USE YOUR DATA
Posted on Nov 08, 2012 by Matt Garner
Data won the election for President Obama. It’s really that simple.
Okay, you’re right – it’s not that simple, but numbers did play a key role during his campaign. A recent TIME article highlighted President Obama’s campaign staff pulling insight from the data they gathered over the previous couple years to raise funds for his campaign. The president’s campaign staff used the data they collected to help identify fundraising dinner hosts, administer donation programs, and determine voter turnout. Campaign Manager, Jim Messina, placed importance on the campaign being metric-driven as he declared, “We are going to measure every single thing in this campaign.” Data mining wasn’t limited to President Obama’s campaign during the election, it also made an prominent appearance on predicting the election. Read More…
How Social Media Reporting Helps Our Executives, and How It Can Help Yours
Posted on Jul 30, 2012 by Matt Garner
GUEST POST from James Royer – Director of Digital Media for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Be sure to connect with James on Twitter. 
When it comes to social media, we are fortunate that our ownership and senior leadership team are very interested in what is happening with our social media digital platforms. Here are five ways that social media reporting helps our ownership and executive teams, and how it can help yours.
1. Active Monitoring
The instant feedback nature of social media is crucial in our efforts to ensure that we are providing world-class services to our fans. The best example of this was last summer when we rolled out our Season Ticket Member (STM) jerseys containing a RFID chip. This enables our STM’s to get exclusive discounts on concessions and merchandise. We actively monitored our social media channels to find out how it was working, and if we needed to make any adjustments to ensure things went smoothly inside the arena. Read More…
Cam Newton –Signing Away his Image?
Posted on Jul 20, 2012 by Tory Barron
Last Saturday Cam Newton made good on his contract with GT Sports Marketing, and inadvertently thrust himself into the spotlight for something other then his football talents. Newton, who has seemingly done everything right since winning the Heisman trophy at Auburn in 2010 and becoming an offensive powerhouse for the Carolina Panthers, sparked quite the controversy. What was the cause for all the commotion? His signature. No, it was not bad behavior or a violence related matter that had fans everywhere in a tizzy, but his autograph.
Cam has become the face of the Carolina Panthers
Cam Newton is frequently the last player to leave the practice field at training camp in Spartanburg, spending hours signing his name in an attempt to accommodate as many “Cam crazy” fans as possible. He also regularly attends charitable events in which he donates items FTK (for the kids.) However, this past Saturday was different. Newton charged a fee, that most would consider quite hefty, to autograph items ranging from photographs to jerseys. Despite what many outraged fans believe, the Panthers’ 2nd year stud QB was not pocketing all of the cash. Newton profited by agreeing to take part in the autograph session set-up by GT Sports Marketing. By simply “showing up” and signing for 2.5 hours at South Park Mall in Charlotte, he fulfilled his end of the deal. Read More…
Social Media: Global Networks Effect Global Games
Posted on Jul 12, 2012 by Tory Barron
In my last blog post I voiced my opinion on the failure of the majority of college sports programs to harness the power of social media in an effort to establish meaningful relationships with fans. So I was thrilled to hear that the MLB was planning to conduct a sort of “social media experiment” kicking off with the Futures game last Sunday night, and continuing through the All-Star game. MLB’s decision to allow tweeting during the game (after players had left the contest) proved to be extremely valuable in cranking up fan involvement and spiking television ratings.
Gio Gonzalez, Stephen Strasburg, and Cole Hamels helped lead the NL to victory
2012 Olympics: Social Games
MLB findings demonstrated how pivotal social media is in helping to promote an event and in maximizing fan engagement when used properly. Yet, this display of social media pull is just the teaser, as it’s about to be displayed on a global level. The upcoming summer Olympic games in London are already being touted as the world’s “first social games.” I can confidently say that social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube (to name a few) will reshape the 2012 Olympics. What makes this year so different than 2008? Social media has exploded in the past four years. Internet use in general has expanded exponentially, increasing from around 1.5 billion users around the world in 2008 to an overwhelming 2.3 billion users globally today. We face a sporting scene and world at large that have been transformed by social media since the name “Michael Phelps” became a podium staple in Beijing. Read More…
The Bold and the Bland: College Athletics and Social Media
Posted on Jun 29, 2012 by Tory Barron
Now that the NBA draft is over and we have watched as Arizona snagged the baseball college world series championship and crushed South Carolina’s hopes of a 3-peat, NCAA sports fanatics turn their attention towards one date looming in the near future: August 30. This marks the first game-day of the 2012-2013 Division I college football season. This season promises to be one for the books as it will be the end of an era. The Football Bowl Association and BCS commissioners announced that in 2014 a new playoff system will go into effect for the postseason.
The decision to shift to a four-team playoff has shocked many dedicated fans who recognize the odds of their beloved school being among the top 4 is slim to none (especially for those outside of the SEC.) However, the installation of a new postseason format should not come as a surprise as it has been debated for many years. The substantive debate has been held mostly behind closed doors as opposed to in the public eye. Imagine how different or sooner the outcome may have been if the transition had played out in part through social media channels. What if the fans had an opportunity to voice their apprehensions and concerns? In a playoff format that excludes most teams and doesn’t guarantee entrance to an undefeated team, it’s only natural that some questions have arisen.
SEC Dominates
Fans: Driving Force Behind the Brands
In this day and age it’s a well-known fact that college sports extend far beyond the field. What is the driving force behind the NCAA? What is the fuel that has kept the engine running all these years? The fans. Without fans there is no revenue brought in through ticket sales, merchandise, vendors, etc. A huge aspect of fan engagement stems from social media and that number is growing exponentially. While social media is built into nearly every contract/sponsorship, that doesn’t mean it’s done well. Without fully understanding social media, it’s impossible to use it in a way that enables an organization to maximize success. There are numerous programs that are engaging in bad practices and thus missing opportunities to engage fans in a meaningful sustained way. Read More…
