For me, sports is all-consuming almost to the point where I
feel like I’m in overload. Whether it be vegging out on my couch watching
football on a Sunday or dragging my family to Dallas Cowboys training camp in
the middle of a California vacation, my life and now my family’s life is all
encompassing.
So when I see a trend take hold, I take notice. I guess it makes sense that one of my favorite quotes about
life comes from legendary UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden. “Talen is God
give. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be careful. Conceit is self-given. Be
careful.” I love it because in an abstract way he talks about hard work and
need for it – in anything you do.
That concept has never been more evident than what is going
on with Under Armour and their campaign centered on hard work and now competitors and other businesses alike are following suit.
Look at how they
bring it back to hard work with their recent campaign of “I Will”, plus anytime you can replicate Tom Brady, it's never a bad thing, right?
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. And while adidas makes an excellent attempt at the concept, it just doesn't resonate the way Under Armour's campaign does. That being said, I love the connection, the realism and the excitement that adidas brings. They hear Under Armour's footsteps in the battle for clientele and market share. Nevertheless, the use of up and coming high school athletes with a mix of professional athletes to show the work they put in and then how hard work helps you reap the glory is grabbing a lot of attention.
In a world where sports are going on year round and a generation of people don't know what it is like to live without ESPN 24 hours a day, the market for apparel is massive. And while traditional strongholds like Nike and adidas have their loyal supports, the reach and rise of Under Armour is something they will have to deal with. They have already taken notice.
One of my favorite chapters in this really well written book, Groundswell, by Li and Bernoff is the chapter on Listening to the Groundswell.
As I stated in my previous post, to me, social media is all about engagement and how up close some of the platforms can bring you. I especially love the connection between professional athletes, teams and the fans or followers.
And just like any business, professional teams take heed from the groundswell and react accordingly. Recently, fans at several National Football League stadiums complained about the fact that while they were watching the game in the stands, the were unable to check their fantasy football scores because the wireless internet at the stadiums were not sufficient enough.So the NFL stepped in and set wifi minimums for their venues. The buzzwords being thrown around regarding this situation, were "enhancing the in-game experience." Having an excellent signal allows fans to not only check on fantasy rosters but helps them engage (there is that word again) with the team they cheer for.
Think about it. Bob sits in Section 1, Seat 30. He tweets a photo of a marriage proposal of the two people next to him and mentions the home team's twitter handle? Does that image not get retweeted and shared over and over again? And who gets credit for it? The home team because, remember it is their followers who are going to share it and truly spread the word. That's listening to the groundswell 101.
Another great example took place this summer with the New England Patriots and the Deflategate fiasco. After the NFL levied their four game suspension against quarterback Tom Brady and it seemed as if Brady, the face of not only the organization but of football in New England, would miss the opening game of the regular season. With the Patriots coming off of their fourth Super Bowl title last February, Patriot fans were in an uproar. One of the great perks of winning the Super Bowl, is the fact that you get to play the first game of the NFL season at home on a Thursday night rather than a Sunday afternoon. That puts all eyes on you and your team and it is truly the first time the team gets to celebrate their championship with their fans. The highlight of that night - other than a win of, course - is watching the championship banner that will hang forever in that stadium being unveiled.
A photo posted by New England Patriots (@patriots) on
With Brady's penalty looming - meaning he would miss the first four games - including the spotlight opening Thursday night - Patriot fans jumped into action. The twitter hashtag and twitter profile NoBradyNoBanner started trending and it became a regional chant, a motto if you will, about the Patriot fans' perception that they and their quarterback were being unfairly targeted by the NFL. Their thought was that if we can't have our quarterback, you can't have your banner.
As Li and Bernoff discussed, listening to the groundswell can bring new insights and the insight was something that captivated a region and a legion of fans. Fortunately for the NFL, Brady had his suspension overturned on appeal and was able to play opening night. Meaning the banner reveal could go on as they needed it to. Had the suspension not been overturned, the Patriots were prepared to raise an alternate banner on that Thursday night.
The groundswell and engagement of Patriots fans - the private network in this case - led to action by the team and as the word spread about #NoBradyNoBanner, they were prepared to act accordingly.
What has ensued since is a belief from Patriot fans that the team listens to them, hears them and respects them enough to take their concerns and matters seriously. Isn't that all we ask for as consumers?
Banner drop in slow-mo? Love it.
Posted by New England Patriots on Thursday, September 10, 2015
Not even the Royal Family could've hoped for nuptials that fit like hand and glove or head and tiara as the relationship that exists between sports and it's legion of followers. Or so it would seem. But that is for later. For now this marriage is the honeymoon stage and everyone is still ga-ga over each other.
Whether its good news like LeBron James and his 28 million followers finding out he is giving out college scholarships to kids in his hometown or bad news like the Ray Rice scandal in which a the professional football player was seen on video knocking his wife unconscious - in a matter of moments news on anything sports related takes off like wildfire and will most likely be "trending" before you know it. And for sports fans, its like a Sunday in September with your favorite team rolling through their opponent and its not even halftime yet.
For us fanatics (yes, I'm one of them!), we don't need to search out the score or find out the latest breaking news from our local newscaster on the 6:00 p.m. edition. That news finds us. Whether we are walking through the grocery store and we get an alert, or our phone buzzes in the middle of the night with a tweet from your favorite teams' Twitter account about their star player.
Twitter, Facebook and even Instagram have become the norm in terms of news reporting and information gathering.
Think about the news we heard all summer long in terms of sports - Deflategate. When Tom Brady decided to respond to his four-game suspension, he didn't hold a press conference or do an exclusive 1-on-1 prime time interview. No, he posted a message on his Facebook account.
Or when James announced he was leaving Miami to return to his native Cleveland, he penned a letter and posted on a website. And what ensued? A media marketing campaign for a native son that rivaled a mayoral run in some small cities.
Another great factor in this marriage is the true connection fans feel with athletes and teams. Fans want instant gratification and inside access to the favorite players, their lives and all the trappings that go with it. The couch potato from Cleveland or the sophomore stud on the high school team wants to know that there is that slight chance that you might have an interaction with the athlete who's poster is above your bed or who's jersey you wear every Sunday.
Because professional athletes realize the impact social media can have, they use social media to brand themselves. Access is granted and their willingness to share the most mundane aspects of their lives sometimes, is something that we as fans will continue to gobble up in record pace.
A video posted by Sydney Leroux Dwyer (@sydneyleroux) on
And it's not only the professional athletes, its the teams themselves that provide that inside access we used to be only be able to dream about like this photo of former University of Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota who gives his mother a hug in the tunnel after his first professional football game. It's those kind of moments that humanize professional athletes and bring them to our level.
And for someone like me who works in sports and communication, the marriage has helped tremendously with the ability to market a small Division III athletics program in a state and region where college sports sit on the very back burner of the news and information cycle.
Clark Athletics has a Facebook account with close to 1,300 followers, a Twitter account with - you guessed it - around 1,300 followers and an Instagram account that just went over the 500 follower mark. Our YouTube page has given us the opportunity to share videos and use another avenue to keep everyone informed.
While our totals don't come close to the 246,500 Twitter followers at the University of Georgia, or the 31.3 million Instagram followers for Neymar, our circle of followers are loyal and committed to Clark Athletics.
So in 2015, with the coverage of sports and its star athletes on a never-ending cycle of who, what, when and where, social media's influence on the way news is disseminated and viewed in the sports world has changed dramatically from the days when reports smoked in the pressbox, wore pork pie hats, dressed in suits and banged away at a typewritter.
Social media and sports maybe the perfect marriage, but the dying breed of those hardcore reporters and beat writers are being replaced by bloggers and social media experts who sometimes, in their haste to be first with the story, they make decisions that don't sit right with the masses ethically or morally.
The good far outweighs the bad in this marriage of two heavyweights in the world today and the offspring that could come from this relationship is one that is being developed everyday as the digital world continues to spin on its axis.
For me, sports is all-consuming almost to the point where I
feel like I’m in overload. Whether it be vegging out on my couch watching
football on a Sunday or dragging my family to Dallas Cowboys training camp in
the middle of a California vacation, my life and now my family’s life is all
encompassing.
