The world of coffee tends to be called a “community” for a reason—from farm to roaster to cup, there’s a deep interest in pretty much every step in the process. When we began planning Bow Truss Coffee Roasters’ online presence, it was important for us to emulate the same feeling cafes evoke: comfort, enjoyable chatter and, of course, coffee. We recognized that Bow Truss had the opportunity to bring people into the fold of the coffee community in-store and out by tapping into the sense of sharing that is micro-blogging platform Tumblr's core.
Bow Truss isn’t just a cafe in Chicago, it’s also a coffee roaster that provides artisanal roasts to restaurants like Maude’s, Bavette’s Bar & Boeuf and Doughnut Vault in additional to online sales of whole beans and partnership with companies like Mistobox. We work hard to tell a larger story about coffee that is as accessible to readers around the world as possible. We frequently release special labels, unique blends and fun project collaborations like our recent Threadless Specialty Coffee design contest. Suddenly, Tumblr viewers who followed the #Coffee hashtag to find gorgeous photos of a warm cup of coffee can be linked to our online shop where they can buy the beans we’re talking about and brew them up at home.
By sharing everything from our roasting process to brew methods and events, we could attempt to replicate much of the personality of the space and team. We chose to use Tumblr as an integrated part of our social media strategy because it’s as living and breathing as the roaster itself. Technically, it acts as the home for our longer form content, videos, small written pieces and new products but it also links to our Instagram, allowing us to share candid moments and interesting happenings in the shop.
There’s a lot we want to say about the roaster on a daily basis. While Facebook and Twitter allow us to quickly connect with a huge network and Instagram helps us create instant content, Tumblr bridges the gap between a well-designed space with beautiful content and an active, worldwide community. Because Bow Truss is a sister company of Doejo, a digital agency in Lakeview, it was also important that the design of the Tumblr reflected the polished look and feel of the Bow Truss website.
Kelsey Kreiling is the director of social media at award-winning digital agency Doejo where she directs social media, public relations and events. She also sets strategy and oversees community management for Bow Truss Coffee Roasters, outside clients such as Contract Magazine and Doejo projects like Brokur and Map of the Dead. In addition, Kelsey develops experiential digital strategy & brand partnerships such as the Threadless Coffee Design Challenge.
