You can’t talk about marketing today without talking about digital and social. It’s no longer a nice to have for brands, teams and leagues… it should be one of the key pieces leading your marketing strategy. With this shift, every brand wants to be digital first. They talk the talk, but many don’t walk the walk.
It seems that far too many organizations still don’t invest in an infrastructure that allows their teams to actually thrive. Take a look at this Twitter poll asking on the size of digital/social teams in sports. So many people are doing so much with so little:
#smsports friends, how many people on your team are currently dedicated solely to social/digital (including content creators)?
— Jess Smith (@WarJessEagle) May 22, 2017
The results of this poll are disheartening and shows how far we still have to go in the industry. It doesn’t matter if it’s a team, league or brand, flying solo in social and digital is a fast track to burnout. In an industry that operates 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, it’s not humanly possible for one person to strategize and execute well…. much less innovate or take anything to the next level.
It’s time for organizations to take a serious look at how committed they actually are to this thing called digital. The truth is there’s no such thing as a good social strategy without a good content strategy & the team (key word here) to create it. A great digital and social media presence takes a village.
Alongside the need to invest, teams also need to give serious thought to structure. Too often entry level jobs looking for too senior of people and senior roles not asking for enough experience. The best way to set up the team for success is to step back, talk to current staff and identify the actual needs. At a high level though, digital/social teams need a strategist, community manager and creators (again, super high level).
Strategist / lead.
This is the person that helps bring together the full vision to drive business results. They take the brand strategy and goals to figure out how that translates into the online world. This person should have a strong vision, marketing background and the ability to define a POV. They must also be able to work with creative, mentor teammates and help drive the plan forward. This isn’t an entry level job, but they should be able to roll up their sleeves and get it done.
Community manager.
Every team needs a great community manager (or two). This role is the heartbeat of the social team. They bring to to life plans, they build your community, they know your consumer. Their time is often spend building out calendars, engaging with the community and staying on top of the latest trends. Hire someone in this role with 1 to 2 years of experience. And, make sure to foster, mentor and push your community manager so they can move up and on to another role.
The creators.
A great social media strategy requires a great content strategy and the right creative team to bring it to life. If you are investing in strategist and community managers without investing in creatives, your vision will fall flat. Every organization should have some type of creative pod dedicated to digital and social. This team should photo, video and a stellar graphic designer.
This might not seem like rocket science, but the truth is many organizations aren’t investing in full digital teams. In a Twitter poll on resources, 72% of people that answered feel understaffed. That’s no joke!
We all know by now that digital isn’t the future… it’s here. And, it’s one of the best opportunities we have to connect with consumers and fans. Investing in digital means investing in good people. It takes a village to be a truly digital minded company. So start hiring and hiring right.
Very true Jessica! Thank you for an inspiring article on how to effectively go digital! We are trying to do a better job!