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SFA And Scottish Clubs Are Hitting Social Media Goals!

Date: 30th March 2018

By Scott Johnston, Editor of The Footy Blog & DP for Full Time Films.

I think that there’s a real buzz surrounding Scottish football at the moment. I think a big part of that could be down to social media and how it’s being used within our game.

In the last seven days the Scottish Football Association (SFA) have been constantly promoting on their social media channels and they’ve produced some great content.

I felt the video interviewing Scott McTominay was a good way of introducing the midfielder to the Tartan Army. He spoke well and enthusiastically about his call-up. The clip was viewed more than 60,000 times on Twitter.

We also had the SFA sending out a podcast that included two current players in the squad, some nice graphics explaining traffic info and tweets that explained the things fans could do before the game like face painting and enjoying a show by pipers.

The national team instagram is also a hive of activity, with plenty of nice pictures from the senior team, the women’s side and the youth set-ups.

Talking of pics, the new Scotland away kit was recently released and again social media was used to gain as wide an audience as possible with all channels (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat) being used. The yellow strip has been well received, although the price is a bit steep.

I also have to give the SFA credit where it’s due when it comes to the women’s teams. I said a few months back that they didn’t give the female side of the game enough exposure but that has changed dramatically recently.

They were front and centre in the away kit campaign and we’ve seen plenty of pics on instagram and tweets about the women’s senior home game against Poland next month. I believe that has led to more people discussing the game and hopefully the attendance at St Mirren Park on the 10th of April will be higher than it has been in the past. A Facebook post about the game against the Poles received 91 likes within eight hours.

As I’ve said in the past, I believe that the women’s game in Scotland is on the cusp of something important and it’s great to see our national association taking it seriously and promoting it on all of their social media outlets.

It’s not just the SFA that have been impressing on the Social Media front, the Scottish clubs have been at it too.

Obviously the Old Firm sides have slick, well oiled Social Media departments providing great content and engaging with their support.

Yet sides like Kilmarnock, Aberdeen, Hibs and Motherwell have also been producing highly polished text and digital communication.

Earlier in the year, Motherwell spoofed Man United’s video of the Alexis Sanchez signing. It was great, went viral and hit 70,000 views on Youtube.

When Partick Thistle introduced the world to their new mascot in 2015, it soon became an internet sensation. Thistle couldn’t have believed the worldwide exposure that followed at that’s mainly down to people talking about it on Social Media.

Killie have been enjoying a fantastic season on the park and attendances have improved but the club have also impressed on the social media front.

Kilmarnock Media Officer Scott McClymont believes interaction with the club’s support is vital:

“The days of one-way communication between a sporting institution and the fans are gone and so it’s important to recognise and engage with supporters through social media and make them feel part of the club.

Constant engagement allows us to create excitement and enthusiasm for tickets, matches, merchandise and much more. An engaged fan base also makes the club more appealing to sponsors and creates greater opportunities for revenue generation.

Social media helps build a pride and connection that make lifelong fan-hood possible. It’s important for us to listen and be seen to be listening to feedback. Kilmarnock, as with other sports clubs, have a huge advantage as we have an engaged audience who want to interact with us and our players.”

As well as the glossy videos and pictures involving the first team, the club’s are also quick to promote charitable efforts, side businesses that help generate income, community based projects like kids training camps and travel information for their fans.

Scottish clubs have seen the importance of social media and embraced it. That’s why so many now have Supporters Liaison Officers (SLOs) and their job is enhanced with strong Social Media skills. By constantly communicating with supporters, the SLOs offer a strong viable link between the support and those running things at the clubs.

Personally, I think it’s brilliant that Scottish football is now truly embracing Social Media. I believe the great content keeps fans interested and will hopefully bring more people to the stands and keep them there!

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