Comments on: The Miami Heat Goes MIA

By: bigshotprof

bigshotprof — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:39:52 +0000

I wondered when Tubbs and Crockett would hit the scene. Actually, as New Yorker, when I see Crockett in parallel with LeBron, what pops into my mind is “You Belong to the City.”

By: Digital Royalty

Digital Royalty — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 17:10:13 +0000

TheSouris, Agreed, actions speak louder than tweets. However, the Fans and Marketing Partners are paying for those players they’ve recruited to win championships. It is about the money. Loyal fans and marketing partners who see results spend more which allows the team to spend more on the talent they put on the court. I learned this firsthand while working for an NBA team.

Also, why were they still trying to recruit D Wade when he was already on board? This was an oversight or lack of time/resource dedicated to social media. Their website didn’t have the outdated D.Wade message posted. What they didn’t do was keep up, prove they were at least listening to fans and respond to them.

Andy, great point. My jaw dropped while seeing all of this go down (Dan’s letter, Cleveland riots) and no doubt it made an impact on the entire NBA brand. Do you think the league office is revising the team’s social media policy and website content approval process/rights right now? The governing body has the final say at the end of the day but the owners/presidents are part of that decision-making group so hopefully there’s a balance. It’s amazing how sports can bring out the emotion in people.

By: Omar Alam

Omar Alam — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 16:55:53 +0000

I think the intern was at the sports bar partying in the clip ESPN showed right when LBJ announced he was headed to South Beach. They probably could have added some more flair to the whole thing, but they looked more like they were going to be low key about the whole thing. For now.

LeBron in South Beach is huge, and what will be more interesting is what they do/don’t do with Gilbert up there basically turning this into something personal. Lots of great chances for marketing and PR there.

But I too was looking for something extra on the new signings. After all, they did rename Dade County to “Wade County” temporarily to get D Wade to say.

Should be fun to watch what they do here and if the Heat mess this up, they got bigger issues then figuring our how to balance payrolls and sign roll players.

By: Andy Sternberg

Andy Sternberg — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 16:39:17 +0000

Missed opportunity, yes, at a big moment for not just the Heat burt the NBA. That said my only fear is the NBA – or other pro sports leagues – diaplacing control of media and voice from the team and managing at the association level. I know you’re not alluding to this and hopefully it would never go that route. Regarding Gilbert, part of me has been waiting for the follow-up saying that his account was hacked. I mean, really?!?

By: TheSouris

TheSouris — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 16:38:49 +0000

DR, You make great points espeically in today’s social media frenzied world… Did they leave mindshare and some money out on the internet “table” proably but so is their mantra – not about money, not about ego, it’s about winning NBA Championship$ – you have to respect a brand, especially a “performing” brand that doesn’t get caught up in the hype and let’s its performance speak louder than any words. It’s not about NBA restrictions or interns asleep at the Co-Tweet wheel… Media hasn’t won any NBA championships… It’s about team play, leadership and focus. That’s something that comes from top of the organization a.k.a. Pat Riley. The Miami Heat’s time to shine will be over the coming years on the basketball court. Just gotta respect brands that just DO!

By: Miami Heat Not So Hot With Social Media Effort

Miami Heat Not So Hot With Social Media Effort — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 12:14:19 +0000

[...] Lebronapalooza is not even 12 hours behind us, but much has already been revealed about the players in this saga and their social media and public relations acumen (or lack thereof). The first failure comes from the Miami Heat and their lack of Twitter and Facebook activity immediately following the announcement. I share the same thoughts as Amy Martin of Digital Royalty on the Heat’s lack of social media skills. [...]

By: Digital Royalty

Digital Royalty — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 08:28:09 +0000

Thank you all for the feedback.

Duc, You’re right. There was plenty of time to plan for this situation. I guarantee the Knicks had a plan locked and loaded.

ScribeDevil, Admittedly, there are things the team can and can’t do at this stage but there are definitely ways to express excitement, acknowledge the epic situation and reciprocate.

Kalvin, Regardless if this was the biggest sports news in history or not, the fact is that people all over the world were watching in great volume (worldwide trending topic) and the team is spending nearly $300 million on this trio. However, my post refers to how the Miami Heat decided to address the situation, not Lebron’s decision. As a side note, my research shows Lebron has done a substantial amount of charitable giving out of his own pocket.

Combined, James, Wade and Bosh have 17 All-Star selections, 2 MVPs, 3 All-Star Game MVPs, 1 NBA Finals MVP and 2 scoring titles. And, they have a team president who has won 6 NBA championships as a player and coach. Most definitely the Miami Heat has gained new fans as a result of Lebron’s decision to join the team. Just like the Bulls gained new fans when Jordan landed in Chicago.

By: Jamie Favreau

Jamie Favreau — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 06:37:04 +0000

I have to agree. I am glad you are saving the Dan Gilbert and Lebron side of things for another post.

I could not imagine not having the HEAT marketing team not doing something during this. You arrange for an hour presser and then have nothing to show for it. I think it is important to teams to realize that the social world is not a 9-5 job and neither is the sports world. So when something big like this happens. They need to be there for the breaking story. They nee to monitor and to realize there is sponsorship out there for this kind of thing.

I personally did not watch. I did not feel the need to see it. I had a Twitter feed which was blowing up.

By: Jessica Northey

Jessica Northey — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 06:19:36 +0000

Very well put Amy! You are, as always, dead on!
It blows me away how much more often than not, people miss opportunities. Only Tweeting/Posting from 9-5. It is imperative to know when and how your target audience uses Social Media and I can’t imagine having all eyes on you and being MIA….too bad, so sad!
They need to hire you!

By: ScribeDevil

ScribeDevil — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 05:58:17 +0000

I don’t know much about the rules around NBA free agency, but would a franchise be allowed to use an unsigned player in its marketing communications? LeBron is not legally/contractually bound to the Heat yet. Either way, I suppose they shoulda/coulda said something rather than going dark …