Tyler Johnson has written a number of articles for us over the last year including the Top 100 Ways to use Social Media in Sports and the influence of LinkedIn Groups. We wanted to take a deeper look at how Tyler personally uses social media and how it pertains to the sports industry on a daily basis.
1. How did you effectively utilize social media in your work with the White Sox?
While with the White Sox I mostly utilized Twitter and LinkedIn in relation to my work. I changed my signature in my e-mail to direct people to my social media accounts. In less than a year, I noticed some direct sales driven through LinkedIn. However, the most significant value that became of these tools was the rapport I developed with my clients and potential customers.
Once customers could see a quick snap shot of what I was about, a more solid relationship quickly followed. At the same time, using LinkedIn I was able to learn more about what they did, the companies they work for, and the things they enjoyed most outside of their 9 to 5 job.
I also used twitter to send out updates in regards to group outings, discounted ticket opportunities and other general PR material. I let our official MLB Twitter account drive the bulk of our traffic and Twitter brand, as I had other purposes in its use.
It may sound cliché, but I think everyone in the New Year should set out to try a few new things. Hopefully people haven’t already derailed their 2010 plans! One of my former colleagues sent me a tweet last week wanting to promote #ClicheWednesday on twitter that day. It was random, but knowing his use of social media in his job, it was new to me and I thought, hey good for Brian (
Last May I was kicking back with Lewis Howes at a Chicago Cubs game, not knowing in two weeks time I would be doing the same thing with another colleague, Jude LaRose. Still digesting the LinkedIn knowledge Lewis dropped on me, Jude and I ended up not paying much attention to the play on the field and instead spent most of the time hatching a plan.
I always take the opportunity to reach out to a customer and show off a brand I represent. I won’t lie, I had a college professor that pounded this into my head for a semester. Working in ticket sales a few years later, I searched for ways to capitalize on this point.
When I first signed up for a LinkedIn account, I’ll be honest, I was not really sure why or what I’d be doing with it. Initially I saw the value in connecting with others in my industry and experimented with the tools that were there.
