Vintage western wear retailer needed strategic social media management to build brand awareness, drive foot traffic, and establish authentic community presence in competitive Denver market. The Shop Outpost faced the common vintage retail challenge: how to stand out without relying on trends, maintain sophisticated brand voice while staying approachable, and prove ROI on social media investment.

Strategic Foundation

• Voice Development: Established sophisticated, Vogue-inspired editorial tone that avoided typical vintage retail clichés—no "yeehaw" energy, no forced western vernacular, just confident, knowing content that respects the audience's intelligence

• Data-Driven Strategy: Conducted comprehensive performance analysis of existing content to identify what actually drives engagement vs. what brands assume works

• Platform Optimization: Focused exclusively on Instagram with strategic mix of feed posts (3x weekly) and daily Stories based on performance benchmarks

Content Strategy & Execution

High-Performing Content Prioritization:

• Event Coverage: Identified as top performer (400-2,700 story views vs 100-200 baseline); developed pre-event, live, and post-event content frameworks for community events, pop-ups, and partnerships

• UGC/Creator Collaborations: Coordinated partnerships with local content creators to expand reach and drive authentic engagement

• Customer Testimonials: Developed "Meet [Customer]" series featuring real customer stories (400-700 views, strong engagement)

• Behind-the-Scenes Content: Created sellers hours coverage, curation process transparency, and business reality content (300-1,055 views)

• Personality-Driven Posts: Leveraged owner's authentic voice and bold opinions to drive conversation and differentiation

Content Calendar Development:

• Created monthly content calendars (October 2024 - March 2026+) with thematic focus tied to retail calendar and community events

• Developed daily Instagram Story framework balancing product features, community engagement, staff personality, and customer spotlights

• Wrote all post copy maintaining brand voice consistency across promotional, educational, and community-focused content

Campaign Development

Small Business Saturday Campaign (November 2024):

• Designed 7-day countdown series highlighting community values, neighboring businesses, and sustainable shopping

• Integrated charitable giving messaging (5% of sales to community partners)

• Created rental promotion strategy for holiday events and photoshoots

Seasonal Campaigns:

• Valentine's Western: Repositioned Valentine's Day through TSO lens (red leather as investment, not seasonal trend)

• Stock Show Coverage: Month-long National Western Stock Show content strategy with customer feature series

• Spring Transition: Educational content on between-season dressing for unpredictable Colorado weather

• International Women's Day: Women-owned business spotlight series on East Colfax corridor

Community Building & Partnerships

• Developed monthly charity partnership content strategy with impact reporting

• Created neighboring business spotlight series strengthening East Colfax business community

• Coordinated customer testimonial collection and feature content

• Built framework for staff personality content that felt authentic, not forced

Strategic Optimization

• Performance Analysis: Monthly reporting with engagement metrics, reach analysis, and actionable recommendations

• Iterative Improvement: Eliminated low-performing content types (educational graphics, generic gift guides, text-heavy posts) in favor of video-first, personality-driven content

• Story Strategy Refinement: Reduced story series length from 15+ slides to 3-5 maximum based on completion rate data

• Format Optimization: Shifted from carousels to Reels after identifying 10x performance differential

Engagement & Reach Growth

• Breakthrough Content: Single UGC creator collaboration achieved 65,321 views, 2,986 likes, 1,748 shares, and 772 new followers (vs. 1,000-2,000 average post views)

• Event Content ROI: Event-focused stories consistently outperformed product content by 200-400%, with 400-2,700 views vs 100-200 baseline

• Story Engagement: Customer testimonial and BTS content averaging 400-1,055 views, significantly outperforming industry benchmarks

• Community Content: Personality-driven posts (owner perspectives/opinions) achieving 195 likes vs 13-25 average for standard posts

Content Performance Optimization

• Identified and eliminated content types with 50-70% lower engagement (educational carousels, price-first product posts, generic styling guides)

• Increased story completion rates by 40% through series length reduction and narrative improvement

• Improved post engagement rate by prioritizing Reels over static carousels based on performance data

Brand Positioning & Community Impact

• Established The Shop Outpost as sophisticated alternative to typical vintage retailers through consistent voice and values-driven messaging

• Strengthened East Colfax business community connections through collaborative content and cross-promotion

• Built authentic customer community through testimonial features and user-generated content emphasis

• Successfully communicated sustainability/conservation values without preachy or heavy-handed messaging

Strategic Business Support

• Developed content frameworks for rental business expansion (space, wardrobe, decor)

• Created Hat Bar promotion strategy emphasizing customization and craftsmanship

• Supported Small Business Saturday with targeted messaging driving in-store traffic

• Built event marketing playbook for recurring and one-off community activations

Key Deliverables

• Content Calendars: 6+ months of strategic monthly calendars with post concepts, copy, and Story frameworks

• Performance Reports: Monthly analytics with actionable insights and strategy adjustments

• Brand Voice Guidelines: Documentation of tone, style, and messaging principles

• Campaign Strategies: Multi-touch campaigns for seasonal promotions, community events, and business initiatives

• Collaboration Frameworks: Creator partnership guidelines and community engagement protocols