FanDuel (@FanDuel) Senior Dir of Audience Development Adam Kaplan said the brand's approach to social media has become less about promoting its daily fantasy sports offerings and more about talking with fans about the aspects of sports that matter to them. Kaplan said, "It’s an area of late that we have been working to emphasize. I’m not sure that we have gotten that right over the past five or so years. We have focused a lot on highlighting our product -- promotions and different offers to try to get new users. The last four months, what we have really focused on is original content and emphasizing engagement tactics." He added, "We’ve seen a lot of interesting numbers year over year. Our organic impressions on Twitter are up 35% year-over-year and our media views are up 62% year-over-year. We’re looking at things to drive those metrics and a whole lot more."
SOCIAL SNAPSHOT
Must-follows: World Wide Wob. He’s particularly good for the lighter side of NBA free agency.
Favorite app: These are ones that do an exceptionally good job: Slack, Starbucks, Uber and Slice
Average time per day on social media: A lot
FanDuel’s social media philosophy:
At a high level, we want to be part of the sports conversation. People are really passionate about sports. We are looking to harness that and lead that conversation when possible. We also want to be meeting our customers wherever they are and elevate their experience with our brand. Social in a lot of ways is the first line of defense in engaging with our audience.
How social media influenced FanDuel’s operations:
It jumps back to being that first line of defense. We try our best to deliver the best customer experience we can. We’re obsessive about doing that. When I think of how social media has informed our operation, it starts and ends with the customer.
How some states’ push to regulate DFS impacted FanDuel’s social media:
One thing we were amazed at when that push was being made by some states was how our audience really rallied to fight back and make their voices heard. That grassroots effort led to DFS bills in 19 states.
Future of FanDuel’s social media now that states can legalize betting:
We are looking for more ways to engage our audience about the things they care about most. What the rise in social media has done is make the world a smaller place, but in other ways it has made it easier than ever to connect with fans all over.
How relationship with Paddy Power Betfair will impact FanDuel on social media:
Not too much. If you look at Paddy Power Betfair from a 30,00-foot view, they are a company that has a portfolio of different brands. What makes each of those brands super unique is that they operate sort of independently. They have their own ways of reaching their audiences, and in the case of FanDuel, it’s not going to change the way we engage our audience on social, it’s not going to change our desire to create original content and engaging experiences around sports betting. We are going to continue to look for ways to give our fans behind-the-scenes looks at experiences that they can’t get from any other brand.
Promoting U.S. sportsbooks FanDuel will manage:
You can look for us to try to raise awareness to the different places where we’ll offer sports betting and use our best efforts to take a targeted approach to do so.
What social platforms can do better to help DFS sites, other businesses:
Each platform is very different, and as they are evolving, they become even more different. They are all emphasizing video content, but they are going about that differently. The one thing I would say to all of them is keep doing what you are doing.
If you know anyone who should be featured for their use of social media, send their name to us at
jperez@sportsbusinessdaily.com.
