Social Media Specialist
At the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
What Is It
The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) is the only museum in the country devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history and culture. It was established by an act of Congress in 2003 following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans.
What @caraberny does
As the Social Media Specialist, I manage NMAAHC’s social media planning, calendar, accounts, signature campaign strategies and social media voice. I am currently responsible for the national museum’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts, an audience of over 1 million followers. I assist with storytelling around historical #OnThisDay anniversaries and support promotions of the museum’s public programming, special events, the work of the museum’s various academic centers and internship recruitment.
What @carabery has accomplished (so far)
Edits, schedules, analyzes and monitors social media content (2,000+ posts annually) including organic and user generated content, paid ads, collaborations, etc., ensuring historical accuracy, cultural relevance, consistent museum voice, formatting and quality scholarship for the purpose of maximizing online engagement. Partners with NMAAHC’s internationally acclaimed team of historians and external partners (Google Arts & Culture, Disney Theatrical Group, NASA, Marvel, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian National Museum of American History, etc.) to create educational and engaging content.
Why it actually mattered
NMAAHC is a cultural destination that means so much to people around the world, and serves as a space of introspection, connection and transformation for visitors, corporate and governmental sponsors, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) businesses, influencers and history makers and communities at large. It’s more than a museum. It’s a movement. That’s why it’s so important to get this museum’s storytelling campaigns right, and hold the social media content to the highest possible editorial standards with clearheadedness, consistency and respect for all clients, external and internal. These are all things I’ve successfully demonstrated through my work at NMAAHC. Let me show you how.
NMAAHC Campaigns
#BlackHistoryMonth 2023: Black Resistance: The NMAAHC website is consistently one of Google’s top organic search website for #BlackHistoryMonth. 2023’s theme, provided by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) was Black Resistance. I worked to write, produce and design a robust, multipronged 4-week educational social media campaign around this history, creating themed posts, a social media toolkit, live coverage of museum programming celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Lion King on Broadway, culminating in a celebration of #BlackJoy.
TL/DR - Over 9.8 million organic impressions across all social media channels (87% increase from 2022)
#NMAAHCFutures Afrofuturism Exhibition: In the year leading up to March 2023 (and well beyond that date), I worked across NMAAHC, the Smithsonian Institution and other aligned governmental entities such as NASA, and with influencers and celebrities and more to promote the opening of an exciting short term special exhibition called “Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures.” Afrofuturism is a futuristic cultural aesthetic that has ties to music, art, literature, architecture, film, theater and more, that envisions liberated futures for Black life.
I worked with the team to develop a “steady drumbeat” of social media to cultivate one of the museum’s most successful exhibition openings to date by highlighting key historical #OnThisDay storytelling opportunities to educate about Black pioneers and accomplishments featured in the groundbreaking exhibition. As we got closer to opening date, I drafted sharable content for our digital toolkit, spearheaded research for the best and brightest Blerd (“Black-nerd”) content creators to collab with on promotion, worked directly with the exhibition creators to ensure historical accuracy, and captured content of celebrities and object donors witnessing their donated items on view on opening night.
