GHF23 Instagram Campaign
After a four year hiatus, in January of 2023 we announced that Giant’s Head Freeride would be returning at the beginning of summer. The timeline gave riders less than 6 months to prepare and we needed a minimum of 200 registrations to fund the event.
We created a social media campaign to remind the downhill skateboard community of how Giant’s Head Freeride earned its reputation as the best freeride in the world and show them that this year was going to be the best one yet.
Our Comeback
We adopted an aggressive posting strategy, running 700+ Instagram stories over 14 weeks, focusing on the following engagement tactics:
Own the Sun
Summerland and sunshine go hand-in-hand. We used the sun emoji as a fun, free, repeatable, and shareable design element for our social posts.
Be Global
We posted clips from crews around the world to spread awareness and generate excitement in distant locations, and to entice far away communities of skaters to make the trek to Summerland, BC to participate in our event.
Get Personal
We highlighted some of the influential personalities in our community using playful and sentimental messaging.
Amplify Our Audience
With over a decade of social media posts about Giant’s Head Freeride to pull from, we used this opportunity to curate the best of the past and share it with our audience. We quoted posts from our previous attendees, sharing their fond memories and giving them well-deserved shoutouts.
Celebrate Rad
We gave additional clout to the award winners from past Giant’s Head Freerides by adorning their names with special emojis.
Adds Not Ads
We posted stories that showed our sponsors were more than just logos on our website, they were true partners who enriched the experience for our attendees.
Revere the Giant
Every corner on Giant’s Head has a name and every rider has a story. We reminded our audience of the intensity of our event by showcasing the amazing accomplishments and thrilling failures of the athletes who braved the descent.
Results
A lot of enthusiasm goes a long way. In 14 weeks we grew our Instagram following from 3000 to 5000, often gaining 100+ followers per day. We didn’t pay for ads or to artificially boost our numbers. Our growth was achieved completely organically through genuine interactions, which resulted in overwhelmingly positive engagement from our community. Public registration for Giant’s Head Freeride opened on April 14 and we surpassed our registration goal of 200 riders in less than two weeks.