Twins President Dave St. Peter (@TwinsPrez) knows that social media platforms are constantly evolving, and does not see apps like Periscope and Meerkat as a threat to his franchise. He said, "We have to be smart enough to worry less about how they’re going to
hurt us, and utilize those platforms to help us. There are a lot of
creative applications for that type of content." Here’s a look at how St. Peter sees the Twins using social media today and in the future.
Personal importance of social media:
I’m a media junkie. That obsession includes the consumption of news and information via old-school channels. But the interactive nature of social media is appealing on so many levels.
Trends you are following:
I’m thrilled that MLBAM just finalized a deal with Snapchat and will be watching to see how we engage in that space.
Difficulty of juggling social media apps to get a message out:
It’s nearly a 24/7 focus group. So if something good or bad is going on with the Twins or our brand, I’m generally going to hear about it first on Twitter. That feedback is immediate, and sometimes you have to put a filter on it to understand what’s real.
Interacting with fans on social media:
My foray into using social media coincided with the franchise going into a difficult period where we lost 90 games four years in a row. There were some challenging days on my timeline. For a lot of young fans, this is the first time they started getting into the Twins since probably the 2010 season. Just the way people are looking at the team -- a fresh, new perspective compared to where we were a year ago -- and clearly younger people are really driving a lot of that.
How you stand out:
We are nowhere near where we want to be, and we are looking at what we can do from an organizational structure to better position us to assure that social media strategy is front and center driving our brand. At the end of the day, whether it be advertising elements, baseball communications or media relations, social media really tends to be in the media of telling all those stories.
If you know anyone who should be featured for their use of social media, send their name to us at
jperez@sportsbusinessdaily.com
