FILL IN THE BLANK
Bottom Line
People love ‘em! Just about any question can
be rephrased as a fill in the blank. Test it and
see if you get higher engagement.
• “I’d rather be camping than ________________
• “Hands down, the best campfire recipe is _______________
• “The one thing I can’t leave at home when camping is
_______________

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4. SHARE A BEHIND-THE-SCENES PICTURE
Bottom Line
Showing there are real people behind your
campground makes you more relatable to your
fans,

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8. HUMBLE BRAG toot your own horn
7. SEASONAL POST add the personal touch!
6. INSPIRATIONAL OR MOTIVATIONAL
QUOTES & IMAGES
5. CONTEST POST more later
9. FAN-ONLY DISCOUNT
10. BE IMPERFECT OK to share your struggles

15. Looking Your Best
You’re not professional graphic artists, copy writers, or
photographers…but that doesn’t stop you from looking
professional!
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• #1 tool for small business
owners
• pre-designed graphics and
templates
• upload your own pix or
stock photos cost $1
• lots of free design
elements
• Facebook, Instagram,
posters, email headers, etc.

17. Learn More https://designschool.canva.com
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18. The way you write
your post is the #1
way to engage with
your audience
MORE ENGAGEMENT = MORE REACH

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SHORT.
Keep posts short, sweet and to
the point.
Writing Awesome Posts

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Writing Awesome Posts
POSITIVE.
Posts that are positive,
inspirational or funny get the
highest engagement.

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Writing Awesome Posts
BE NATURAL.
Facebook is fun and relaxed.
You should be too. There are no
grammar police on FB!

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Writing Awesome Posts
VISUAL.
Aim for 80-90% of your posts
to have pictures.

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Writing Awesome Posts
TOPICAL, TIMELY and
RELEVANT.
Your posts should be
happening or relevant now!

24. Contests and Giveaways
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25. Facebook Promotions
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• Great for driving engagement and
increasing awareness of your
campground
• YOU are responsible for:
★ Lawful operation of your promotion
★ Official rules
★ Terms and eligibility requirements
★ Including a not sponsored by
Facebook statement
Bottom
Line
Everyone loves
FREE stuff!

26. Facebook Promotions
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• Make it a compelling
promotion
• Always keep your business
objectives in mind
• Don’t give away the store

27. Facebook Promotions
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NOT ALLOWED
• OK to ask people to post a
comment or like your post
• OK to ask people to like
your page, but no way to
enforce
• OK to ask them to message
your page
ALLOWED
• “Personal Timelines and
friend connections must
not be used to administer
your promotion” e.g.,
• Don’t ask people to
share your post
• Don’t ask people to tag
themselves in your photo
www.facebook.com/page_guidelines.php

28. Facebook Promotions
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• If you’re running contests/
giveaways on Facebook,
WooBox is a MUST.
• Randomly picks your
winner(s) free
• Export comments free
• Export Likes free
woobox.com

29. Instagram
Know your objectives. Are you trying to TAP into the youth
market? Promote your campground? Look like you’re with it?
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Instagram
WHY TEENS LIKE IT
• Content is better. People are
more selective in what they
upload
• The older generation hasn’t
found it yet
• No links, which mean they’re
not constantly spammed by
commercial interests
• Feels more private. Teens use
nicknames and it’s easy to
untag yourself in photos you
don’t like

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Instagram
WHAT’S DIFFERENT?
It’s a purely visual medium
• Tell your brand story through
images, not words
• Need access to good, strong
photography or video to
attract and keep followers
• You need to be religious
about sticking to your brand
message
• You need to understand and
use hashtags strategically

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Instagram
WHO’S CRUSHING IT
ON INSTAGRAM?
ClifBar
GoPro Camera
Great Wolf Lodge
Beautiful Wisconsin
Wollersheim Wine

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More Resources
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https://www.pinterest.com/Socialcat3/
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