Posts Tagged ‘Twitter’
By Stephanie Sones
March Madness is one of the rare events like the Super Bowl where fans actually tune into the live action – even during the workday. Last year, USA Today reported that 86 percent of people who plan to watch the games would devote time during their workday to check the scores, stats, or even watch a live feed. With the NCAA expanding the availability of their live feeds through multiple digital platforms this year, that number will likely grow.
With millions of American participating in office, friend and family pools, the popularity of the brackets draws a more broad and diverse demographic than other sporting events, giving marketers a chance to reach a wide audience at almost any point during the day for an entire month. And thanks to the Super Bowl, we already know where they’re interacting: Twitter and mobile. We take a look at ways to utilize these popular forums to get the most out of your marketing efforts:
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Tags: Basketball, March Madness, NCAA, Nike, oreo, Oscars, second screen, social marketing, Special K, Sports Marketing, Super Bowl, Twitter, Under Armour
Posted in Fan Engagement, Sports Marketing | No Comments »
By Stefen Lovelace
Michael Jordan turns 50 on Sunday. This week has been a celebration of all things Jordan, as major outlets have examined Jordan’s career, legacy, impact on the game, and most memorable highlights. On the court, he’s the best basketball player to ever play the game. His impact off of it has been just as impressive, as he helped the game become (arguably) the second most popular sport, and is a primary reason for the game’s exponential grown and global reach.
From a marketing standpoint, Jordan changed the game. When Nike signed him in the 90s, they branded him as the face of their basketball franchise, a move that proved lucrative as Jordan quickly transformed into the most effective pitchman on the planet. Jordan retired in 2003, but his Jordan Brand still owns a 58 percent market share in the U.S. basketball shoe market.
Jordan’s crossover appeal allowed Nike to dedicate billboards and commercials to him, and consumers continue to come in droves. But now, brands can’t just plaster an athlete’s face on an ad and hope to move product. The amount of stars have made the landscape more competitive, so innovation and real fan engagement is the best way to use athletes effectively.
For brands, the first step is sponsoring an athlete. But the steps that follow are the most important. Here are three ways brands can get maximum ROI when working with athletes.
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Tags: athletes, Basketball, Brand Marketing, Facebook, Instagram, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Nike, Pepsi, social networking, sponsorship, Sports Marketing, Twitter, Under Armour
Posted in Brand ROI, Sports Marketing | No Comments »
By Stefen Lovelace
This week the X Games return, as the top winter and extreme sports athletes will both compete and wow a legion of dedicated fans. The X Games have grown from a niche event to a global showcase of big air, big tricks and big-name athletes.
The typical X Games fan is savvy using their phones and the web to follow the action. ESPN is ensuring they’re capitalizing on the rich opportunity to reach that fan through several new second screen and digital marketing initiatives. IMRESportsIQ spoke with Adam Deutsch, the X Games senior director of digital product development about what we can expect digitally from the Games this year.
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Tags: Aspen, digital marketing, ESPN, Facebook, Gamecast, mobile, Shaun White, snow sports, Twitter, X Games
Posted in Fan Engagement, Sports Marketing | No Comments »
By Andrea Cohen
If you happen to see a sullen looking individual blankly staring at patch of ice on the sidewalk, be kind. There is a very good chance they are mourning the loss of this year’s hockey season. Because, let’s face it, the future of this season looks grim, and hockey fans are depressed.
So depressed that many of them have clung to the idea of a season happening by creating support groups, just to fight the lonely days of winter. But, alas, the wager battle continues.
What also must continue is each team’s social presence. Just because the league with which a team is affiliated is caught up in a lockout, doesn’t mean the team can just call it quits and alienate their fans. Being in this position could actually present a huge opportunity for a team to elevate their presence within the social landscape. It could also pose a huge threat.
During the season, teams will tweet about scoring updates, player’s eligibility for games, ticket giveaways, player engagement opportunities, pre and post game coverage, as well as predictions about upcoming games and playoff contention.
So the question is, now what do these teams have to talk about?
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Tags: AHL, American Hockey League, Facebook, Hockey, Hurricane Sandy, Lockout, Los Angeles Kings, National Hockey League, New Jersey Devils, NHL, Pinterest, social marketing, Stanley Cup, Twitter
Posted in Brand ROI, Fan Engagement | No Comments »
By Guest
USC Football Roster Includes Twitter Handles
When it’s game time, brands can be found just about everywhere on a college athlete. Whether it’s the Wisconsin basketball team decked out in Adidas or Auburn traveling to Atlanta last year to play in the Chick-fil-A bowl, Division I athletes are representing more than just their school colors. For this reason, their actions are scrutinized. Not just as student athletes, but as representations of a university and a brand.
As college stars emerge, their fan influence grows stronger. With such influence comes a responsibility critical to the success of an athlete’s team and team sponsors. When a college football player becomes a household name, his Twitter following has the potential to grow to celebrity status. At this point, should fans and brands be excited for the opportunity, or live in fear of that inevitable tweet that will tarnish the reputation of the player, the school, and in turn, any affiliated brands?
Many schools feared the worst, and implemented a system to monitor player’s Twitter accounts. This proactive action was met with opposition and led some states, including California and Maryland, to propose a bill that would ban universities from supervising student social media activity. There’s growing fear from schools and coaches that players tweets may put them in precarious positions:
“Anything they publish, anything they put out there, if it’s not good, it’s going to come back to haunt them. Not only from just their own personal self, but if it’s bad, it’s something I’ll have to react to and I don’t really want to do that. Censorship is not a big thing with me. I think players have to learn what they can do and what they can’t do and what they can say and can’t say. If they put something out there that’s not good, there’s going to be repercussions from it. They have to know that.’’ –Jim Boheim, Head Coach, Syracuse Basketball
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Tags: College Football, Football, NCAA, Social Media, Twitter
Posted in Brand ROI, Sports Marketing | 1 Comment »
By Andrea Cohen
It’s an interesting conundrum. Last week’s 2012 MLB All-Star Game broke records both socially and in viewership. Yet, many are regarding it as one of the worst, if not the worst, All-Star Game to date. So, what gives?
Three words: social media strategy. The MLB didn’t underestimate the value social media provides when trying to generate hype around an event, and their persistence paid off. There was 3.6 times more social commentary surrounding the MLB All Star game than in 2011.
So how exactly did the MLB use social media to create such positive numbers around such an uneventful MLB All Star Game? You know, the one where the National League had the game decided after the fourth inning? The one that boasted eight innings where players went three and out at bat?
Let’ look a little more closely at the strategy the MLB implemented using the popular social media site, Twitter.
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Tags: All-Star Game, American League, Baseball, hashtag, MLB, National League, social marketing, Twitter
Posted in Fan Engagement, Sports Marketing | No Comments »
By Brian Remsburg
It’s been well documented the positives that both players and brands can gain from effectively utilizing social media, and specifically Twitter. There are some negatives for athletes that have joined the Twittersphere, particularly those who don’t practice proper judgment before tweeting. Not having a “filter” can ultimately take away the benefits of the social media channel for the athlete, their team and their marketing partners.
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Tags: athletes, Fan Engagement, NFL, sports, Twitter
Posted in Fan Engagement, Sports Marketing | 3 Comments »
By Stefen Lovelace
I remember vividly the moment I saw Landon Donovan officially put soccer into the American consciousness.
It was last summer during the 2010 World Cup, and America was tied in a must-win game with Algeria. I skipped out on work, and was at a bar nursing a warm beer and cursing the day I ever started following the sport.
You remember the rest. Donovan scored, America erupted and all of a sudden Americans cared about soccer.
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Tags: Facebook, MLS, Soccer, Social Media, Sponsorships, Sports Marketing, Twitter, World Cup
Posted in Fan Engagement, Sports Marketing | 1 Comment »
