With the NBA playoffs in full-swing and the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors meeting each other in the Finals for the fourth straight year still a real possiblity, I’m going to take a look at these two NBA juggernauts’ social media presences to see who the real kings are of the NBA.
I think it’s time to dive back into the ever-changing world of social!
Here’s a look back at the biggest stories and campaigns we saw in March, featuring International Women’s Day, Nike, Trainline, YouTube TV, Zlatan and more.
Sports leagues understand media better than most. Here’s how they’re using that knowledge in their content marketing.
It’s the final day of July, which means it’s time to look back at some of the best Instagram videos we’ve seen in the past four weeks or so.
This time around we’ve got submissions from Samsung, Nike Skateboarding, KFC, National Geographic, American Apparel, Southampton FC and the NBA.
And for more of the same, check out our roundup of some of the best social media campaigns from July.
Enjoy!
The NBA’s 68th glorious season is off to a roaring start and the storylines are coming faster than John Wall in transition.
Will LeBron James and the Miami Heat (the reigning MVP and NBA champions) continue their march to dynasty status? How long will it take for injured stars Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook and Kobe Bryant to return to their former powers?
And will anyone get dunked on in a more vicious manner than the way DeAndre Jordan dunked on Brandon Knight? There is plenty of hype around the 2013-14 session, which promises to keep us on the edge of our seats from now until the NBA Finals in June.
However, one of the more subtle headlines is how technology is changing almost every facet of the game.
While basketball is no longer bound to the 13 original rules conceived when Dr James Naismith invented the game in 1891, the digital transformation of the NBA over the last few years has significantly impacted how the game is played, consumed, advertised and much more.
With the aid of social media, online streaming and stats, lets have a look at how digital has changed the NBA experience.
40% of the 1,000 most shared Instagram videos (Instavids) last month came from brands.
The 15 second long Instavid format has only been around for a few months, but is already giving Vine a run for its six second-long money. We’ve discussed the respective benefits of each in this provocatively titled article Fight Club! Instagram vs. Vine.
It seems that brands have been quick to utilise this longer form media. The 150m incumbent Instagram users are clearly a major draw, as opposed to the still not inconsiderable 40m users on Vine, although it should be noted that Vine picked up all those users in just nine months.
It has often been said in filmic terms that if a story can’t be told in 90 minutes than it’s not worth telling. Try telling that to The Godfather.
However this certainly rings true on some level, especially in advertising where you’re engaging with a customer or selling a product rather than telling a sprawling, expansive story of gun violence and enemy disposal.
Who does benefit from the longer format? For a customer it’s good to keep things brief, nobody needs to sit through another colossal Thomson marathon, but conversely six second Vines may seem too short for the purpose.
Six seconds may be the prime length for our fleeting attention spans, but for marketing, this truncated length can be too much of a handicap to get a brand message across.
Perhaps, for this reason, the 15 second Instagram video is a far more effective method and may explain why there was a dip in Vine usage during its launch period. Let’s investigate…