project overview:
SOMOS ABQ is an arts & music festival in Downtown Albuquerque. Having worked the 2017 event as a photographer, I was brought on as the brand manager to lead SOMOS' content strategy and social media marketing going into their second year. I managed everything related to content and comms including strategy, managing relationships with contractors and influencers, content writing, animation, editing, and social media management. Year 2 saw the best attendance in the festival's history with 25,000+ attendees
brand content strategy
Somos ABQ positions itself as Downtown Albuquerque's "Brightest" event of the year. As we looked to build on the success of year one, bringing that optimistic outlook to life in the visuals meant showcasing a vibrant community and celebrating that success in the lead up to year two. Color treatments across the festivals visual brand leaned into gradients and eye-catching colorways, including an updated event logo, custom-built lightroom presets for all photo content, animations for video content, and contributions from artists that leaned into that vibrant aesthetic.
sponsor media kit
A social media groundswell meant putting a microphone in the hands of every community member we could. As SOMOS relied so heavily on a multitude of partners from every corner of the community, we decided to put the content tools in their hands too. The result was dozens of different audiences receiving parallel promotions, and an equally diverse turn out for the festival's second year.
social content: promo videos
Leveraging b-roll shot in the festival's first year along with custom animations and gradient overlays built in after effects, we produced several videos in the lead up to the event, highlighting the upcoming programming, headliners, and various other information.
social content: community spotlight
In the discovery phase, the SOMOS ABQ leadership named over three dozen important contributors outside of the organization in less than an hour, it was obvious this festival's optimism and ambition belonged to leaders all over the city, and that celebrating their contributions would help showcase the festival as a deeply grassroots effort.
social content: general
Driving ticket sales without sounding like a salesman on social is a fine line to walk. With Albuquerque's community being so integral to SOMOS' success, celebrating that community through content and captioning meant calls to action were earned. A further driver of engagement was the use of gift cards to these community partners, small things like $20 to your favorite coffee shop went a long way in leveraging established community brands to solidify interest and spread the SOMOS brand around Albuquerque's social media ecosystem.
day of photography
On the day of the event, myself and several other contracted photographers put the lightroom presets to work while documenting the largest turnout the festival has ever seen.
