Social media is at its best when people come together. That was the case when I met Joel Price, the manager of interactive services for the NFL’s San Diego Chargers at the February meeting of the Social Media Breakfast San Diego. Joel, who can also be found on Twitter @joelprice, is the guest on this episode of the Marketing Edge, which we produced on video. Joel takes us through some interesting topics around the tools they use including Twitter, Facebook, and even an efficient way to use Posterous as a news release distribution system.

Link to video for embed code – San Diego Chargers Do Social Media Right from Albert Maruggi on Vimeo.

The Chargers do like to get social with:

Tumblr
Flickr
Twitter
Facebook
Forums
Posterous – Chargers Media

Think of the unique challenges of social media in professional sports:

• Vocal fan base (yes fans come in all sizes and dispositions on any given day)
• Huge amount of content under a variety of licenses and parameters
• Not the only game in town, these days there is intense competition for disposable income and sports is a entertainment/hospitality combination
• The players themselves are social media celebrities

One might think it’s a double edged sword. Me thinks social media is not only perfect for sports, but mandatory. And here’s why:

• It’s all about fans following the team and players, right? sound familiar
  Candid conversation, from bars to talk radio, tailgates to multiplayer Xbox Madden draft day, bring on the topics. It’s the one category of conversation universally allowed to be raised in any venue, even church.
• Personal brands, yes every player is one and the type of interaction players have with the fans will have an impact on revenue, don’t believe me, ask any parent who’s kid just got an autograph.
• Tweeting while you work (game time) or about sensitive information (personnel changes before they are official) can be a dicey situation that require clear policy guidelines for sure. However, the overwhelming majority of the time, social media is a unique communications experience and an extension of what has gone in for a hundred years in sports. My father would tell me when growing up in New York, it would not be uncommon to see members of the Yankees, Giants, or Dodgers around town. Those days may be gone, but that’s where social media can bring the fans closer to the players and still accommodate the barriers erected by celebrity in the 21st century.

San Diego Chargers on Twitter include Shawne Merriman, Shaun Phillips, and Antonio Cromartie among others. There is a great website called Twitter Athletes that is a comprehensive list of hustling professionals players using Twitter.

Some in professional sports are a bit confident and out spoken, no surprises here right? Ozzie Guillen, manager of the Chicago White Sox, was ruffling some feathers because of his Tweets. I say that’s a bit odd, you let the guy give press conferences, yet you are nervous about Twitter?

What’s your take, if you owned a team, what would your policy be for your players? Remember, every comment we get, Provident Partners gives a food item to a St. Paul, MN food shelter.

Share on StumbleUpon