#159 - Guest Post: Are we becoming too dependent on Social Media?

By Lakyn Tankersley

Social media has completely altered the way that we communicate with one another. Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, just to name a few, have  changed modern communication.

Social media is rampant these days, and since we live in a technology dependent world, some of us are becoming so reliant upon the amenities at our disposal from the Internet to smart phones, to video games and even our household conveniences (the washer/dryer, microwave, television) that we are lost without our tech tools and toys.

Lately, I find myself wondering if we aren’t too dependent upon social media, in particular. When I wake up in the morning the first thing I do is check my email, Facebook and Twitter accounts. I know I am not alone in this. And, it’s not only my generation that's affected. LinkedIn is now an absolute must for job seekers. I've noticed that my parent’s and grandparent’s are using social media almost as often as my friends and I do.

Social media has slowly become a primary way we communicate. Is it too easy to skip meeting face-to-face to talk about anything anymore? We are choosing more and more often to send emails and text messages instead of actually calling or getting together. Cell phones may have made our lives more convenient, but it is the ability to access social networks via our phones that has truly changed the nature of relationships, in my opinion.

I hate to admit that we might be becoming too dependent on social media. If talking in person becomes a thing of the past, what’s next?

Lakyn Tankersley is a senior Organizational Communication major/Journalism minor at Murray State University (a fully accredited university in the beautiful lakes region of West Kentucky). Lakyn is passionate about music and communication. She plans to graduate in December 2011 and pursue a career in Event Planning. For more information contact: lakyns.events@gmail.com

# 155 - GUEST BLOG: How Social Media Teaches Teams to Connect with Fans

By DJ Irvine

            Professional sports are part of American culture as well as most cultures worldwide. However, many fans are actually quite disconnected from their favorite teams. With the rise of social media, however, teams have a unique opportunity to bring fans closer to them – for real.

Traditionally, teams have used their own websites to publish previews, provide scoring updates and recap games. Now, with Twitter, Facebook and YouTube being so user-friendly for organizations, any team can bring more value to the fan experience.  Teams today can upload exclusive video content on YouTube and then disseminate it via blogs, websites, links, photos and video via Facebook, Twitter and the rest. 

Huddle up, sports fans! 

            The effective use of social media by any professional sports team allows its fans to feel more connected, and provides an authentic chance to enhance two-way communication between managers, owners, players and fans.  Simply using hashtags to start conversation streams on Twitter, fans are already communicating with one another. Often, they don’t even know that the hashtags are created by social-savvy team officials and representatives.

          

              Streaming real conversations allows fans to connect with one another, while also promoting the interests of their favorite teams among their friends, fans and followers.

            YouTube, Facebook and Twitter accounts, pages and profiles are perfect for allowing fans to get real “behind the scenes” looks at their favorite players.  During games, teams that utilize social media well are designating staffers to update via a variety of social channels. This is valuable if you’re a fan looking for an injury report or other details.

           

Let the Games Begin! 

             Social media allows for a richer type of fan engagement.  Teams can post content including roster changes, practice updates and answers to specific fan questions.  Fans are on social media, so why not bring them what they want from their favorite teams? It can only pay off in higher sales and merchandising, and may go a long way toward boosting ticket sales over the longer term.

            On Oct 20 this year, the Colorado Avalanche (an NHL team) organized a charity event via Twitter.  While the team played live against the Chicago Blackhawks, fans were encouraged to use the Twitter hashtag #GoAvsGo to converse. Each time the hashtag was used during the game (over two and half hours), one dollar was donated to cancer research.  While total contributions have yet to be tallied time, thousands of users supported cancer research via this unique virtual event.

Endless possibilities
            As sports marketers learn more about how to use social media, the more fans are likely to benefit. Already, we see team franchises experimenting with the new mediums. The more they can connect with fans, offers and promotions, the better.

             Of course, only time will tell how social media will eventually shape the fan experience for professional sports.  Do you have an example of a sports-related social site, scene or event you’ve enjoyed or want to share? 

The comments section is still open. Please share!

       DJ Irvine is a senior Public Relations major in the Journalism & Mass Communications Department at Murray State University (a fully accredited university in the beautiful lakes region of West Kentucky). Irvine is passionate about sports and cutting edge communications technologies. He plans to graduate in December 2012 and pursue a career in professional sports public relations.  For more information, contact: david.irvine@murraystate.edu.

#153 - 10 Ways to Use Facebook - the Way It Really Works!

According to a recent report from Buddy Media, Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithm determines what shows up in users' News Feeds. In order to optimize your Facebook activity to get seen in News Feeds more often, which is obviously going to help with traffic, you’ve got to be diligent and creative.

The thousands of companies who follow the “Field of Dreams” (if you build it, they will come) theory of social media management have learned the hard way that this is merely a dream – it results in zero engagement and a very weak Fan Base.

Here are 10 tips proven to work:

1. Ask plenty of questions (it’s free consumer research)
2. Employ questions, trivia, drawings and contests.
3. Interact with your fans; let no comment/post go unnoticed!
4. Incorporate apps (use that question key, polls, DEALS and coupons).
5. Incorporate more photos and videos.
6. Talk about what’s in the news (relate to what people are talking about).
8. Imply a sense of urgency with time-sensitive material and well planned campaigns.
9. Include links in every status update – so your fans can hit that “share” button!
10. Be explicit in your updates (generic and general get you nowhere).

It's your Fans' page - not yours
By applying yourself and investing in the human capital necessary to create and maintain a robust Facebook presence, you’ll find that just like America’s top brands you can generate more business and engagement by using your corporate Facebook page wisely.

Enjoy your Social Media Life!

Socially Yours,
Elizabeth

#149 - 10 Ways to Get Your Facebook Content "Liked" More

According to a new report from Buddy Media, Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithm determines what shows up in users' News Feeds. In order to optimize your Facebook activity to get seen in News Feeds more often, which is obviously going to help with traffic, you’ve got to be diligent and creative.

The thousands of companies who follow the “Field of Dreams” (if you build it, they will come) theory of social media management are learning the hard way that it is merely a dream – a dream that will result in zero engagement and weaken the fan base.

Here are 10 tips that are already proven. By applying yourself and investing in the human capital necessary to create and maintain a robust Facebook presence, you’ll find that just like America’s top 10 brands, you too, can generate more traffic, more business and greater engagement through your Facebook page interactions.

1. Ask plenty of questions (it’s free consumer research)
2. Employ trivia, games and contests
3. Interact with your fans; let no comment/post go unnoticed!
4. Incorporate apps and applets (use the question key, polls or coupons)
5. Incorporate more photos
6. Talk about what’s in the news (relate to what people are talking about everywhere)
7. Post videos, if applicable
8. Imply a sense of urgency with time-sensitive material or campaigns
9. Include a link within each status update – so fans can hit “share”
10. Be explicit in every post (generic and general get you nowhere)