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Case Study · 01

Kunstzentrum SOKO

Instagram Growth Strategy · Basel, Switzerland · Oct 2024 – Mar 2026 · Nonprofit cultural center · Serbian diaspora community · Completed engagement

Freelance creative and content strategy role for a nonprofit cultural center. Working primarily with amateur mobile footage and photos, I designed event visuals, developed an AI-assisted visual identity including a branded video outro, and built a data-driven content framework from scratch — resulting in a 4.4× engagement lift and a reach that consistently exceeded the follower base by 3.4×.

4.4×
Avg. likes
per post
3.4×
Reach vs.
followers
9.9%
Peak engagement
rate
28K+
Peak views
single campaign
Roles Covered
Visual & Graphic Design Content Strategy AI Art Direction Video Concept & Production Photography & Filming Analytics & Reporting Brand Development
Problem & Goal

Problem: Kunstzentrum SOKO had an Instagram presence with no visual identity, no content strategy, and no analytics. Posts were published ad-hoc, engagement was unpredictable. Source material consistently consisted of low-quality mobile footage and amateur photography — no professional assets were available.

Goal: Establish a recognizable visual presence and grow audience engagement, within the constraints of a nonprofit budget and limited raw material. Both visual identity and content strategy needed to be built from scratch.

Tools & Outputs

Tools used

Canva CapCut Midjourney Nano Banana Pro Veo 3 Zeemo.ai Instagram Insights

Outputs delivered

Event Posters & Graphics Reels & Video Content Carousels AI-Generated Visuals Branded Video Outro Full Analytics Framework
Before vs. After
Metric Before After Change
Avg. likes per post 9.8 42.9 4.4×
Engagement rate — (not tracked) 3.2% Baseline set
Posts published 12 / 10 months 24 / 8 months 2.5× output
Performance range 2–24 likes 16–110 likes Floor lifted
Before · Oct 2024 – Jul 2025
Text / poster3.4 avg. likes
Video / Reels (general)13.5 avg. likes
Video — featured performer18 avg. likes
Video · live performance23 avg. likes
No reach, views, or demographics tracked
Featured performer uplift signal (2–7×) unrecognized
Events promoted same-day or last-minute
No posting rhythm or content calendar
Format performance never compared
After · Aug 2025 – Mar 2026
Carousels (6 posts)56.3 avg. likes
Video / Reels (11 posts)36.5 avg. likes
Photo / Posters (7 posts)55.9 avg. likes
Performer-led content: featured performers → ER ~1% to 9.9%
Advance timing: 2–3 week window → 30× reach
Segmentation: 68% female; 70% non-follower reach
Format mix: carousels +75% views vs. single posts
AI identity: branded outro + AI-generated creatives

Format mix: 40% carousel · 35% reel · 25% photo — intentionally optimized.

Top Results
Post Likes Views Standout metric
Veštica na sudu — AI reel (Nov 2025) 95 4,482 9.9% ER — highest engagement rate
LINA — Monodrama poster (Feb 2026) 83 3,063 1.22% profile activity — best conversion
Balkan Vocal Workshop series (Sep 2025) 51–99 28,000+ 10,315 reach — biggest campaign
New Capabilities Established
Reach per post — avg. 1,258 (3.4× follower count)
Platform-split follower vs. non-follower reach tracked per post. Enables growth targeting beyond the existing base.
Views per post — avg. 3,124 · peak 28,000+
View data now drives format decisions. Carousels consistently outperform single posts by ~75%.
Audience demographics — 69% female, cultural segment
First demographic profile of SOKO's audience — informs content tone, format, and campaign framing.
Conversion signals — link clicks, profile visits, follows
Connects content to real audience action. Example: LINA poster — 5 link clicks + 6 profile visits + 2 follows.
Art Direction

Self-directed creative within nonprofit constraints. No fixed creative brief from the client — direction was largely self-initiated, adapting to each event's tone and available material.

Cultural authenticity meets contemporary aesthetic. Each visual balanced the cultural heritage of the Serbian diaspora community with a clean, modern look to elevate low-quality source material.

Consistent brand identity built over time. A branded AI-generated video outro (produced in Veo and Midjourney) became a recognizable identity marker across all video content — the first consistent brand element SOKO had.

The branded outro — SOKO's golden falcon, now a recognizable closing signature across all video content.

Marketing Applications
Constraint-driven creativity
Consistent on-brand content with no professional assets — directly applicable to startups, nonprofits, or lean teams without photography or video budgets.
Full-funnel content thinking
From awareness (reach beyond follower base) to conversion (profile visits, link clicks, follows) — not just vanity metrics.
AI integration in production
Practical use of AI image and video tools to close the gap between limited resources and professional output.
Analytics as a creative feedback loop
Strategy adjusted based on real performance data — featured performer content, format mix, advance timing — not intuition.
Brand building from zero
Developed a recognizable visual identity for an organization that had none — applicable to any early-stage brand or product launch.

Note on data transparency: Whether individual posts were boosted with paid promotion was not disclosed to me. All metrics reflect account-level reported data. Organic vs. paid breakdown is unknown — results should be interpreted with that caveat in mind.