Here is how Sports Geek runs Twitter Chats with sports teams and athlete with sports fans to provide a highly engaging and interactive hour of tweets.

1. Sports Geek ­ How To
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Twitter Chats Explained
The Setup
● Set a consistent time ­ After work preferably between 7­9pm (be aware of popular TV you
might clash with)
● Set a consistent length ­ 30 minutes or 1 hour is long enough
● Set the questions ­ Have your 5 Questions prepared ready to go
● Set your hashtag ­ Don’t over think it #ThunderChat #CrowsChat #BluesChat
● Set your dates ­ You need at least 3 Twitter chats to produce consistent results
The Player Pitch
● Easy pitch for players, simply look at your phone Twitter client when we chat is planned
to be run.
● Respond to questions that inspire you to using the hashtag and mention team account.
● Join in the conversation if pulled in by fans or team account.
● Enjoy the fan interaction.
● Sign off with a thank you tweet at the end of the chat, no need to continue fan interaction
after chat (but you can if you want)
● Ignore the trolls
How to Promote
● Send out tweets in days prior ­ “Join us for #CrowsChat at 7:30pm Tuesday night”
● Send out tweets in hours prior (potentially remind players or guests) ­ “Who is joining us
for #CrowsChat today at 7:30pm, perhaps @dangerfield32 will join tonight?”
● Send out reminder 15 minutes before ­ “Warm up your Twitter fingers #CrowsChat starts
in 15 minutes”
● Drive fans from Facebook and other channels ­ post 5 minutes before sending fans from
other platforms
How to Get Started
Explain how it works... EVERY TIME YOU START as you will always have new fans.
Welcome to #ThunderChat, we’ll have 5 Questions over the next hour.
Remember: tag your answers #ThunderChat as well as which question you’re answering
eg. A1 A2 A3
Some fans might forget to use hashtag or tag answers but if they use the hashtag it is easier to
follow.
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2. Sports Geek ­ How To
SportsGeekHQ.com
@SportsGeek
Build a script that already has your 5 questions ready to be tweeted and even some of you player
engagement strategies ready to tweet. The less thinking you need to do when running the
Twitter chat the better.
During the Twitter Chat
Twitter chats are exceptionally fast, so many answers and interaction it can be quite
overwhelming. As moderator with the team account you should be:
● Mindful of time ­ keep moving on to next question in equal amounts of time
● Follow your script ­ don’t stray as it is too frantic to make changes on the fly
● Use RT Reply to amplify good answers by fans (use with restraint 2 or 3 per question)
this shows the fans that you are listening
● RT some answers, again with restraint 2 or 3 per question maximum
● Use Favorite button like a mad man (or woman) and show appreciation for fans joining in
● Sign off ­ If you don’t sign off officially you’ll be in a Twitter chat all night
After Twitter Chat
You now have plenty of material from fans and players to use for future content, some ways of
using are:
● Create a Storify article promoting the best tweets and answers from Twitter Chat
● Add the best tweets to a Pinterest board
● Add a Tweet of the Week to your TV or YouTube videos to promote next week
● Show tweets from Twitter Chat on scoreboard at next game
● Profile Tweets from fans on a Facebook Post
Tools & Resources
How to run a successful Twitter chat ­ Case Study from Sydney Thunder
TweetChat ­ useful tool to follow the chat hashtag
TweetReach ­ useful to track reach and effectiveness of Twitter chat (run once per month to see
growth)
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3. Sports Geek ­ How To
SportsGeekHQ.com
@SportsGeek
Example Twitter Chat Script
6:50pm ­ Is everyone ready? #ThunderChat kicks off in just ten minutes!
Remember to tag your answers #ThunderChat as well as which question you’re answering eg.
A1 A2 A3
Here we go! #ThunderChat Q1. Who was your standout performer in our #BBL02 opener?
<USE RT REPLY ON 3 TWEETS>
<BE SURE TO FAVE TWEETS FROM FANS ANSWERING>
<DRAW FEEDBACK FROM PLAYERS>
Lot of love for @x and @x....
Moving on to #ThunderChat Q2. What will be the key to victory for us against the
@RenegadesBBL?
<WATCH FOR RIVAL TEAMS REPLYING, INCLUDE FANS IN BANTER>
Next up, #ThunderChat Q3. What do people think of zing wickets? What other innovations
should @BigBashLeague introduce?
We’re flying through these! #ThunderChat Q4. If we had one Thunder player host a
#ThunderChat, who would you want it to be and why?
<DRAW FEEDBACK FROM PLAYERS>
What do you say, @x ­ Wanna join us next week to host #ThunderChat?
Last one, folks. #ThunderChat Q5. Who’s coming along to @ANZStadium Friday when we take
on the Renegades?
<SNEAKY TICKET PROMOTION>
Secure your seat now ­ http://bit.ly/TQBiQV Make sure you take plenty of pics #thunderstruck
<SIGN OFF>
Thanks for joining in to #ThunderChat again, guys! Can’t wait to see you all at ANZ Stadium to
support the boys! #thunderstruck #goodtobegreen
<BE SURE TO FAVE TWEETS FROM FANS SAYING THANKS>
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