Tag: facebook

Fighting the Social Media Stigma

By Guest On May 22, 2013 In Social Media

Often when I tell people that I work in social media, the response I get is: “I would love to play on Facebook and Twitter all day for a living.”  Can you hear my sigh through your computer?

Yes, sometimes working in social media pigeon holds us to the platforms. People who work in social media have a specific communication style and skill set that goes beyond people able to craft a post and a tweet.

First of all, social media professionals have a unique way of communicating—they can cut through the company-jargon to speak to the heart of consumers, fans, etc. They know how to make the complicated, simpler; they know how to make the ordinary, interesting. Social media strategists understand what it takes to make brands more relevant, timely and human.

In addition, working in social media helps you understand what it means to have an integrated communication plan. After all, social media is only a small piece of a larger puzzle.

I could go on, and on and on.

This is the bottom line: Those who work in social media should bring more to the table than hitting “post” or “tweet”.

It’s our responsibility as social media professionals to communicate our skill sets— in addition knowledge of the platforms—to those who don’t work in the industry so they see value beyond a post or a tweet (we need big-picture thinking).  After all, what we do will long outlive the latest platform fad… it will just take shape in different forms and fashions.

Agree, disagree?


What’s the Worth?

By Guest On March 15, 2013 In Best Practices, Facebook, Social Media with 2 Comments

Quality over Quality
I’ve seen it before, not just in sports, but with any brand: A large fan-base, little engagement.

It’s not a new approach, but I firmly believe engagement (clicks on links, shares, comments, etc.) is just as important– if not more important– than the number of fans or followers. If fans aren’t engaging, consuming, or seeing content, then what are they really worth? Think about it.

Long gone are the days of focusing on number of fans alone; here to stay are the days of creating killer content, telling a story, building a community and humanizing your brand.

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Four Perks of Student-Athlete Generated Content

By Guest On March 3, 2013 In Social Media

We all talk about the idea of using fan-generated content to help tell our story, but what about using student-athlete generated content to help tell the story of teams, athletic departments, etc.? I think it has leverage. Here’s why:

1. Humanizes
If anyone can capture the personality of the teams, it’s student-athletes themselves.

With the rise of social media, there is a greater demand for content beyond the stats, wins and losses.  Social media isn’t about spitting off stats or the next game time; it’s about giving fans an inside look into the athletic department, the teams and what it’s like to be a student-athlete. Social media is about the people; it’s about humanizing your brand.

Student-athletes can tell an athletic department story better than anyone else. It’s time to empower them to share a story idea, give them an outlet to blog or allow them to submit photos from practice, on the road, etc. to be shared on social platforms.

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Elevating Behind-the-Scenes Content on Social Media

By Guest On February 2, 2013 In Best Practices, Facebook

If you work in social media and sports (for a team or league), one of your goals should include giving fans content they can’t get anywhere else. For teams and leagues, having a social media presence is not about competing with the likes of ESPN, Sports Illustrated and other major media outlets. It’s about bringing in your own voice, tapping in to your niche audience and delivering unique content.

Team and league employees have 24-7, behind-the-scenes access to players, practice, facilities, etc. Use it. Capitalize on it. Play off of it.

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Duke Athletics + Facebook Engagement

By Guest On May 19, 2015 In Best Practices, Facebook with 3 Comments

According to the Social Media Top 25 rankings, Duke sits at No. 11 for largest following on Facebook (FBS schools) with 407,000+ fans; Ohio State comes in at No 1. with 1.3 million.

In Comparison

I took a look at the last seven Facebook posts from Ohio State and Duke and found that- on average- Duke’s engagement trumps Ohio State’s engagement (despite the much smaller audience). Obviously, looking at a longer date rate could change this, but here’s the breakdown:

  • Last seven posts from Ohio State averaged 720 ‘Likes’, 50 comments & 92 shares.
  • Last seven posts from Duke averaged 2,139 ‘Likes, 98 comments & 170 shares.

Yep, Duke is rocking their engagement level with their fans this month.So now the question is… why? Below are the three things I think Duke is doing right on Facebook to increase their engagement (please note, I’m only looking at the month of January):

1- Photos

Duke is living by the golden rule to not post to Facebook without a photo. Photos generate more engagement than standalone text or a link. As the photo below proves, content does not have to be fancy; it just needs to draw fans in from the noise:

2- Fan-Generated Content

I love fan-generated content for several reasons. First (for the obvious reason), it gives you access to easy and unique content. Second, it requires your fans to take action. And finally, user-generated content fosters a sense of community with fans and rewards those who engage (when you actually use their photos).

Duke is asking its audience to email fan photos each week. From there, they pick three photos to upload to an album. Once the album is uploaded, fans can vote for their favorite picture by ‘Liking’ it (which is a win because it increases engagement). The picture with the most ‘Likes’ is then featured on the Facebook page, as shown below:


My only advice to Duke on their fan-generated content: Create the Duke Fan of the Week graphic within the timeline size constraints. This will make for a better visual when people visit your page.

3- Action Words

You know the saying, “If you ask, you shall receive”? Well, the saying is true for Facebook. The following words are key if you want to increase engagement, trust me: Like, Comment, Share, Why, What

If you’re a community manager, you always want your posts to come across as genuine. But, there are ways to “ask” for engagement without being too pushy… you just have to get a little creative with your copy. Duke does a good job of sneaking in action words with their post. Example:


In Summary

If you want to increase your engagement statistics on Facebook, take a few notes from Duke. Remember that photos are golden, user-generated content fosters community and action words are key.

 

 

So, what is key to engagement on the pages you manage? Share your secrets below.

Thanks for reading!