Even though the NFL playoffs have yet to begin, post-season football is on the mind of fans nationwide. Especially for us Packer fans!
Many teams have already grabbed their spot in the playoffs; other teams are very close. The Green Bay Packers clinched the NFC North and assured themselves of a home playoff game after defeating the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
The San Francisco 49ers beat the New England Patriots to earn a spot in the playoffs as they continue to chase the NFC West crown. Teams like the Atlanta Falcons were in the playoffs prior to Sunday while others have continued to battle for a postseason spot with two weeks remaining in the regular season.
But while many fans enjoy watching their favorite team on weekends, the NFL is certainly a business-first league – one that’s highly successful. Much of that success comes from an organization’s ability to market itself. Many different tactics have driven business success, but teams recently have been utilizing the power of content marketing to further engage with fans, increase loyalty and ultimately generate increased sales through game tickets and merchandise.
The NFL certainly understands what it takes to attract a market, and many teams do it well. The following five NFL teams have developed and utilized content marketing tactics and are doing it well.
1. Green Bay Packers: The Green Bay Packers utilize Facebook to connect with fans. Articles are posted, photos are shared and videos are placed daily on the popular social media platform. The organization even runs contests with rewards and has a game day chat. Most importantly, the Packers link back to their website and other social media platforms.
2. San Francisco 49ers: Twitter is a widely used content promotion vehicle and the San Francisco 49ers are using it to their advantage. Company news, photos and videos are frequently shared. Game day Twitter chats are also a unique piece of the puzzle. The published content is timely, and hashtags are used to categorize tweets by keyword. San Francisco keeps it short and simple, making it easy for them to be found.
3. Buffalo Bills: The Buffalo Bills like to blog and do so frequently, often publishing more than one post a day. Their content is fresh, timely and updated frequently. It often includes photos, videos and links. They’ve done a nice job making their blog content social, allowing others to easily share it.
4. Arizona Cardinals: The Arizona Cardinals focus on Google+, a move that’s helped the organization connect all the important elements in search and social media and drive traffic to their website. The organization has placed the Google+ icon prominently on their website, linking directly to their Google+ page. The organization does a great job of sharing photos and categorizing its circles.
5. Jacksonville Jaguars: Pinterest has become a powerful visual content platform and is currently being used by the Jacksonville Jaguars. The organization has included the Pinterest badge on their website and uses other social media platforms to promote its Pinterest boards. Further, the most visually interesting material is placed front and center.
While these are only a few examples, the NFL as a whole has embraced content marketing to further engage with their fans. To learn how to further optimize your social media presence for your own content marketing efforts, check out our Social Media Optimization Playbook.
