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DOUBLE STANDARDS
Sports and social media are a natural fit, but brands have to find ways to provide fans with an enriching experience in an innovative way, two industry experts suggest
Can the passion that sports fans have for their teams be redirected commercially via social media?
Josh Robinson director of creative and integrated solutions, Sports Revolution
When sports fans and social media come together, you get a ravenous appetite for content in a super-transactional space. Rights holders who embrace social commerce by selling tickets and merchandise make the most of the opportunity,such as the NBA store in New York, which has its own Facebook page. Others are using new social assets,such as Uefa's PlayStation-sponsored fantasy football app, to create sponsor packages,This allows them to monetise their social fan base and their unparalleled knowledge of what their fans want.
Can the passion that sports fans have for their teams be redirected commercially via social media?
Lucien Boyer global president and chief executive, Havas Sports & Entertainment
Absolutely, if teams can get the conditions right to build active communities.That means supplying fans with unique content and incentives to sustain interest and then allowing them the freedom to set their own culture as they would in a sports venue. Social media enables fans to be surrounded by their teams 24 hours per day.so if you build a big enough community, the commercial potential is huge. For example,Manchester United have more than 20 million Facebook fans and a direct conversation that allows news about new products and services from the club is bound to produce financial returns.
So-called macro social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have had tremendous commercial and marketing success. Can 'micro' social media platforms, linked to sport, duplicate that?
Josh Robinson director of creative and integrated solutions, Sports Revolution
Most of us have a big bag of "warm interests", such as bands, brands and TV shows, and then a pocketful of "hot interests"- the stuff that's core to who we are. Specialist forums such...