The specific requirements of the esports organisation
When looking at the use of social media within a business setting it is vital to understand the organisation that your are working with, or for. Each organisation will have their own specific requirements and the outcomes from these may be recorded in many different ways. For example, a company may want to elevate their membership/follower/subscriber counts, therefore the social media platforms and campaigns may need specific activities to happen.
Content planning and publishing
The planning of content towards an esports organisation is vital to any success that is sought after, things like, content planning involves some discussion around determining the types of content that will be shared on social media, as well as the frequency and timing of those posts. A strategy used by most organisations is to use a "content calendar" that outlines all of the content that will be shared in advance so that there is no scrambling to find something to post at the last minute.
Once the content has been created, it is time to publish it on the chosen social media platform. This involves scheduling posts in advance, as well as responding to comments and questions from followers. It is important to be consistent with social media publishing so that followers know when to expect new content.
Developing online communities
When using any social platform for business purposes, consideration must be applied to the communities that are either being targeted or created. Companies will want to create a following of people that feel part of a community of like-minded people that have the same, if not similar interests. This will need to be done by using some planning strategies to establish these communities, through the use of things like,
Enforcing social media policies.
Social media policies are important for esports organisations because they help to protect the organisation, its players, and its fans. By having a clear and concise social media policy, organisations can ensure that their players and fans are aware of what is expected of them when using social media.
Here are some examples of social media policies that are commonly used in esports:
Research different esports organizations and their social media policies. Compare and contrast the different policies. Create a simple poster on the importance of social media policies in esports.
When working with a client to set requirements for the use of social media, it is important to understand their goals and objectives. What do they hope to achieve with their social media presence? Do they want to increase brand awareness, generate leads, or build a community of fans? Once you know what they want to achieve, you can start to develop a plan to reach their goals.
This is a point where some comparisons with traditional marketing may strengthen the argument to use social media over other options. In most places costs can be a factor in what an organisation can/will do for marketing, however, the relatively low costs of using social media may entice them to the option.
It is also important to consider the target audience. Who are they trying to reach with their social media content? Once you know who their target audience is, you can tailor your content to appeal to them, some audiences may use traditional leaflets over a digital option.
Finally, it is important to consider the competition. What are other esports organisations doing with their social media? What are they doing well, and what could they be doing better? By understanding the competition, you can develop a social media strategy that will help you stand out from the crowd.
Establishing timescales and responsibilities for the use of social media within an esports organisation is essential for ensuring that the organisation's social media presence is managed effectively. By setting clear expectations and guidelines, organisations can help to ensure that their social media accounts are used in a way that is consistent with their values and goals.
Timescales
It is important to set clear timescales for the use of social media. This will help to ensure that posts are made on a regular basis and that there is no overlap in content. For example, an organisation might decide to post on social media at least once a day, Monday to Friday. This would give the organisation's social media team enough time to create and schedule posts, as well as to respond to comments and questions. Whereas others may find that they are not creating sufficient content to be able to do this so may need to post on a weekly basis instead.
Responsibilities
It is also important to assign clear responsibilities for the use of social media within an organisation. This will help to ensure that everyone knows what they are responsible for and that there is no confusion. For example, the organisation's social media team might be responsible for creating and scheduling posts, while the team's manager might be responsible for approving posts before they are published. However, in most esports organisations, there are limited personnel meaning that others may play multiple roles in the organisation such as, the team captain being the social media designated person and the vice-captain as the content creator.#
Companies should look at using a wide range of criteria to measure the success of their social media campaigns. Criteria such as follower growth, engagement, impression and reach, conversion rates, and brand awareness are all very key factors for any company when looking at the overall success of their social media campaigns. So what are these factors?
Follower growth: This metric measures the number of followers on social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. It's a key indicator of the team's popularity and reach on social media.
Engagement rate: This metric measures how much the team's social media content is resonating with its followers. It includes likes, shares, comments, and other forms of engagement. A higher engagement rate suggests that the team is producing content that its followers find interesting and engaging.
Impressions and reach: Impressions measure how many times a team's social media content has been viewed, while reach measures the number of unique users who have seen that content. These metrics are important because they show how far the team's social media content is spreading and how many people are seeing it.
Conversion rate: This metric measures how many social media followers are taking action based on the team's social media content. This could include buying tickets to events, purchasing team merchandise, or visiting the team's website. A high conversion rate suggests that the team's social media content is effective at driving user actions.
Brand awareness: This metric measures how well-known the team's brand is among its target audience. It could include measuring how often the team's name or logo is mentioned on social media, or conducting surveys to measure brand recognition.
An example of how these metrics might be applied to measure the success of a single esports team's social media:
Team: Cloud9
Follower growth: Cloud9's Twitter following has grown from 400,000 to 500,000 in the past year, representing a 25% increase in followers.
Engagement rate: Cloud9's most engaging content on Instagram is its player highlights, which receive an average of 10,000 likes and 500 comments per post.
Impressions and reach: Cloud9's tweets during the League of Legends World Championship were seen by over 5 million unique users, with over 10 million impressions.
Conversion rate: Cloud9's social media promotion of its new merchandise line resulted in a 50% increase in sales compared to the previous month.
Brand awareness: In a survey of esports fans, Cloud9 was recognized as the third most popular esports team in North America, behind only TSM and Fnatic.
| Social Media Website | Site Profile | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Largest social media platform in the world | Reach a wide audience, build a community, promote events and teams, generate leads | |
| A microblogging platform that is ideal for quick updates | Share news and updates, engage with fans, build buzz around events | |
| Visual social media platform that is ideal for sharing photos and videos | Show off the team's personality, give fans a behind-the-scenes look, promote merchandise | |
| YouTube | Video-sharing platform that is ideal for live streaming and sharing highlights | Livestream events, share highlights from matches, create educational content |
| TikTok | A short-form video platform that is ideal for sharing quick and engaging content | Share funny or interesting videos, create challenges, engage with fans |
Organiations will identify targets that they would like to achieve when using social media, these could include;
Building a following on social media: Esports organizations aim to build a strong following on social media to increase brand awareness and reach new fans. For example, the esports organization Team Vitality, based in France, has over 1.5 million followers on Twitter. Here's an example of a recent tweet they posted to engage with their followers:
https://twitter.com/TeamVitality/status/1388324723658172416
Likes and shares: Esports organizations use social media to create engaging content that fans will like and share. For example, the esports organization G2 Esports, based in Germany, has over 1.5 million followers on Twitter and often posts humorous content that fans enjoy sharing. Here's an example of a recent tweet that received over 23,000 likes and 5,000 retweets:
https://twitter.com/G2esports/status/1389316700504910849
Promoting events: Esports organizations use social media to promote upcoming events and tournaments to their fans. For example, the esports organization Cloud9, based in the United States, has over 1 million followers on Twitter and often posts updates about their events. Here's an example of a recent tweet promoting their Valorant team's participation in a tournament:
https://twitter.com/Cloud9/status/1389944736308182023
Generating revenue: Esports organizations use social media to generate revenue through sponsorships, partnerships, and merchandise sales. For example, the esports organization FaZe Clan, based in the United States, has over 6 million followers on Twitter and often promotes their merchandise through social media. Here's an example of a recent tweet promoting their apparel line:
https://twitter.com/FaZeClan/status/1388315738364281862
Links to Learning Outcomes |
Links to Assessment criteria |
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Learning aim B: Develop a plan to use social media in an esports organisation to meet its business requirements |
B.P3 Produce a plan to use social media in an esports organisation to meet its business requirements. B.P4 Review the plan with others in order to identify and inform improvements. B.M2 Justify planning decisions made, showing how the plan will fulfil its purpose and the esports organisation’s business requirements BC.D2 Evaluate the plan and use of social media in an esports organisation against its business requirements. BC.D3 Evaluate the extent to which the optimised content, format and features has improved search engine rankings, using an effective and detailed review of data. |
Anonymous Assessment - Learners assess an anonymous piece of work containing deliberate mistakes against given success criteria.