Writing for intense projects like a mobile app or a major city's tourism guide can mean long hours and lots of hard work. But a good team can make it all worthwhile, and that's definitely true when you're working with Cape Town Tourism's Rob Peters.
We worked with Rob on Cape Town Tourism's first-ever mobile app, and the 2016 Visitors' Guide. Both projects had tight deadlines and moments of stress, but he was a great team player. We are inspired by his easy-going attitude and ability to pump out well-written content. We look forward to working with him again on the new Hello Weekend project, but first, we ask Rob the five social media questions we want to ask everyone.
When he's not writing for Cape Town Tourism, Rob is hitting the trails in Cape Town.
Who is your biggest inspiration on the internet? Why?
Brandon Stanton, the man behind Humans of New York. What started out as a hobby has turned into something that goes beyond social media, because he has begun to use it to drive his humanitarian work. The account – across all his platforms – works well as a storytelling device, but it's much more than that. Through the people he connects with, he is starting to bring difficult but important stories to the world. His series on refugees, in particular, was brilliant.
When was the last time you read really good content online?
That’s a tough one, because I read so much online! One that really stuck with me was a photo essay on the #FeesMustFall movement. The images were shot and captioned by one of the students taking part and covered a lot of the protest action, including the skirmish with police at parliament. It was a fantastic piece of ‘civilian journalism’ and really brought home the gravity of what was happening.
Which is your your favourite social media platform?
Instagram. Despite the fact that I have a strong editorial background, I love the visuals. A picture really is worth a thousand words and it's the perfect platform to promote travel and adventure, two areas I'm most interested in at the moment. It’s also one of the fastest growing platforms, and I genuinely believe we have yet to see its real potential for storytelling. It’s also where I discovered HONY.
What is your biggest social media pet peeve?
How vapid it can become. Social media can be so powerful, but it seems at times to be flooded with selfies, shots of lunch and holiday bragging. Although, to be fair, I am guilty of this myself (though, not the selfies…)
If you could have a Twitter Q&A with one person living or dead - who would it be?
My gran. She settled in Africa in the early 1920s and had some epic stories to tell. I always wanted to help write her memoirs, but she passed away when I was a youngster. It would be cool to get the lowdown on her life during that time and to find out how much the continent has changed since the time she first arrived. I know I am only allowed one, but it would be great to chat to William Shakespeare as well, if only to get his opinion on the current state of literature and how we communicate now. I think he would be pretty stoked to know that he is still so popular, but might be a little disturbed by how some of his work has been re-imagined!