Super Bowl XLVII has officially taken over the city, and it’s taking over Louisiana’s Online Lagniappe as well. Rather than highlighting specific Louisiana companies this week, we’re going to look at the best elements of the Super Bowl’s online presence, then discuss how you could use those same strategies to help your business. Ready, set, hike!
A Highly Visual Presence
Every single thing webpage and profile that the NFL has created for Super Bowl XLVII is an amalgamation of images, timelines, profiles, and videos. They’re using as little words as possible to tell their story, and they’re doing it wonderfully. Readers respond and stick around longer when viewing graphics compared to long paragraphs of text – which is why infographics and other data visualizations have become such a popular marketing tool lately. When possible, your business should be using them as well.
Event-Based #Hashtags
If your business is having a sale or some other event where you know that your customers will be tweeting about it (and you should always be giving them incentive to tweet,) make sure to create, then promote a dedicated hashtag. Almost everything the NFL has been doing this week has included #SB47 written somewhere, and most of the smaller events (such as #NFLFanPass) have their own customized hashtags as well. This will not only group together tweets for easier monitoring and responding, but it also will create a more cohesive conversation online concerning your event. Speaking of which…
Using Twitter as a Conversation, not a Loudspeaker
The @nolasuperbowl account has been routinely monitoring and answering every question asked with a hashtag related to the events going on this week. Timely responses are incredibly important on social media, particularly with Twitter – some surveys show that customers expect to be responded to within 30 minutes or less. If you don’t yet have a social media dashboard installed (both Sprout Social and Hootsuite offer relatively low cost solutions), make sure to create one that is ready for your Twitter promotions, and also have a staff member whose has been trained in how your brand’s voice sounds online manning it.
Don’t Be So Serious!
Sometimes, it’s hard to forget that deep within your business, there is a personal and lighter side involved. The NFL knows this, and they have numerous features highlighting things that aren’t necessarily football, but do revolve around the event. Ever wonder which NFL player knows an uncomfortable amount of words to Destiny’s Child Say My Name? Curious which sports networks should battle “Anchorman” style? Video content produced by the NFL answers those questions, and more. By having lighter content, you’re opening up your brand to an audience that might otherwise never be connecting with your company.
And the Lagniappe’s Lagniappe
Our extra shout-out this week goes to the other game going on this Sunday – Puppy Bowl IX. This always adorable event has a surprisingly robust online presence, including a streaming locker-room cam already set up (click here if your office is ok with you “awwwwwwwwwing” the rest of the day,) video player profiles, and a tweeting cockatiel. Yes, @meepthebird – a bird who, well, tweets. Truly our favorite sports reporter to follow on the big day.
Send In Your Lagniappe
Is your Louisiana-based business doing incredible things online? Send Flynn Zaiger of Online Optimism a note at Flynn@onlineoptimism.com and it might just be included in next week’s column.