People take photos at the Big Heart sculpture in the distillery district of Toronto, on July 13.Christopher Katsarov/The Globe and Mail
In early July, Rik Ocvirk was practising office chair wrangling on the second floor of a Victorian industrial building in Toronto’s Distillery District. As the director of experiences and events for the district, he was perfecting his lasso skills in anticipation of the arrival of some wooden cattle he had commissioned for the summer’s Picks and Bricks Country Festival.
The chance to rope an immobile steer was one of multiple activities Mr. Ocvirk had dreamt up to allow festivalgoers to enjoy themselves while capturing a moment to share with their followers on social media. Line-dancing lessons, mechanical bull riding, whiskey tastings, a doggy dress-up contest – a plethora of photo-ops with props such as a vintage tractor he had shipped in from Prince Edward County, a farming community to the east of the city.
“City folk don’t get to sit on a tractor often. So if I can get a couple of tractors and put them out there and people can just sit on a real live tractor and take a picture, it would be funny,” he said.
The Distillery District’s emphasis on creating Instagram-worthy experiences to draw people into its commercial space, with its restaurants, shops and entertainment venues, is part of a larger trend to appeal to the social media-minded consumer. Delivering an experience that will generate likes and shares for customers is a powerful way for businesses to promote themselves.
“This user-generated content has become the marketing of the future,” Mr. Ocvirk said.
An Ipsos study of 1,500 Instagram users found that 65 per cent of those who identified as frequent travellers in Canada said they use Instagram for destination inspiration. And of 300 Instagram business users surveyed, 53 per cent said it helps them find customers outside their city, and nearly three in five said the platform helps them bring in local clients.
The influence of social media on consumer behaviour is a firmly embedded trend that’s shaping the way businesses attract customers, said Jenna Jacobson, an associate professor at the Ted Rogers School of Management at Toronto Metropolitan University.
“People recognize that the experiences of the offline world are also amplified and shared in the digital world. So people who are creating these spaces are purposefully thinking: ‘How do we create an Instagram-able, shareable moment?’ ” Prof. Jacobson said.
Mr. Ocvirk said he’s constantly asking his team what they’re tuning into online to get new ideas for promotions. The country festival, for example, came to fruition because they noticed the genre had become more mainstream after the release of Beyoncé's country album, Cowboy Carter, in March.
About a 45-minute walk west of the Distillery District, Craig Perlmutter is also designing his business to meet a certain Instagrammable aesthetic. The president of Arcadia Earth Toronto, an immersive art and technology experience in the city’s new mixed-use space, the Well, said his business’s social-media presence is a large part of its marketing strategy.
Visitors spend about an hour walking through the multisensory exhibit, which features various environmental themes.
“When rooms were developed for the space, it was really important that there were those Instagrammable, picturesque moments that people are going to want to share,” Mr. Perlmutter said.
Since opening in December, he said, some 1,600 influencers have come through the space, generating more than 80 million impressions – the number of times a social-media post has been seen – on Arcadia Earth Toronto’s Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and X accounts, as well as creating a series of mini-commercials through Reels or TikTok.
At the Distillery District, Mr. Ocvirk said, the power of social media plays out most heavily during the holiday season, when its Winter Village is in full swing. The district’s data show November and December alone account for about 41 per cent of its impressions on Instagram, more than 40 per cent of likes on its Instagram posts and about 53 per cent of its Instagram follower growth.
Restaurants across Canada are also tapping into social media to increase their online exposure and cater to diners’ tastes for an aesthetically pleasing experience that extends beyond their meal, said Matt Davis, country director for OpenTable Canada.
“It’s not just about the food any more. It has to be about the full experience of the ambience and the feeling you get from being in the restaurant, and that has to be visually compelling enough for diners then to share it,” Mr. Davis said.
Charles Khabouth, the chief executive and founder of INK Entertainment Group, which owns several restaurant brands and trendy clubs, said he’s noticed that visual appeal and atmosphere resonate strongly on social media and that presence on people’s accounts often brings new guests through the door.
“It’s not just about showcasing our food; it’s about capturing the essence of the experience we offer,” he said in an e-mail.
In one of his Toronto restaurants, Daphne, a striking mirror-lined hallway with moody lighting caters to the ideal night-out selfie. Of the more than 1,000 photos under the Daphne location tag on Instagram, it stands out as a highly photographed part of the space.
In the digital age, Prof. Jacobson said, businesses could miss out if they choose to ignore the social media-minded consumer, whose ideal purchase may be more about the memory and personal brand it helps them curate than the product.
“These are often things that you have to purchase access to, but it’s something that happens in a moment and isn’t necessarily something you take with you,” she said. “It’s a different kind of wealth.”
Editor’s note: (Aug. 13, 2024): A previous version of this article incorrectly spelled the surname of Toronto Metropolitan University associate professor Jenna Jacobson. This version has been updated.