Social Media is a Must

Now that the NFL has found another way to reach its audience by becoming a media partner with Twitter, hopefully we can see more action where ever we are, both on and off the field. There is an important reason why social media and the digital world have become so popular.
 This blog discusses both sports and digital advertising, but there are other areas of entertainment, such as TV and media production that help clarify the importance of using social media... so here is a little bit of off topic news to help support the notion of social media and digital advertising and how it works in other areas.
I was an intern at a tech savvy and inspiring social media studio in Los Angeles, California. The young and fabulous company is called Fanology Social. Recently, LA held a  Social Media Week, where a few speakers, including the CEO of Fanology Social, and a client/actress of ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars Shay Mitchell joined in on a panel to talk about the  use of social media to significantly increase fan engagement and opportunity for businesses in the TV entertainment industry. This panel provided proof that social media both monetizes and increases the growth of a business in popularity.

Providing fans w/ exclusive content on each channel is crucial to adding value and expanding your client's reach. #SMWLA #smwPLL
— Fanology Social (@FanologySocial) September 27, 2013

 This is where I found out additional information on Social Media Week that crosses digital media advertising with the sports marketing industry. One panel in the Social Media Week Chicago discussed fan activation with sports sponsorship, the idea of this panel led me to research additional information on this topic. The panel hosted by Aon stated that

"As one of the most successful soccer clubs in the world, Manchester United’s 500+ million followers offered Aon a significant global branding opportunity and digital platforms afford Aon the ability to engage directly with these fans."-- SMWChicago

There is a lot of money in sports sponsorship, especially with the NFL being the most profitable and popular professional sports league in the US, and if advertising is done strategically through digital platforms, it is possible to enormously monetize the business with this exposure.
Some NFL teams are already doing a good job of promoting their team to their fans in social media and recognize the advantage. This page is worth a read to see the top 5 teams who are engaging. ZogDigital: Five Engaging Football Teams.