#MediaMonday – Social Media’s Greatest Show on Court
Katie, HMA intern and NBA basketball know-it-all (or at least I like to think so) here, back and talking to you about all things social media and basketball. Normally we spotlight a member of the media for our #MediaMonday, but this week we are honoring my favorite professional sport for having the best grasp on social media engagement — the National Basketball Association.
If we are friends on Facebook or you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen my angry/outrageous antics all throughout the 2012 playoff series. Thanks to the #NBAplayoffs hashtag and my religious following of social media savvy, basketball aficionados like Kenny Smith, Jim Rome and Shaquille O’Neal, I was able to get a court-side experience of the playoffs without actually being there via players and teams updating their social media feeds with scores, updates and interesting personal tidbits 24/7.
Stephanie hanging with her dear, old friend.
With the NBA paving the way, even more professional sport organizations are catching on to the social media hype today. Franchises in all types of spectator sports have begun integrating social media by promoting custom hashtags for major events on Twitter, creating fan-fueled blogs or even by using players’ and fans’ relevant tweets alike in game coverage. In this way, the NBA has enabled fans to actively engage with their favorite brands, teams and personalities beyond the hardwood court.
Wanting to acknowledge those players and teams who are oh-so social media savvy — the NBA recently hosted the very first sports related social media award show, calling it the NBA Social Media Awards. The award show honored various players, teams and personalities for their impact on the basketball social media world. Awards with names like “LOL” and “Thumbs Up” were handed out to players, teams or plays made on the court that impacted interaction with fans across various social media platforms. And while some may chalk it up to the NBA’s reputation of divas and drama kings, there is no doubt that the social media efforts have enhanced fans’ viewing experiences.
What is your favorite social media savvy team and how have they taken advantage of fan engagement?
