ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays are one win away from advancing to the franchises first World Series since 2008. But, it’s been a strange season without fans at the game amid the coronavirus pandemic.
That’s where the Rays social media team has really stepped up their game to connect with their fans.
“First and foremost, COVID has impacted every aspect of the game,” said Eric Weisberg, Rays V.P. Marketing and Creative Services.
That is certainly true on the field and off the field where we see fan cutouts in stadiums all over the country.
The Rays marketing team re-evaluated how they engage with their fans when fans were not allowed to attend games.
“Social media has been that lifeline,” Weisberg said.
The team has two people that solely focus on social media: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok.
“In terms of impact, our Twitter engagement, we are first in the Major Leagues in engagement throughout the season,” Weisberg said. “Our Instagram stories, we’ve been doing a lot of Q&A’s, behind the scenes to lift the veil to see what it takes to make the organization click.”
These social media accounts are in a high-speed environment, especially Twitter. Once they hit send, the lifespan of a tweet is about 18 seconds. New content is essential.
“We have a really strong social team that stays on top of pop culture and the top trends that are out there to really make an impact,” Weisberg said.
Over the last few years, the social media team made a change in their voice. They transitioned from factual content to audience engagement.
“The way the social world is going, it’s about the brand and really who we are,” Weisberg said. “Maybe it’s something on the field or the social issues that we are dealing with. We are always going to be part of that. It’s who we are.”
And right now, @raysbaseball has a spike in followers.
“Winning helps.”
