The document provides a social media strategy for Wake Forest Athletics. It finds that fan engagement on social media has been stagnant and recommends improving their Facebook page and joining new sites like Pinterest. The strategy was developed through research on best practices and competitor analysis. It recommends short-term actions like asking questions and holding contests on posts to elicit responses. Long-term recommendations include appointing a social media head, expanding to sites like Twitter and Pinterest, and surveying fans on preferences. The goal is to have the best social media presence in the ACC and NCAA to optimize the fan experience and increase revenue.

1. April 17, 2012
Wake Forest Athletics
Action Learning Project #2
Creative Solutions: Social Media
By Team 17:
Patrick Borders, James Cain, Lauren Cooper, Victoria Osborne, Will Turner

2. Agenda
 Executive Summary
 Main Objectives
 Background
 Methodology
 Key Findings
 Conclusion

3. Executive Summary
• Fan engagement on social media
sites has been stagnantProblem
• Create a social media strategy to
improve and integrate WFU Athletics’
social media
Vision
• Enjoy an improved Facebook page
and improved presence with fast-
growing social media sites
Result

4. Main Objectives
Develop an all-encompassing social media
strategy for Wake Forest Athletics
Discover new, fast-growing sites and
encourage WFU Athletics to join them
Have the best social media pages in the ACC
and NCAA

5. Background
 Marketing Challenges
 Changing from traditional
marketing to nontraditional
 Maintaining product loyalty
despite decreased product
quality
 The competition has better
social media presence
 Importance of Social Media
 Facebook pages are primary
for many teams
 The majority of your market
can be reached through social
media
The mission of the Wake Forest Athletics Department is to optimize
the fan and student athlete experience and to sell tickets.

6. Methodology
Primary and
secondary
research
Advertising and social
media experts
• Mike Fox, The Mullingar
Group
• Kathleen Hessert,
BuzzManager
Social media
best practices

7. Key Findings – Wake Forest*
 Posts with photos vs. without photos
 54% of fans "Talking About This" are women
 33% of people reached were 18-24
*all findings taken from Facebook Insights

8. Facebook Insights
Changes from March to April

9. Facebook Profile – Before

10. Facebook Profile – After

11. Key Findings – Social Media
Importance
of Video
“One
Voice”
5 Hours a
Week
Fans Seeking
“Unique
Experience”
Engagement
Requires More
than “likes”

12. Key Findings – Social Media
Pinterest's Rapid Growth – 2073%
http://yourstory.in/2012/04/pinterest-for-your-interest/

13. What the Competition is Doing
Increasing
engagement
through posts
Cleaner,
more
professional-
looking
pages
Attracting
more fans

14. Why the Competition Matters
 Innovation
 Wake Forest strives to be
a leader in social media
 Must have an appealing,
crisp page
 Better pages = more
visitors = more revenue
 Recruitment
 Athletic departments
use social media sites
to attract prospective
athletes

15. Conclusion
Short-Term Recommendations:
 All posts should elicit a response—a comment,
"like" or “share”
 ask questions
 hold contests
 post unique pictures and videos
 Update cover photo
 relevant to appropriate sports season

16. Conclusion
 Integrate social media sites to create a user-
friendly ecosystem
 Join Pinterest
 Adopt "one voice" to
increase authenticity
and transparency
 Appoint a head of social media

17. Conclusion
Long-Term Recommendations:
 Invest in smartphone and/or tablet
 constant, immediate responses and updates
 Implement survey on Facebook to find fans’
social media preferences
 Expand Data Collection to Twitter and Pinterest
 look for long term trends in fan engagement

18. Questions?