Case Studies

Project

JBG SMITH is a real estate developer that owns, operates, invests, and develops a dynamic portfolio of high-growth mixed-use properties in and around Washington, DC. This expanded partnership came out of our existing engagement as their video production partner in National Landing. JBG SMITH consulted the Emerson Street Media team to establish a social media strategy that further advances JBG SMITH’s strategic objectives with video and social working “hand in glove.”

Before our engagement, JBG SMITH was seeking a more consistent social media presence and brand voice on Instagram and LinkedIn. We were tasked with performing an in-depth competitor analysis, developing a thorough social media strategy, and implementing it effectively.

Approach

At the start of every project, we take a comprehensive look at our partner’s current social media efforts alongside those of their key competitors. We evaluate what’s working well and where there’s room for improvement, paying close attention to both the content and the timing of posts, as timing can significantly impact performance. Based on this, we prepared a detailed report on JBG SMITH’s top competitors, identifying opportunities to increase community engagement and drive more traffic to their website. Additionally, we implemented a client-focused audience strategy, analyzing engagement to identify top-performing content and developing posts based on those insights. Along with a best practices guide, this analysis formed the foundation for developing a well-rounded and effective social media strategy.

Action

Working hand-in-hand with video production, Emerson Street Media developed a focused social media strategy to drive engagement and growth, positioning JBG SMITH as a leading brand across the retail, residential, office, and neighborhood sectors in the Washington, DC region.

Our goal was to increase brand awareness and equity, attracting new residents, businesses, and visitors while highlighting JBG SMITH’s multifamily and office developments by showcasing achievements and thought leadership.

To achieve this, we established a consistent and tailored voice across platforms that reflected the JBG SMITH brand of dynamic, luxurious, and inclusive communities. We created a 90-day content calendar featuring a range of topics, from commercial properties with leasing narratives to multifamily residential highlights, customized for each audience and platform.

Each month, we delivered detailed analytics reports tracking follower growth, engagement, clicks, impressions, and post performance. These insights informed actionable recommendations to continually enhance JBG SMITH’S brand visibility and engagement.

Result

Throughout our partnership with JBG SMITH, we continuously refined and adapted our social media strategy, introducing new tactics each month to strengthen JBG SMITH’s brand presence across its platforms.

Over the past six months, we’ve been managing JBG SMITH’s Instagram and LinkedIn accounts, driving meaningful growth across every key metric compared to the same period last year. Our efforts are clearly resonating with audiences: on Hootsuite, the average engagement rate sits at 3.5% for Instagram and 3.4% for LinkedIn, while our averages on the JBG SMITH accounts are 5.31% and 8.97%, respectively. Our current engagement rates for both channels are nearly double these averages, reflecting the strong connection our content is building with followers.

From April to September 2025, we posted 108 posts, a 54% increase compared to the same period last year. These posts generated over 190,000 impressions, a 108% increase from the previous year. Engagement also grew, with an overall rate of 6.15% (up 7.2%), more than 3,000 likes (up 26%), and around 420 shares (up 46.5%). Our content drove a 55.7% click-through rate, showing that followers are not just interacting; they’re taking meaningful action.

These ongoing improvements helped solidify JBG SMITH’s reputation as a leading developer and placemaker in the region, successfully achieving our goal of raising brand awareness and building a recognizable, impactful social media presence.