As a Hudson Valley digital marketing company, we create a lot of shareable social media content for our clients. Many people in the business community view social media as a one-way conversation: they blast out messages and hope their audience will connect with it. They’re missing a step: you have to do some research first. It’s the difference between hoping and knowing that your social media work is valuable.
By crunching publicly available data, we can get a picture into what businesses attract what kinds of people, and where they’re from. We can see what topics and kinds of content are talked about and shared the most on social media by different groups. We can even tell who the most active and influential social media users are in a community, and do targeted outreach to them.
A new thing to do with social data is to measure Instagram activity: there were 7,250 Instagram pictures geotagged in Kingston, NY in the months of August, September and October.
Geotagged Instagram posts are rare and valuable: only 15-25% of photos are geotagged, but they they attract get 79% more engagement than those without tags. Locations on this list are doing something to delight their visitors; by taking the time to geotag, people are indicating that they’re proud to be there, and want their followers to know it.
Here’s a top-level view of Kingston’s most Instagrammed locations.
Note: Instagram posts by the organizations themselves were not counted in this tally.
1. BSP Kingston:
429 Grams @bspkingston
https://www.instagram.com/p/9UrSaxO2iQ/?taken-at=139160468
BSP is showing up a lot on our blog; they’re a huge deal in the Kingston and Hudson Valley music scene. A lot of people take pictures of the bands they’re seeing, and BSP also throws huge events on nights like New Year’s Eve, Halloween and more that have lots of little items of interest that people want to capture. By putting up a giant Welcome to Kingston sign behind their main stage, they’re also sneaking a little ad for our city into hundreds of pictures.
2. The Anchor:
231 Grams @anchorgram
https://www.instagram.com/p/9UrSaxO2iQ/?taken-at=139160468
Another bar? No wonder we were named the drunkest city in the state. The Anchor is another big deal in terms of Kingston’s nightlife. They put on lots of shows for a diverse range of music and also have open mics and comedy shows, and they have a pretty ridiculous menu of bar food.
3. Keegan Ales:
120 Grams @keeganales
https://www.instagram.com/p/48Bg-Xu_Mb/?taken-at=1642915
Keegan Ales has been a Kingston staple since 2003, making beer in a previously abandoned brewery before it became cool and trendy to do that. Nowadays, almost everything we buy was made in some kind of repurposed factory. I’m a Mother’s Milk man from way back, while Gabrielle, as a coffee addict, is into Joe Mama’s Milk.
4. Outdated: an antique café:
115 Grams @outdatedcafe
https://www.instagram.com/p/9TaKR-HbJn/?taken-at=237135185
Outdated is ripe with ‘Gram opportunities; not only is their coffee/vegetarian/brunch/baked fare lovingly and thoughtfully plated, but their space doubles as an antique shop full of Hudson Valley artifacts that are everywhere. Eating at Outdated is like eating inside of an Instagram picture.
5. O+ Festival:
101 Grams @opositivefest
https://www.instagram.com/p/uBfYQ7L3mS/
The O+ festival is a city-wide, October weekend event that helps artists and musicians barter their work for medical care. It’s a blitz of musical performances, artist works on public and private property and health & wellness programming. Its visual power and popularity is seen in its place on its list; in just three days, more people geotagged pictures from O+ than almost anywhere else in three months.
6. Andy Murphy Community Center/Hudson Valley Hullabaloo:
100 Grams @hudsonvalleyhullabaloo
https://www.instagram.com/p/-Zs3XygzLN/?taken-at=176207428
The Hudson Valley Hullabaloo is an annual curated indie craft fair that is spearheaded by Wishbone Letterpress’ Danielle Bliss and Seven Cloud Creative Solutions’ Danielle Bliss. Since there are so many social media-savvy vendors, they’re able to count on a lot of correctly tagged Instagram posts promoting the event. The event itself is very photogenic too, and even had a cool photo booth by Shirt Factory neighbor Peter Demuth as a fun way for people to remember the event.
7. Brunette Wine Bar:
78 Grams @brunettewinebar
https://www.instagram.com/p/-saUkxqsGo/?taken-at=830529813
The Kingston Strand’s Brunette Wine Bar is a perfect example of how doing notable things in real-life can translate into social media success. Owners Jamie and Tracy Kennard are a graphic designer and fashion consultant, respectively, and they’ve translated their eye for design into a wine bar that is as nice to look at as it is to drink at. Patrons take pictures of the interior design, the plating, and even the signage and menus.
8. Ole Savannah Southern Table & Bar:
77 Grams @ole_savannah_downtown
https://www.instagram.com/p/-W4gD_C5QH/?taken-at=752854945
Another establishment on Kingston’s downtown Strand that opened in 2015, Ole Savannah gets lots of ‘Gram photos because they have a photogenic location on the Rondout, and a very social atmosphere that lends itself to documenting the evening for posterity.
9. Kingston NY Farmers Market:
67 Grams @kingstonfarmersmarket
https://www.instagram.com/p/5ANatWNbQJ/?taken-at=806898454
The Kingston Farmers Market is a destination for both local grocery shoppers and for tourists who want a slice of how life is upstate. There are bands, a diverse group of local farmers and merchants, and a really pretty backdrop in Uptown Kingston. There are beautiful flowers, colorful meats, cheeses and produce, and lots of cute animals and random occurrences (like parrots) that make for great ‘Gram fodder.
10. Seven21 Media Center:
60 Grams No Instagram Account
https://www.instagram.com/p/8rPvrCrCyq/?taken-at=18008197
The Seven21 Media Center on Broadway is home to a number of digitally-connected Kingston, NY companies and was one of the venues that hosted O+ Festival murals and music acts. There’s a lot going on here, so it’s no surprise that many people tag their photos as being at the Center.
11. Hudson River Maritime Museum:
58 Grams No Instagram Account
https://www.instagram.com/p/78X1YqFT0X/?taken-at=270440998
The Hudson River Maritime Museum is the third and final Strand location that’s on this list; their exhibits and beautiful setting on the Rondout result in lots of people taking pictures here.
12. Duo Bistro:
50 Grams No Instagram Account
https://www.instagram.com/p/2weJ4Py5vT/?taken-at=16260707
Duo Bistro is a great brunch place in Uptown Kingston; many Instagrammers hit it up for mimosas and omelettes as part of their Saturday at the Farmers Market. The food is always delicious and plated well, and they have outdoor seating so it’s great to sit on the street on a lazy day and watch the activity Uptown. Many people take Instagram pictures here, but they don’t have an account, so it’s probably an opportunity for them.
13. Kingston High School:
49 Grams No Instagram Account
Kingston High School is located in Midtown Kingston and has about 2,500 students, many of whom have smartphones and are avid Instagrammers. It’s only natural that some of them post pictures outside of school hours and after their homework is done, of course.
14. Stockade Tavern:
46 Grams @stockadekingston
https://www.instagram.com/p/-UgwkeF0_2/?taken-at=2090925
Stockade is where Kingston gets its cocktails. If you’re taking a picture at Stockade, it’s of the beautiful, reclaimed bar, of one of the bartenders shaking and mixing various liquids and substances together, or of one of their glorious drinks sitting in front of you.
