Sports & social media buzz

Social Media has really been shaping the way that people interact on the Internet. It is no longer only the savvy users or the programmers who are able to reach out for current. It is mother like mine who find applications such as “Edmondo” which allows you to rate your exercise performance based on audio feedback. This may not sound very impressive, I know, but remember that 5 years ago a lot of people, including for example my own mother, where completely clueless about the Internet, smart phones or applications.

One of the most significant ways that my mother and millions of users are quickly catching on with technology are social media sites. By “friending” companies that they like and following people whom they respect they opened an incredible window for business to gain popularity, make advertising money and at the same time be under real scrutiny of the client.

An example of this connection was utilized by the MLB in the All-Star game. After last year’s event when some players where tweeting while waiting their turn at bat the Baseball league understood that the buzz was a testament of how much people cared to hear about their athletes. Now a week after the big event the numbers are in. USA Today published the success of this strategy and determined that the comments on Facebook and Twitter increase up to a %257 over last year, also, this led to a %3 increase in TV ratings for Fox.  

It is now time for the next challenge and there is already huge buzz in the industry about what’s at stake for the London Olympics. Most of the athletes participating in this competition have embraced and social media as a way to connect with fans. The experts are already calling this the “first social media games” and acknowledging the potential of generating revenue through social channels.