Tips and and tools to help you grow your brand online.
Brands on Martha's Vineyard that are doing digital right
Martha’s Vineyard is a small island located off of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. It’s also referred to as “The Vineyard” or even just “The Island” among locals, and it’s where we call home. It’s a unique place made up of many seasonal businesses, summer tourists, and a resilient population of year round residents. Given its designation as a seasonal, resort community there is an extreme ebb and flow to Island life, and the social media presence of many of its businesses. Log into Instagram mid-August and you’ll see thousands of posts using the hashtag #marthasvineyard. Do the same thing mid-February and those posts are far and few in between.
Today, we’re sharing our top ten favorite Island brands that, in our opinion, are doing a stellar job on social media. Whether it’s a great presence on Twitter, high quality photos on Instagram, or consistent posts on Facebook, these Vineyard companies are pushing the boundaries and shining when it comes to being social. Make sure to check out the links and show them some love! Pro tip: Encourage your Instagram followers to follow them on Friday with the hashtag #followfriday.
The Harbor View Hotel consistently kills it with their branding and message. Known as the “Great Dame of Edgartown,” it’s a historic hotel with a world-renowned reputation. You can find them on all platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) and their bright, crisp photos create an overall aesthetic that always looks great.
Pro tip: Creating a consistent aesthetic for your photos is key for developing your branding. Is your brand a subtle, hazy photo brand or a bright colors in your face brand? Either works, and there’s filters to help you achieve both, just make sure to keep it consistent with your branding.
This luxury boutique hotel in Edgartown does a great job using hashtags to reach their target audience on Instagram. One of our favorite campaigns was was “The Art of Hob Knob” an Instagram photo series that showcased the artwork in the inn for a full month. Creative campaigns such as this show your audience a different side of your brand while giving them a sneak peak into your business.
Local photographer Joshua Robinson-White manages his own Instagram account with almost 10,000 followers where he showcases his Martha’s Vineyard photography. His style focuses on nighttime photography and his edits are always jaw-dropping. Joshua averages hundreds of likes on his Instagram photos because he’s giving his audience something of value: gorgeous photos of a place they love.
This Island town just recently started up on social media and we wanted to show them some love. They are actively investing in their Instagram account and we can’t wait to see where they go with it. Their consistency is admirable, sharing daily happenings and store deals around town!
Martha’s Vineyard is home to dozens of local farms producing beautiful, delicious, sustainable food. We love following Morning Glory Farm on Facebook, where they post daily specials, a great, constant reminder of the variety they offer. Whether it’s highlighting their Thai food night or their fabulous baker and the sweet treat up her sleeves, it’s their consistent posting that gets them on our list.
The MV Times, one of two local Island newspapers, recently launched a daily newsletter called “The Minute.” Email marketing is one of the smartest ideas to get behind this year. It allows you to deliver highly curated messages directly to your customers, so it's a surefire way to get more eyes on your brand, especially with the constant algorithm changes on most social media platforms. Have you started collecting emails to create a newsletter?
What’s Open on MV fills the need for seasonal and Island residents to know what’s businesses are open in real time. Given the Island’s seasonality many stores and restaurants shut down for the winter, take an extended break or have limited, varying hours. What’s Open on MV recognized a need for accurate information and in turn, gave value to the Island community - that’s what it’s all about!
More and more Island real estate companies and their agents are getting more active on social media, in efforts to better sell their properties and Martha’s Vineyard as a destination. They recognize that their summer rental audience is planning their vacation online, and constantly gushing over Island photos on Instagram when they're off-Island. Point B Realty is leading the way with their blog, especially with the help of Guinevere Cramer, their blogger extraordinaire, who writes some of the most informative articles about the Island. Their content not only provides value to their clients, but the greater Island community as well. Plus it’s a great way to up their SEO and Google loves it!
How a museum makes social media fun and engaging is a task on its own, but the MV Museum is up to the challenge! Their quality posts keep their audience abreast of new exhibitions, and they regularly host events throughout the year to engage followers both on and off social media. They also produce a thoughtful newsletter that reads like a compelling story, making Island history fun for everyone that follows along!
Citrine is a local retail shop in downtown Vineyard Haven, chock full of unique and stylish clothes and accessories. They do a lot of things right and we most appreciate how they support the local artist community in-store and online. Showing your support for community and sharing the work of others is a surefire way to engage with your audience, while bringing awareness to other brands they might not know about otherwise.
Let us know in the comments if you have any other favorite Island brands on social media–we’d love to show them some love!
