Coaches, college
admissions officers and employers all look at social media to get a glimpse
into their candidates personal lives and if you are not careful with the
content you post you could hurt your chances of getting a job, into a school or
onto a team. Conversely, a great social
media profile could be the catalyst to help you get your fantasy job, into the
school of your dreams or onto your favorite team. I attended the Atlanta Business Chronicle - Business on Sports Summit, last week and Frank Wren - GM of the Atlanta Braves stated that before
he signed Ervin Santana, he checked out Santana’s social media profiles to see
what he was posting and whom he was following.
As we all know the Atlanta Braves signed Santana, but it is a mere
example, that talent is not the only thing that people are looking at any
longer. What is your social media saying
about your brand?
10 Twitter tips for student and professional athletes:
1.
Tweet with Intent –Before tweeting every athlete should ask himself or herself - Is this
post going to help or hurt my brand? If
it will help then by all means share it with the world, if it is going to hurt
your brand then delete it…immediately!!! This includes sharing and retweeting. If you share and/or retweet something it is
considered your original content. In
2011 Ryan Spadola was a wide receiver at Lehigh University and he retweeted an
inappropriate racial reference, which earned him a short suspension. The tweet
was erased, but once something is on the Internet it is there forever. He faced a minor consequence, but not
everyone is so lucky.
2.
Empower or Educate – Your tweets should be a source for your readers,
whether it inspires them to be better or educates them on something you are
passionate about in life. As an athlete you can provide supportive and positive
atmosphere for fans, teammates and others following you.
3.
No Drunk Tweets – Often when people are upset they tweet their feelings about someone
or something and there is nothing wrong with your tweets being genuine, but
remember once something is on the internet you can delete it but it can always
be found, so think twice before sending hurtful tweets.
4.
Update your fans – If people are buying into your brand they will want to know what
you are doing on and off the field. Give
them a glimpse into your life, so they can feel like they know you. Such as
game schedule information, your stats, teams you follow.
5.
Be Visual
– Tweets with pictures are retweeted more often than tweets with out
images. Send a picture of yourself
during your game, in your jersey or a flyer showcasing something that you are a
part of in the community.
6.
Engage
– Social media is a place to connect with people you know as well as people you
do not know. Use twitter as a platform
to talk with your fans or as I like to call them brand ambassador. Retweet a meaningful post, - You can make some ones day by retweeting
their message or just mentioning them. A
great tool is on Fridays using the hash tag #FF (Follow Friday) with a host of
peoples twitter handles. This is an easy way to single out some of your key
fans to make them feel special.
7.
Say Thanks
– One way to begin the conversation is to thank new followers for following you
and ask them something about themselves.
If their profile says they love football say… Thanks for following. I
see you love football who is your favorite college or professional team?
Hopefully, they will say your team increasing your bond. Thanking your fans, family and teammates goes
a long way to build your brand.
8.
No online drama – Do not air your dirty laundry on Twitter (or any social media
site). Pick up the phone and call the
person you have an issue with, so you can resolve it with out putting
unnecessary information on the social media sites. Only use Twitter to build
your brand and engage with your followers.
Remember once something is written online even if it is deleted it was
seen by someone (captured by screen
shots or saved by other means)
9.
Got a joke
– Share your funny stories on Twitter.
Everyone loves to laugh and if it makes others laugh you may get
whatever you said retweeted, which in-turn will help to expand your brand/
message.
10. Be consistent – If you are going to start a Twitter page be ready to tweet on a regular
basis. When you amass followers they look forward to seeing what you have to
say and engaging with you on a regular basis… do not disappoint them by only
tweeting when you have something important to say or if you want something from
them.
Prior to the advent of social medial it was difficult to
speak or interact with your favorite athlete, but now they are just a tweet
away. The nation no longer relies on
magazines and newspapers to see what athletes and other celebrities are saying,
they follow their every move on Twitter and other sites. That is why it is important that when our
High School students are beginning to build their brand via social media they
know how and when to use it
Has your school, team or organization hosted a social
media branding seminar for your student-athletes and/or professional athletes?
If you have we would love to hear what advice you shared and how it has
impacted their use of social media. Please feel free to disclose your thoughts
in the comments below. If you have not
hosted a seminar then you should definitely consider doing one to show
your athletes how to represent themselves and the team.
God Bless
A. Mayartis J.
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