Apologies to Justin Bieber but for the next 31 days you won’t be the number 1 topic on the Internet. That position will be held by the FIFA World Cup. (Bucket List: Mention Justin Bieber in a blog post. Completed)
Here is @Mashable’s guide to following the World Cup on Twitter. The easiest way is to use #worldcup hashtag and follow soccer tweeps to chat about games as they happen.
Congrats to the Chicago Blackhawks on winning the Stanley Cup. Great exposure for sponsor Van Kampen Investments on the Blackhawks website, simple but very effective!
Great research from @TimBull from Tribalytic on the AFL’s hashtag strategy, I’ve been discussing this one with Tim for a while, great to see some data to back it up. Shows the power leagues like the @AFL have in shaping the conversation on Twitter!
Welcome to Twitter – Brendan Fevola
Love seeing new athletes join Twitter, didn’t think I’d see this guy anytime soon….
Great promotion by @NHL over the playoffs with Beard-a-thon, great connection with a sponsor King of Shaves as well as connecting with hockey fans to raise money! WIN-WIN-WIN
YouTube Clip of the Week
Continuing the World Cup theme…
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It was great to see Amare Stoudamire win Best on Ground in last week’s edition but this week he (or his team) made the mistake of the automated blog post. Adding a note to his fans that was obviously written before Game 5 but it was posted after the Western Conference Finals had finished. (Phoenix lost)
This week’s Best On Ground goes to Kathleen Hessert for this tweet, are you ready for this game changer?
Video(on-demand & Internet) will be 91% of global consumer online traffic by ‘14 says Cisco. Get ready sports properties & media companiesWed Jun 02 13:34:31 via webKathleen Hessert
kathleenhessert
One of the biggest challenges many teams face is differentiating themselves whilst adhering league brand guidelines. It was a common theme with the teams I met with on #sportsgeektrip.
Many leagues across the globe follow a similar digital model. League web sites are developed and team web sites are created under the league umbrella.
MLB.com, NBA.com, NHL.com,AFL.com.au are some examples of these Leagues that follow this “Umbrella model”.
(*edit thanks for comment: Essendon stand alone as an exception running independently of the AFL very successfully with EssendonFC.com.au)
If you take a look at team websites e.g. LA Dodgers Vs New York Yankees or Collingwood Vs Hawthorn you’ll see some team customization but they are locked into a League framework. The NBA follows a similar model but teams are using custom landing pages (or splash pages like the Mavs do) to offer fans special deals.
Other leagues like the NFL.com & PremierLeague.com have decoupled the League’s web deal from the teams.
What’s better?
The “Umbrella model” makes administration of League branding much easier and sometimes can lead to a better sponsorship deal as it is league-wide. However, it can be restrictive both creatively and financially to the teams who want to push the Web 2.0 envelope. From a technical prospective a league wide CMS (content management system) does reduce the need for in-house web staff for teams but many people who use these systems find them too restrictive. Leagues that abandon the “Umbrella model” face the problem of a potentially creating a tech gap between the have and have-nots. Some teams like those run by MSG (Knicks, Rangers, Liberty) help promote their teams outside the standard team’s sites through the stadium (TheGarden.com), then again with so many sports properties MSG is a unique business.
What are your thoughts?
Does the ability for league’s to secure deals outweigh a team’s desire to innovate?
Would teams do a better job if they could go it alone?
Would small-market teams struggle maintaining own website?
Attended a College Tailgate but also the game! BCS Championship Game at Rosebowl with 94,000 of my closest friends. Go Longhorns!
Got my picture taken with the BCS Coaches Trophy.
Saw the NBA’s best player Kobe Bryant (3 times) unfortunately he hasn’t been at his best but does enough to win. Including a cross town match against the LA Clippers with Baron Davis at his best & Aussie Andrew Bogut’s Bucks who unfortunately had no fight left in them.
Watched Dirk Nowitski score his 20,000th NBA point against the Lakers from the a private suite at American Airlines Center.
Saw Mark Cuban at Mavs game unable to meet him he is too excited about his Mavs in season.
Toured the American Airlines Center with CEO Brad Mayne including the terrific facilities the Mavs in their locker room. Terrific facility Brad, best HD scoreboards I’ve seen (excluding the ridiculous screen at Cowboys Stadium).
Fell in love with the beauty & history of Dodger Stadium, will be back for a game.
Jaw dropping amazement of the magnitude of the Cowboys Stadium with the Cowboys on the field practicing!
Saw Big Ben Wallace from the Pistons turn back the clock against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Great history in that arena, even walking around met Walt “Clyde” Frazier & John Starks.
Watch some great hockey thanks to the LA Kings at the Staples Center & Dallas Stars at American Airline Center.
That is just the venues, games & sports stars you may know but I’ve met a lot of cool people as well. All the time taking notes on the promotions, marketing and watching offline fans to see how to best connect them with online fans.
If you’re in New York come & say G’day as I’m hosting a #sportsgeektweetup on Wednesday night 7pm at ESPN Zone.
I’m in Dallas now but I recorded this yesterday morning just a recap of the LA leg of #sportsgeektrip. It’s been great checking out different sports and facilities but also how teams promote themselves and their sponsors at games.
To keep an eye on the #sportsgeektrip via Twitter by following @seancallanan
Contact Sports Geek for more info on the Sports Geek Study Trip.
Best of Digital Sports World – Ronaldo Edition 7
Brendan Fevola
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