the essence of social media strategy in big ten athletic departments: a phenomenological approach
DESCRIPTION
2013 Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications, Sports Communication Interest Group, Washington, D.CTRANSCRIPT
The Essence of Social Media Strategy in
Big Ten Athletic Departments:
A Phenomenological Approach
Makayla Hipke
Frauke Hachtmann, Ph.D.
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
To develop an understanding of the essence of social media strategy developed and deployed by Big 10 athletic departments.
Purpose
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
12 Division I-A universities More than 10 million fans attend Big
10 Conference football, men’s and women’s basketball, and volleyball events
Programs with largest fan bases: Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State
The Big 10 Conference
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
“A group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technical foundations of Web 2.0 and that allow the creation of user-generated content.”
(Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010)
Definition of social media
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Back Stage Sensation Engagement, interactivity and two-
way communication Community building Relevance and brand building Immediacy
Literature
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
What did the participants experience in terms of the phenomenon?
What contexts or situations have typically influenced their experiences of the phenomenon?
Research questions
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Design: phenomenology Purposive sample In-depth phone interviews Data analysis: horizontalization,
clusters of meaning, textural and structural descriptions, narrative of the essence
Method
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Social media are now trumping websites in terms of fan communication
Platforms are used for different purposes
Social media are used for information, promotion, and research
1. Connecting with target audiences
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
“It’s a way to a pulse on your fan base, to know how they’re feeling and know when something might be worth addressing and when something might be better just to ignore it.”
1. Connecting with target audiences
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Ranges from centralized team approach to decentralized individual approach
Ranges from frequent short-term planning meetings (weekly) to infrequent long-term planning meetings (annually)
2. Coordination of Postings
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Competing interests are challenging Individual sports accounts are
handled by sports information staff for recruiting purposes
Organizational accounts are handled by marketing for branding purposes
Keeping a balance
3. Content gatekeepers
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
“As much as we want to get out and promote, we have to make sure that we’re not killing ourselves with spam and becoming spam. We have to engage our audience but also be courteous to them.”
3. Content gatekeepers
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Difficult to show ROI of social media efforts
Administrators still need to be convinced of the value of social media
Social media still considered “added value” instead of stand-alone promotional channel
4. Sponsors and revenue
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
“They’re running a campaign with stadium signage or maybe a website banner, and they’ll get a throw-in with social media. That’s something we want to get away from.”
4. Sponsors and revenue
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Enhancing the fan experience Building the brand organically
through engagement Will engagement lead to
merchandise and ticket sales? Fan loyalty as a result of two-way
communication
5. Building loyalty through engagement
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
“We’re not able to keep up with everybody but we interact with fans as much as possible. It can’t just be one-way. If it’s two-way that’s where they become engaged and their fan loyalty builds because they’re being heard. They’re being respected.”
5. Building loyalty through engagement
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Measuring two-way communication meaningfully
Concern for the brand Concern for the student-athlete
6. Negativity and metrics
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
“We’re not too concerned about doing something social that’s going to hurt our brand. We’re worried about our student-athletes and how it’s going to hurt their personal prospects.”
6. Negativity and metrics
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Social media are used to communicate with various audiences for different purposes
Difficulty measuring ROI Centralized versus decentralized
planning Sports information versus athletic
marketing
The Essence
2013 AEJMC Annual Convention | Washington, D.C.
Need social media plan with clearly articulated and measurable goals
Identify and measure key performance indicators
Managerial decision-making Connect sponsors in a meaningful
way
Discussion
Thank you!
Makayla Hipke Frauke Hachtmann, Ph.D.