2012 was a big year in the sports and social media environment. Teams and brands accomplished major breakthroughs by allocating significant resources to upgrade their social presence. Digital engagement transformed from a marketing department fad to a must-have component of their engagement strategies.
Activ8Social, a digital marketing agency for sports and entertainment brands, created the #Sports daily e-newsletter to keep clients and industry professionals current on what’s trending in sports and social media. Subscribers were recently polled on their choices for the best of 2012 across a range of categories in the inaugural #Sports Awards.
Jimmie Johnson was the landslide winner, garnering the honor of “most engaging athlete” on Facebook and Twitter and for owning the best social media brand. He also won “best sports photograph” on Instagram for his shot of Bristol raceway. Johnson spearheaded the social media renaissance of NASCAR that had been behind the other major leagues, but after completely changing course a couple years ago, has now become a leader in the social media space. Their enhanced media presence has, in no small part, allowed NASCAR to be the most social sports event of 2012.
World Series Champions the San Francisco Giants won “most engaging team recognition” on Facebook and the Green Bay Packers won the same honors on Twitter. The best Pinterest brand presence went to Under Armour and the viral video of the year was won by the Miami Dolphins cheerleaders’ rendition of the popular song “Call Me Maybe.” Conversely, the biggest social media failure was the NHL’s “Keep Calm and Pin On” campaign that didn’t get off the ground. The league has had a tough year as a result of its extended strike, but with the recent deal, hopefully the league can go back to the drawing board and have a strong 2013.
Activ8Social and #Sports co-founder Steve Cobb was very pleased with the response to the first year of voting and his staff will be canvassing the social media landscape in 2013, looking for the next big thing.
“We’re excited to announce the inaugural #Sports Awards and honor the players, teams, brands, and events that had the biggest impact on the sports and social media landscape in 2012,” said Cobb. “Our team works hard each day to curate the top stories in the space and provide subscribers with an insight into trends and best practices. The sports industry is among the most innovative in its use of social platforms to engage fans and it only seemed natural to recognize the best and brightest in the first-ever awards focused entirely on sports and social media.”
Who do you think will be a social media mover in 2013?
Full #Sports award winners can be found here.