Welcome back to Blogging in Belfast – Building a Community Online. For our final set of answers to our questions about growing your following and nurturing your audience, we had the absolute joy of collaborating with Jordan Humphries, Q Radio Breakfast star and queen of all our commutes in the morning! Jordan’s amazing style, determination to stay real and relatable to her followers and her infectious laugh and personality are what sets her apart from others. So here’s what she has to say about building a community online.
How did you get into blogging/ social media/ influencing?
I’d consider myself a bit of an accidental blogger. I have a background in modelling, and I’ve always loved taking photos and making people laugh, but I only started to grow my following quickly since lockdown began. It was then that I started purposefully creating content, and I haven’t stopped!
What is your advice for anyone trying to grow their following?
My advice is to have a target audience in mind. Rather than trying to appeal to everyone, have a clear idea of who your ideal follower demographic is and what it is you’re trying to say. Always make sure what your posting feels authentic and true to yourself. People appreciate a clear message conveyed in a creative way.
How would you suggest brands set themselves apart this Christmas 2020?
Make your content relatable and shareable- something that your audience will see and think “I want to tag my best friend in this,” either by using humour, stunning photography, a clever caption or something informative and interesting.
Who are your favourite three influencers/bloggers? Why?
My favourite local accounts are:
– @gerrylavz_ : His stories are so funny, I never skip past them! Also, his grid is an aesthetic dream – he has a fantastic eye for creating a beautiful image.
– @melissariddell: She is beautiful, friendly and positive and I LOVE her style. Her fashion reels are beyond amazing.
– @ciaranmullan: Ciaran is hilarious, fashionable and has really engaging and interesting stories. He’s always making suggestions of great places to visit, eat and stay in NI (and his TikTok lip-syncs are on point!)
Top three tips for creating engaging imagery for your social feeds?
1. Use a good camera. It doesn’t have to be an actual camera, a decent phone is perfect too. Take your time taking photos, experimenting with different angles and lighting – nothing on my grid is a one take wonder!
2. Utilise photo editing apps to take your images to the next level. I play with light, colour, contrast etc on LightRoom, VSCO and Tezza.
3. Utilising video tools such as Instagram reels and IGTV, often gains great traction. Be ruthless when it comes to editing; cut your piece short and only leave the very best bits in. People have very short attention spans.
Building a community online is harder than it looks! Jordan’s seemingly effortless influencing debut has a method behind it. Her advice is down to earth and practical, and can be applied to anyone’s social media situation. Thank you so much to Jordan for sharing your thoughts with us and collaborating with us on our Blogging in Belfast – Building a Community Online series, we appreciate it so much!
Check our Jordan’s fab and seriously relatable Instagram account here and hit follow!