KPI's: The 1 Thing You Must Do If You Want To Work In Social Media
As I begin the process of starting my own business, I recognize the importance of digital media for any small company, especially those in the sport industry. While helping businesses and training facilities grow, social media is an important ingredient to the overall Business Development plan.
I have taken it upon myself over the last several months to learn about about social media and specifically, how top sport businesses and brands use it as apart of their content marketing strategy. This week I had the opportunity to speak with Ben Zettler. Ben is the Director of Social Media at Steiner Sports and is the founder of Brooktide. Ben has a very impressive background in Digital Media.
We discuss his favorite social media platforms (for sports), advice for those who wish to work in social, and his suggestions for resources in order to keep learning and stay current.
Nick Cipkus: What is your favorite social media platform for sports? Why?
Ben Zettler: Each platform can serve a very specific purpose to an athlete, team or brand. Snapchat is great for engagement with 18-25 year olds, but with recent feature releases by Instagram (which many have referred to as cloned features), it has quickly become the go-to platform for a marketer focused on both engaging a younger fan base and with the help of some third party tools, driving significant web traffic. Twitter is still the best place to interact from a content perspective in real-time because of the nature of the platform. Facebook is great to reach an older audience with a specific interest that you are attempting to target.
Nick Cipkus: What is one tip you give someone who is interested in working in the digital space for sports?
Ben Zettler: If you want to work in the digital space in sports, understand what that means. Do not make the assumption that a hiring manager will say, "Yes," because you tell them how passionate you are at sports and how much you like using different social platforms for your personal use. If you have a true understanding of what that company or team measures themselves against in terms of KPIs, you will be more likely to show that hiring manager that you can fit well with the organization...and that "passion" will shine through.
Nick Cipkus: What are two books someone should read to improve their knowledge of social media and integration of sports
Ben Zettler: Forgetting books...the resources are at your fingertips. Invest time in following relevant industry professionals and marquee teams and brands in sports so that you have a pulse on what is going on in the sports world. There is a lot of noise in the digital space, particularly as it relates to sports. Navigate through that by taking advantage of tools available to you (like Tweetdeck for example), to stay organized. Read online resources (Entrepreneur Magazine, Mashable, Ad Age, Adweek, Business Insider, etc.).
Big thanks to Ben for taking some time to provide valuable insight. My goal is to provide "relevant" advice, in which you can take ACTION immediately to improve. There are several items you can take away from Ben.
Learn each platform, its purpose, and how to engage on each channel (Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter).
Research company "Key Performance Indicators" when looking to work in social.
Take advantage of online tools to help keep you organized.
After reading this article, what is ONE thing you plan on using to help you develop as a professional?
