David Johnson
Shaka Juice – Social Media Strategy and Rebranding
Public Relations
Project Summary:
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! Last summer was a rough time for business owners every where. Naturally, my good friend Kioa Delos Reyes thought that it was the perfect time to start a small business with his daughter. They started serving tropical juices at the Rexburg Farmer’s Market with the brand name Sweet Nectar and to their surprise they were moderately successful. Kioa came back this year and wanted to take his juice business to the next level.
This summer he wanted to rebrand as Shaka Juice. This name better referenced Kioa’s Hawaiian heritage, the tropical nature of the drinks and the fun-loving laid back vibes the business represented. A new name meant that raising visibility through social media was more important than ever. That’s where I came in.
I’ve spent the semester creating a variety of posts and stories to be uploaded regularly to the Shaka Juice Instagram page. Posts were designed to inform the public at large. Things like Farmer’s Market hours, weather forecasts and flavor menus were posted to our feed. Stories were used to engage existing followers. I ran polls asking followers which of two flavors they we should serve that week, questionnaires asking what flavor they were most excited about and inviting customers to tag us in stories of their own sipping juice and flashing the “hang loose” sign.
The biggest lesson that I learned personally in the course of this project, was setting goals and executing specific strategies to achieve them. The very first time we sat down, Kioa and I set a goal as well as a stretch goal for how many followers we wanted to see after the rebranding went live. Everything that I did was based around achieving those goals. In the end, the hard work payed off and we saw a 150% increase in followership over what Kioa had last year, and we did it in less than two months.
I’m going to continue working with Shaka Juice through the end of the Farmer’s Market in September and Kioa and I are already setting new goals to achieve before the end. I’m optimistic that the lessons I have learned will make these goals a reality.
Thank you and hang loose!
Shaka Juice Social Media Strategy Book