PERSONAL PROJECT
Crafting a Social Media Hub from Scratch: My Journey to Empower a Community of Content Creators
CLIENT: N/A (Personal Solo Project)
LOCATION: Philippines, Global (Remote)
Project Overview: Building a Social Media Hub
My interest in social media grew because of its dynamic nature — how trends can change overnight and its strong ability to bring people together. However, I quickly realized that the constant introduction of new tools and rapid changes can be overwhelming, even for experienced managers.
This led me to create my project — a brand focused on being a dependable resource for social media professionals. I wanted to make staying informed a more empowering experience by offering free advice, tools, and resources. The project goes beyond practical support, fostering a community where people share insights, celebrate wins, and support each other—a network built to drive success in this ever-evolving field.
I led the project from start to finish, designing the website with Figma, crafting the brand identity using Adobe Illustrator, and creating content with Photoshop and After Effects. I also developed a social media strategy that leveraged Pinterest and TikTok for increased reach and engagement.
Within less than a year, the brand quickly gained traction, amassing 32K+ followers on TikTok and 23K+ members in the Facebook group. It also attracted international clients while I expanded my services to include social media specialization for my graphic design freelancing, offering tailored solutions to some of my clients.
My Role
As the sole creator of this project, I took on multiple roles – from conceptualizing the brand to executing its executing across various stages. I handled the website design in Figma, put together the brand identity, and created content using my expertise in Photoshop and After Effects. I also set up a social media strategy, focusing on platforms like Pinterest and TikTok to get more people engaged.
Software Used
I utilized all my software expertise, but mostly:
- Figma: Website layout and social media post organization
- Adobe Illustrator: Logo design, branding elements, and 3D icons
- Adobe Photoshop: Image editing for posts
- Adobe After Effects: Motion graphics and video content
The Challenge
In this project, I set out to explore a range of social media platforms, from the mainstream to the more niche ones like Pinterest and TikTok, which was still emerging. What started as a plan to understand and utilize these tools turned into a fascinating journey of continuous learning and experimentation.
Managing this side project required constant blogging, community engagement, and regular updates. The social media landscape was evolving so quickly that it felt like a race to keep up with shifting algorithms and new features. Despite the challenges, it was an exhilarating experience that taught me a lot.
What drove this effort wasn’t the prospect of immediate financial gain but the desire to build a solid foundation for a network. The goal was to create a space where knowledge could be shared and connections made, setting the stage for future collaborations and opportunities.
animated Social Wanted logo
Crafting Social Wanted was an exhilarating journey, beginning with a whirlwind of ideas and a spark of creative vision. I immersed myself in developing the brand’s core elements—logo, color palette, and typefaces—while simultaneously designing and building the website on WordPress. The process took several days, during which I meticulously refined every detail to ensure the site was visually stunning and functioned flawlessly across all devices.
Endless brainstorming sessions filled with diverse concepts led me to the name “Social Wanted.” This name perfectly captured the brand’s essence and mission.
The choice of “Social Wanted” was intentional and strategic. It emphasized its focus on social media, the heart of its services. The word “wanted” served a dual purpose: it signaled our aspiration to achieve something remarkable. It subtly referenced the iconic “most wanted” posters, which inspired the edgy sophistication in its logo design. This nod to wanted posters added a layer of intrigue and modernity to the brand’s identity.
Additionally, “Social Wanted” was catchy and memorable, making it an ideal choice for the brand. It encapsulated our vision compellingly and engagingly, setting the stage for the creative journey ahead.
There was at least a month’s worth of content that I worked on daily for at least a week before I made it public. I did several teasers and made sure everything looked good and was put up properly.
Under the “resources” section of the site, there are variety of helpful Adobe Photoshop and Canva templates, including a constantly updated cover photo sizes template, to assist other social media managers.
some original carousel templates resource available for download on the website
To spread the word about these free resources, I set up a social media pages and, happily, have been able to grow our following organically through the provision of free advice and tools that we were certain would be useful to them in their pursuit of social media success.
I used to maintain a hashtag calendar, which was quite well received and was useful to many individuals as they developed their online material.
Hashtag calendars
We used a variety of free online resources to streamline the process of coming up with posts, hashtags, and ideas for making an effect in the community. Some examples are as follows:
Trello was connected to our mobile devices, allowing us to be productive even when we didn’t have access to a computer.
Hootsuite was utilized to schedule posts in advance so that we could still interact with the community and our followers at the time of the post.
Flick were incorporated into the current technique for hashtag generation. We made sure the then-current hashtag ladder was properly applied in the algorithm so that we could reach people without paying for ads.
Since Microsoft Excel (via Google Drive) is free in comparison to Hootsuite’s paid features, we use it to polish our posts’ designs, captions, and hashtags before uploading them to the various networks.
Sample Instagram post
10 slide carousel post sample with animated design
CAPTION:
Have you taken services from social media businesses who offered to buy you thousands of followers?
Ever followed someone and then unfollowed them after they followed you back?
Stop right now! These practices have a bad impact on your growth!
If you’ve just started, don’t look for shortcuts to gain engagement – none of them can benefit you in the long run.
Instead, post valuable content that your audience can relate to/benefit from and build a genuine community from there. That’s when the algorithm starts to work in your favor.
Don’t forget to follow Social Wanted for FREE tips and resources in graphic design and social media management.
Hashtags Used (algorithm as of July 2020):
10 slide carousel post with animated design
Ongoing Practice
as we keep making posts and interacting with the community, we keep figuring out what works and what doesn’t, and we keep refining our approach to ensure we’re always providing the best we can in every respect. Details like timing and layout for each platform are crucial.
At random intervals, we’ll add a little something extra to the mix, like making a Giphy brand account so our fans may utilize IG stickers we produced from scratch.
Our Tiktok account grew to 30k+ followers, and we redirected our audience to our YouTube channel, which now has 1k subscribers, by making Adobe software design tutorials, which we find both informative and entertaining.
Instagram promotional video
The positive feedback from fellow content creators and the rapid growth of our community within just a year have been incredibly rewarding. This success has not only attracted new customers but also expanded my knowledge and kept me up-to-date with the latest trends in social media.
Several of our platforms have already fostered thriving communities:
We eventually minimize creating content to the platforms as we focused on paid projects, but the website and social media are still live and in use today. Regular revisions to the templates’ specifications in response to platform improvements have helped me sell my resources tab designs to a wide range of content creators.
Outcomes & Learnings
Through persistent experimentation and learning, the project evolved into a comprehensive resource for social media managers. The community we built became a valuable network for exchanging ideas and exploring potential business opportunities. While this venture was not initially driven by profit, it has laid the foundation for future growth and collaboration in the social media space.
Conclusion
This project exemplifies the power of passion-driven initiatives in the digital age. It’s a testament to how a single idea, nurtured with dedication and creativity, can grow into a platform that not only serves its intended audience but also fosters a community of like-minded individuals. As the social media landscape continues to evolve, this brand will continue to adapt, offering valuable resources and support to those navigating this dynamic industry.