Our EAA social media team is celebrating 1 million followers! As of Thursday July 18, across Facebook (421,436), Instagram (274,844), YouTube (144,650), X (86,590), TikTok (51,359), and LinkedIn (23,675), EAA has hit 1 million followers. Under the leadership of Holly Chilsen, EAA 1495056, as social media manager, Holly and her team had the goal of having 1 million combined social media followers before EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, and they are grateful to have hit that goal more than a week early on Saturday, July 13.
The mission of EAA is to grow participation in aviation by promoting The Spirit of Aviation. Social media platforms play a big role in sharing what aviation is all about — how rewarding, welcoming, and fun it can be. EAA followers embrace that mission statement, and it’s because of them that we can attract more people to discover what the amazing world of aviation is all about.
EAA’s social media presence began in 2009 with the growth of Facebook. Managing Editor Hal Bryan, EAA Lifetime 638979, helped jump-start EAA’s following as the organization’s original online community manager. Under his direction EAA’s Facebook account grew over 100,000 followers by 2015. EAA’s Senior Editor, Sam Oleson, EAA 1244731, played a major role in gaining followers to EAA’s Instagram account from 2017 to 2021 when he was the social media coordinator. During that time the Instagram following nearly quadrupled from 39,000 to more than 149,000. Holly took over as social media manager in 2023 and has continued to grow EAA’s social media presence ever since.
Holly dedicates so much of the success to her team including EAA CEO Jack J. Pelton; her boss Jim Busha, EAA’s vice president of publications, marketing, membership, and retail; Michael Sullivan, the social media coordinator; and Connor Madison, the EAA staff photographer, among other colleagues.
“The goal of EAA’s social media channels is to not only provide that ‘wow’ factor in what we post, but also help celebrate the accomplishments of our EAA members and spark conversations that get members and nonmembers alike talking about all the amazing facets of aviation,” Holly explained. “To build an incredible follower base like we have means we must be doing something right!”
The social media team doesn’t plan on slowing down anytime soon. They are kicking it into high gear with AirVenture just beginning, but their efforts go beyond the one week, so get ready for more exciting content!
“To reach over 1 million combined social media followers across our channels is such a huge accomplishment, and it’s a testament to the talented individuals who grew our platforms from the bottom up,” Holly said. “I am very proud of the dedicated people I work with, and we just keep getting better and better!”
