Hello readers of Buffalo Wins. My name is Alex Beilman and I am very excited to say that I am the newest writer/blogger/contributor/whatever you want to call it for BuffaloWins.com. I’ll tell you a little bit about myself. I was born and raised here in Buffalo and am currently a sophomore at Canisius College. I love the Sabres and the Bills (as I’m sure anyone reading this does) and I will be writing primarily about the Sabres and other happenings around the hockey world. That’s probably about all you guys care to hear about me. So, without any further delay here is my debut article “Why Twitter is a Good Thing for Pro Sports”. Enjoy!
When Twitter first started to catch fire as the hottest social media site since Facebook, I was one of the naysayers. I thought, “All this is a bunch of celebrities yammering on about their day, and a bunch of non celebrities yammering on about their day. Why should I care?” However, when I got my first smart phone, I found it was far more interesting than I could have thought; especially when it came to my two favorite sports, hockey and football.
The one thing about Twitter I found wildly useful was it helps fans keep up to date with the latest sporting news. On NHL trade deadline day, I would sit around for hours, refreshing my feed to see the latest trades Darren Dreger and Bob McKenzie were breaking to the public. I knew about Buffalo acquiring Brad Boyes before my Twitter-less friends.
It also opens doors and helps make connections. I came across buffalowins.com because of Twitter. I also recall when I tweeted something about the Sabres’ Ville Leino signing and a sports writer from Finland tweeted back at me about it and we had a nice a little three or four tweet discussion. That absolutely blew my mind.
Twitter has also enhanced the fan-player experience. It helps players spread their wings a little more and opens up a whole new group of marketable players. The best example is that of that Paul Bissonnette, or, as he’s known on Twitter @BizNasty2point0. On the ice, he’s your typical forth line enforcer. He doesn’t get a lot of attention, he doesn’t get a lot of playing time, and a lot of people probably think, “Who’s this scrub?” However, Twitter has made him a celebrity in the world of sports.
At the time I’m writing this blog, he has 117,220 followers. The Phoenix Coyotes probably haven’t brought in 117,220 fans over the last two seasons, but one of their 4th liners has that many people reading his very entertaining tweets every day.
This can only help the NHL, it’s hard to imagine that sales of #12 Bissonnette jerseys and customized “BizNasty” swag has not gone up by a lot. The NFL and NBA also have a large number of players on Twitter (most likely far more than the NHL) but on a large scale, it gives fans an inside look at their favorite players’ lives and it also increases player-fan interaction. I would bet that some guy in Miami would have to change his boxers if LeBron was bored one day and decided to respond to this guy’s tweet about him.
And we may be seeing the newest group flocking to the site: owners and GMs. Controversial Dallas Mavericks owner/super fan Mark Cuban has been a long time member. His being on Twitter is fantastic publicity for the Mavericks. Also, newer member Scott Howson, the GM of the Columbus Blue Jackets, is using the site to connect with the fans. How cool is it that he broke his team’s signing of forward Vinny Prospal to the public via Twitter?
Another prime example of executives on Twitter is Denver Broncos President John Elway. He often tweets about offseason activities and acquisitions. These three executives are beginning to set a path for others to join Twitter and get in touch with their fans.
There are certain people out there who think Twitter hurts pro sports. This group is probably made up of (some) agents, (some) GMs and (some) owners. The reason agents and front office staff don’t like it is because it gives their clients/players the opportunity to say something stupid. They probably have good reason to worry, as it has happened several times before. It is reported that the Buffalo Sabres have agreed as a team that Twitter creates an unneeded distraction during the season. So even though Sabres Nathan Gerbe and Marc-Andre Gragnani are currently on Twitter, don’t expect them to say much during the season.
Maybe it would be good for owners and agents to have a chat with athletes that while they’re free to say what they want, they still need to watch what they say. I think if that is established by owners everywhere, the player-fan experience on Twitter will only be further enhanced because it will make even more players feel comfortable in joining the red hot social media site.
There is absolutely no denying Twitter is a great thing for professional sports. On a broad scale, it really helps the fans feel closer to their favorite sports, teams, and players. It increases certain players’ marketability and connects these players to their fans on a whole new level. There are a few cons that you can use to argue the positive effect of Twitter, but, frankly, it’s not a strong argument. It’s a situation where the positives far outweigh the negatives, and it will only get better.
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