2021 SHORTLIST

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DEVILS USE TWITTER TO EXPAND REACH

Entrant Company: New Jersey Devils

FINALIST

Outstanding Use of Twitter

Devils Use Twitter to Expand Reach

ABOUT THIS ENTRY

The Devils have been cultivating a uniquely New Jersey brand voice and identity on their digital platforms beginning in small spurts during the 2019-20 season. Twitter in particular provided the fastest path to deploying this new voice.

How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?

The internal benchmarks this seats for the Devils is to consistently be a top-half of the league team in total engagement, follower growth, and engagement rate on a regular month-to-month basis. While the club dealt with an unfortunate derailment to their season with it being placed on pause a second time due to COVID-19, the Devils were able to bounce back from the two-week layoff with no hockey. Since returning to the ice following the layoff, the Devils rank 15th in total engagement, despite having one of the lower follower counts in the NHL. The growth on Twitter has allowed the Devils to rank 11th in the league in aggregate engagement rank across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

Objective: The Devils have been cultivating a uniquely New Jersey brand voice and identity on their digital platforms beginning in small spurts during the 2019-20 season, but really taking off during the COVID-19 sports pause when sports teams had to work extra hard to engage with their fanbase. Twitter and Instagram provided the fastest path to deploying this brand voice. Twitter in particular made for the right platform with its quick-reply ability and news-at-your-fingertips style of feed. The overarching goals were to extend the brand’s reach, to build an expectation for our fans of what to expect from us, and to increase conversation, engagement, and follower growth. In particular, the Devils wanted to use this new voice to increase brand interest heading into the new season.

Strategy & Execution: In today’s digital world, the modern sports fan has everything they could possibly want at their fingertips. Twitter has become a primary conversational platform for fans to meet, engage, and become informed. The club’s brand voice has a quick-wit and snappy retort delivery, while it also has the malleability and adaptability to chime in on topics outside of hockey. Fans want to be entertained inside and outside the arena, on game days and non game days. The Devils twitter voice does just this.

Results:

During the pause, the Devils ability to transcend the sports world with their voice allowed for engagement to go on the upward trajectory heading into a unique season. As the 2020-21 season approached, the Devils wanted to build momentum heading into the season and through the first month, with on-ice performance proof social growth. From October 31 through the end of the first month of the season (January 31), the Devils had one of the top four most engaging posts in the entire league for that timeframe. The Devils also produced, remarkably, four of the top 10 most impactful Twitter posts across the league during that time period, meaning the club was able to have a very impactful and meaningful launch of the 2020-21 hockey season. Compared to the first three months of the 2019-20 season, the Devils on-platform engagement rate on Twitter has increased 168.8% for the opening months of the 2020-21 season.

PRODUCTION

New Jersey Devils
 
 

CREDITS 

Manager of Content
New Jersey Devils
 
Coordinator of Social Media
New Jersey Devils
 
Sr. Manager of Marketing Experiences and Content
New Jersey Devils

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