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MLB

First Social Media Incentive Program for Athletes

May 14, 2011

By: Britt Johnson

The NBA, NFL, and other professional sports leagues are all too familiar with handing down fines to athletes (and owners/coaches) who violate their social media policies. The UFC has no interest in collecting money from its own athletes. Instead, they are doing the reverse in handing out the cash—$240,000 annually to be exact.

This week UFC president Dana White announced the first-ever incentive-based social media program for fighters during the UFC Summit in Las Vegas where more than 300 fighters were required to go through Digital Royalty University social media training. The allotted money will be dispersed as quarterly bonuses to fighters who make the most impact with their personal Twitter accounts.

Competition was in the air as the program was announced to more than 300 fighters at the annual UFC Summit at the Red Rock Casino in Vegas. Thousands of fans, fighters and media outlets followed along here using the #UFCSummit Hashtag where thousands of tweets were exchanged real-time throughout the week. Mashable and Sports Business Journal also covered the news.

The UFC understands the power of social media. The goal for the incentive program is to encourage the athletes to embrace these new communication tools and increase fan engagement. The UFC and related Twitter accounts are already known for their fighter-to-fighter interactions. The heightened engagement will strengthen the organization’s network, allowing for quick message delivery, more fighter-to-fan interaction and most importantly it provides exclusive value to new and existing fans.

Starting June 1st, Stikeforce and UFC fighters will be divided into four groups depending on their number of followers. From those groups, three winners will be named in the following categories, each receiving $5,000 for most followers gained, highest percentage of followers gained and most creative campaign.

A social media powerhouse himself, Dana knows the influence Twitter followers carry. Factor in a few hundred additional social media-savvy athletes, and you have a force to be reckoned with.

For more information about Digital Royalty University, email Info@TheDigitalRoyalty.com

Post image for A Virtual Pep Rally

A Virtual Pep Rally

May 25, 2010

It’s not often you see two competing brands intentionally position their consumers against each other and encourage a battle. We suggested this very idea to two of the brands we work with. They’re teaming up, challenging their fan bases (and each other) to have it out . . . for the greater good.

On Wednesday during the Chicago White Sox vs. Cleveland Indians baseball game, the two mascots Southpaw (@Southpaw) and Slider (@SliderTheMascot), are going head-to-head in a Mascot Rivalry and bringing together two opposing fan bases, virtually. We like to refer to this as a Virtual Pep Rally.

For each #GoWhiteSox and #GoTribe hashtags that are tweeted during the baseball game on Wednesday, the two clubs will donate $1 to Stand Up To Cancer (@SU2C). In addition, the losing team’s mascot with the least amount of hashtags by the last out of the game, will have to make good on the pre-determined wager.

Social media provides an environment, free from rules and politics, where partnerships can be formed and relationships can be strengthened. Even if those partnerships are between two opposing baseball teams.

Creating a special hashtag for an event provides a low-barrier for fans to participate virtually and show team spirit, by simply tweeting a designated hashtag. In this particular case, by tweeting their team’s hashtags, fans are contributing to cancer research. So, it’s a win-win for everyone involved (minus the bragging rights).

Quick Hashtag 101: Utilizing hashtags when hosting an event or announcing a new product, makes it both easier for users to find particular tweets with similar subject matter, but also allows organizers to effectively identify and track all tweets with the same keyword. #GoWhiteSox #GoTribe

Virtual events such as this example, are simple and low-maintenance ways to connect with your audience and increase fan engagement. Plus, a little competitive banter between two mascots is a great source of content. Proof: http://twitpic.com/1qygql and http://twitpic.com/1qz09v

To follow the heated battle on Wednesday at 11:05am CST:

Team Chicago White Sox:

Message to Fans, White Sox Official Twitter Account, Mascot, Tally: #GoWhiteSox

Team Cleveland Indians:

Message to Fans, Indians Official Twitter Account , Mascot Tally: #GoTribe

Missed the Virtual Pep Rally? Here’s a recap of all of the action:

Post image for Seating Gets Social

Seating Gets Social

May 4, 2010

The Cleveland Indians started the 2010 regular season this April with a lot of changes from last season: their roster, lineup and even their social media approach. As part of an aggressive social media strategy that Digital Royalty had the opportunity to collaborate on, the Indians have become the first to revolutionize in-game MLB seating by designating a 10-seat section of Progressive Field and reserving it solely for social media users and bloggers. Thus was born the Tribe Social Deck.

What the Indians organization is doing, is building a relationship with and rewarding social fans. Rewards in the form of experiential perks such as private tours of the ballpark and the opportunity to hangout with Indians personalities. The Indians’ are converging the physical and virtual world by turning online influencers and fans into much more–insiders. Fans and the local community now have the ability to feel as if they are an intricate component to the success of the Indians organization, which they are. For that alone, the Indians’ progressive leadership should be commended.

Not only was the Indians’ Tribe Social Deck a hit with attendees, but it caught the attention of prominent sports publications. Sports Business Daily was one of those publications who broke down the Tribe’s Social Deck, the full article which you can read here.

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