EP 134: Sam Van Boxtel
September 5, 2022
Sam Van Boxtel is a social media expert and the founder of Climbers Crag. We talked about the business side of being a content creator, why Instagram is the best platform for the climbing industry right now, the importance of having a strong “why”, why posts go viral, how to optimize for growth, creating value on social media, playing the game, and the balance between quality and success. You can learn more about Climbers Crag at climberscrag.com
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts
Check out other episodes with Sam:
EP 159: Tom Randall & Sam Van Boxtel (Mar 6, 2023)
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Show Notes:
Referenced:
Joseph Diaz Climbs (Instagram)
Beau Martino (Instagram)
Crux Academy (Website)
Viral Posts:
Crimpd (spinning reel with 11M views)
Climbers Crag (girl taking a whipper 237M views)
Tools:
Movies Mentioned:
Climbers Crag Links:
Sam’s Links:
Nuggets:
0:06:57 – Organizing the important stuff, and putting systems in place
0:11:11 – Overview of our conversation
0:13:30 – Soccer, discovering climbing, and losing 20-30 lbs to become a route setter
0:17:14 – Sam’s ability to focus on his goals, and why he got into business
0:20:03 – Moving up the chain with route setting
0:22:20 – How Sam got into social media, and getting 1000+ followers in less than a month
0:24:11 – The business side of being a content creator
0:26:57 – Pivoting from route setting to starting Climbers Crag, and how Sam teamed up with Tom Randall
0:37:03 – What Climbers Crag is today
0:40:41 – The organic next step
0:41:58 – Summary of everything so far, and Climbers Crag’s two main services as an agency
0:45:47 – The Climber’s Crag team, and why Sam reduced the size of his team
0:46:58 – Who this is worthwhile for, and having a strong “why”
0:53:13 – The two categories of individuals trying to grow their Instagram following, and having a clear funnel
0:59:17 – Why I decided to make the Nugget for a year before trying to monetize, and making sure you love 80-90% of what you’re doing
1:01:45 – “Goodwill compounds faster than revenue.”
1:02:19 – Virality and customer surplus
1:06:13 – The sustainability/longevity of the different social media platforms, supply and demand, why reels go viral, and why Instagram is king
1:12:41 – Why Sam pressed pause on TikTok for Climbers Crag
1:18:25 – Real numbers for Instagram growth goals, and where Sam thinks brands should be with Instagram before adding another platform
1:20:22 – Another summary, and using Instagram as a jumping-off point
1:23:05 – Crux Academy, and why Sam tries to talk most of his clients out of trying to grow on YouTube
1:24:54 – My current strategy for The Nugget’s Instagram, balancing viral, brand, and value posts, and having a CTA (call to action) strategy
1:32:17 – Sam’s recommendations for me to grow to 100k followers, and the two factors for growth
1:45:11 – Best practices for resharing content from an ethical standpoint
1:50:08 – Best time of day to post
1:52:15 – Hashtags, optimizing content for growth on Instagram, and removing exit points
1:59:48 – Watchtime and engagement
2:02:08 – Using Capcut for Reels
2:05:09 – Playing the game, and the difference between quality and success on a social media platform
2:12:13 – Hiding the vegetables
2:13:30 – Wrap up and how to connect with Sam