The following article is derived from "You have 16 friend requests" by Mic Cullen published on the AFL Website.
SOCIAL media - it's a phenomenon that's sweeping the world, and like all sports SWAFL and the AFL is being caught in the slipsteream.
Facebook, Myspace, Bebo and Twitter are the darlings of the social media network, embraced by hundreds of millions of people around the world. Current best estimates put the numbers at about 350 million on Facebook and 100 million on Twitter.
Some SWAFL clubs have ignored social media - yet -other SWAFL clubs are already working furiously to make it happen for them, using it as an avenue to recruit potential players, drive interest to their websites, as a forum for discussion amongst fans/players, organise events and functions.
One of the clubs proactive about using Facebook is the newly formed Southern Power women's team. Team manager Janine McGlynn who is the team manager says "Southern power use Facebook to keep players and supporters up to date with what's happening with the team for training, events and general information. Along with regular emails and postings on the clubs website it really gives us a great opportunity to advertise our fantastic team."
Another of the clubs sees Facebook as just one more tool of communication between club, players and supporters according to their media manager Katrina Byrne "Facebook and other social networking sites are useful tools in recruiting players, generating interest in Sydney Uni Womens AFL Club and keeping players informed of social events. But it's important to remember that they're just another resource we can use. The real focus of the club has always been (and shall continue to be) creating a welcoming environment that fosters football excellence, and builds a community within the university. We also recognise that although the internet is ever prevalent in today's society, there are still plenty of people not participating in social networking sites and not regularly accessing the internet. This is where more traditional forms of communication (such as O-Week stalls, phone calls, posters and flyers) come in."
Another of the clubs not shy about using social media is the Bondi Shamrocks. Founder and club president Lisa "Kiwi" Roper said "We have a facebook group and a facebook page, but people tend to join them after they have heard or been a part of us. Our
facebook page is not for recruiting, its more to communicate with our members and players. We do have a bunch who bought our supporter memberships that are friends on our facebook page, and we do pan to create a database for that but at the moment we communicate through facebook. Also as an update for the odd training change etc, but for our players its really through emails and our website. Our website is our biggest recruiter apart from Word of Mouth, as we do come up high on google searches now, and as we are one of the most up to date websites from SWAFL we get a few people coming through that too.
As for twitter, our marketing manager Jamie Fitzsimons updates that, and it has a bigger following, I think its more about updating people too, not so much recruiting. I have yet to see anyone recruited through twitter or facebook, lol, though I do know of a potential sponsor who found us on facebook. I am trying to work out how we get the fan type page rather than an account, so that would get it working similar to twitter, though still I think the website is the better recruiter."
Former SWAFL President Jemma Still, set up the Facebook page for SWAFL at the start of January 2009 as a means of connecting with many SWAFL Players who had their own Facebook pages as well as former players as the league had no visible means of contacting them. Facebook was chosen as a vehicle to let past and present players upcoming events such as last year's Best and Fairest / 10th Anniversary Dinner of SWAFL. Jemma said "Even if only five people are interested in the message that I'm sending and then acting on it, it's an extra five people that are thinking about women's football. Given it's free, widely used, easy to navigate around and not intrusive, it's the perfect medium through which to communicate." The future role of social networking sites may be to separate the difference between the personalised communication that can be delivered through social networking sites which may contain lively discussion and the official SWAFL website representing the 'voice of the league".
The attraction for these clubs is to personalise the communication with fans. This is also being replicated at the elite level of AFL.
Melbourne CEO Cameron Schwab is a prolific twitterer (@CamSchwab) about his Dees, and says the reaction from fans has been terrific. "I think it personalises the communication - it's more direct, it's more accessible," he told afl.com.au. "You can bring out the personalities of the people doing the communicating, as well as articulate the message. "Of course, you've got to try and do that in 140 letters, which is a bit challenging.
"With Twitter you can be quite opportunistic; it's like SMS-ing the world.
"Being able to attach photos is great - we had our draft induction, and I took a quick photo of the boys and sent it out, and people like that." North Melbourne is another club that is trying to leverage the social media revolution for all it's worth, going at it flat-out through the 2009 season. Media and communications manager Heath O'Loughlin says it will take a while before people realise just how much information is being put out by the club. "It's something that over time is going to benefit us," he said.
"Initially it's going to take a little while for people to get their head around just how much access there is to our club. "We think we'll be able to generate more supporters, because current supporters and members will be telling other people: 'North Melbourne, this is what they do for us - they open up the club, we find out the news as it happens and we don't have to wait for the six o'clock news or the paper the next day, we can find out automatically from the club'.
The AFL was unable to provide a comment for this story because it has a working group in progress that is looking at the impact of social media on its organisation as a whole, and which is expected to report early in 2010.
In the US, so often the trailblazer for this sort of matter, plenty of issues have arisen. The NBA issued an edict banning players from tweeting from the bench during games, and all three major codes now have strict policies in place regarding communications blackouts before and after games, in part to protect the rights of their broadcast partners. It's about retaining and restricting the flow of information, but it is likely to be a losing battle, because the goalposts have moved - the old paradigm of news coverage has changed, and the genie won't go back into the bottle.
Early in December, NFL Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver (think key forward) Chad Ochocinco tweeted: "My knee is stupid swollen [sic] and I can't freaking walk right, headed into treatment right now , I am so pissed!". Another example is of Australian Test batsman Phillip Hughes annouces his dropping from the Ashes test match in 2009 on Twitter before the offical release of the team makeup.
Any AFL coach would have fits if one of his players told the world that mid-week, but Schwab was remarkably sanguine about it.
"Well, it's the truth, isn't it?," he said with a laugh about Ochocinco's tweet. "Our players communicate with our supporters every day of their lives, so it's just a mechanism for that. "If any communication is inappropriate, that's just a learning experience. "We won't discourage it at all - they just need to understand that it's Nathan Jones, footballer (@nathan2jones) as well as Nathan Jones, person, so there's that notion of responsibility that comes with it. "But I like it, and I think our people like it." O'Loughlin, who has added a section on social media into his player training manual, agrees that players need to be sensible.
"That's definitely one of the problems that it poses, and as a media and communications manager you have to educate your playe
"You need them to be onboard, and they have to use a little bit of common sense as to what they can and can't write, and what photos they should post. "They're not just a Joe Blow in the public forum, they're a star in the AFL, they're in the public arena, and people are interestedin everything they say and write."
The following has been the sole opinion of the writer and may not necessarily represent the views of SWAFL or any of the clubs represented . Thanks to Jemma Still, Janine McGlynn, Lisa Roper and Katrina Byrne for assistance in the production of this article.
Last Modified on 23/03/2010 11:20