Telling Your Story with Photo Contests and Flickr

A Moment in Time:Telling your story using

photo contests and

Visual Storytelling

Content Is KingVisual Content Is Ruler of the World

• Videos shared 12x more than links and text posts combined

• Photos are liked 2x more than text updates

• Instagram is the 2nd most popular app (globally) behind Facebook

• Pinterest generates more referral traffic than Google+, LinkedIn, and YouTube combined

Sources: HubSpot; Marketing Land

•Your cause is inherently emotional.•You must tell your

organization’s story in a way that is:CompellingConciseOriginalEngaging

Photo: myheimuSources: Nonprofit Hub; Social Media 4 Nonprofits

• Audience• Conflict• Characters• Drama• Happy ending

Fairy Tale Model

Source: Nonprofit Hub

Playful and cuddly, this is Ace!

#cat #kitten #adoptme

#upforadoption #austinpetsalive

#pet

Why Flickr?

Promote the destination through photography

Photo: Soul_Smiling

Photo: JustinPratscher

Provide content for other social media channels, website, and print publications

Create awareness about the scenic beauty and fun activities in the destination

Photo: shewhopaints

Spend little or no money doing it

Photo: mattdil

Oh yeah? Show me.

If you agree to these rules, you can join the group

Only post pictures to this group for which you own the original copyright or are in the public domain.

All pictures posted to this group may be used by the Colorado River Trail in its various publications, both print or online (including social media). We will credit you as the photographer on any photo that we use.

Only photos depicting the Colorado River Trail region will be accepted. We reserve the right to reject submissions to our Flickr group displaying content we deem to be inappropriate or offensive without prior warning. The Colorado River Trail reserves the right to update the Group Rules.

Agree to terms …

… or, ask each time

Facebook – “Tripod Trivia” Weekly Feature

Facebook – “Make ‘em Jealous”

Facebook – Advertising

Twitter

Blog Content – Photo posts & slideshows

Blog Widgets – Flickr badges

Website icons

Print Publications

Internal Docs

Colorado River TrailPhoto Contest

Photo: JustinPratscher

1. Build photography

inventory in our

Flickr group

2. Increase awareness

3. Increase fan and

follower

engagement

4. Build fan/follower-

base on social

media channels

Goals

Process

1. Join Flickr group; agree

to Terms; upload photos

2. Tag photos with

“CRTContest12”

3. Judging team selected

top 10

4. One round of public

voting

Photo: accent on ecclectic

• 95 contest entries• 6.2% avg. increase in Fans/followers on Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr• 329.8% increase in Facebook activity (likes and comments)•1850% increase in Twitter activity (retweets and @mentions)• > 802 % increase in inbound traffic to the photo contest web page• Time on site ranged from :33 seconds pre-contest to 6:45 during peak voting•Biggest website traffic sources were Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr

Results:

Photo: watsoninelgin

Photo: joannamarieharris

PollDaddy for Voting

Photo: Soul_Smiling

2010 Contest Winner

Photo: David Stall

2011 Contest Winner

Photo: Soul_Smiling

2012 Contest Winner

Lessons

Learned

1. Keep it simple

2. Keep it short

3. Fish where the fish are

4. Promote, promote,

promote

5. Know IT limitations

Photo: EggMasterDuke

One Last Example

• Engaging your audience beyond “the like” on Facebook

• Encourages your network to create social content

• A methodology to experiment, pilot, and adopt new channels

Source: bethkanter.org

Follow Me

@ColoradoRiverTr

Facebook.com/ColoradoRiverTrail

@pagetx

Sarah PageSenior Economic Development Specialist

LCRAsarah.page@lcra.org

512-578-3513

Flickr.com/groups/ColoradoRiverTrail

Statigr.am/pagetx

Statigr.am/coloradorivertrail