Masaku 7s is a rugby tournament has become quite popular thanks to social media. Last year, thousands attended the tournament and I’m quite sure it was because of the conversation it generated on Twitter and Facebook. What it lacked, ironically, was the proper coverage of the actual rugby tournament on social media because you could be sure nobody seemed to care about the scores.
To rectify this so as to care for the true fans of rugby, the organizers can use these popular social media platforms effectively to show the action on the ground:
1. Instagram
Instagram is perfect for photos and videos. The organizers could have professional cameras take quality shots of the rugby action and have a separate camera where the people attending can take selfies to be uploaded on the official Instagram account. Instagram videos are usually short (15 seconds) so they are perfect to show celebrations, snippets of an upcoming match, short interviews, replays of a try scored and the best comments from the fans. Instagram has a higher engagement rate than any other social media platform and this will make people who could not be able to attend the tournament feel like they have not lost any action.
Also, from its latest update, Instagram made it easy for its users to easily track specific hashtags so if the official hashtag is #Masaku7s, people from all over the world will be able to view the videos and pictures from the tournament.
2. Periscope
Periscope is a live-stream service owned by Twitter. Live-streams are more effective than videos when it comes to tournaments because they make the people watching the live-stream connect & follow better the action on the ground. Also on live-streams, anything can happen unlike videos where it can be edited later.
Just like Instagram videos, Periscope can be used effectively by the organizers to live-stream interviews of players & interview fans on the ground so as to build hype. These live-streams can be easily announced on Twitter so as to engage online fans to the tournament.
However, it may be difficult to moderate content generated by fans on their periscope accounts if for example they livestream content that could tarnish the brand of the tournament.
3. Snapchat
Snapchat may not be as popular as let’s say Twitter or Facebook but it may come in handy for Masaku 7s. Fans can upload snaps (a picture or video) of an event in the tournament and your friends can be able to see it in the stories page. The best way to use Snapchat for these kind of tournament is having the organizers open a Snapchat account where they can upload the snaps from the tournament. One cool thing about Snapchat’s geo-filters where snaps can be tagged to a specific location via special filters but this feature is not available in the country. However, Snapchat still is an avenue that can be used well to highlight events that are happening at Masaku 7s, especially from the fans view.
4. Vine
Vine is a service owned by Twitter where you can upload or watch 6 second looping videos called vines. Just like Instagram videos, the organizers can use Vine to highlight provoking moments on the tournament like an unlikely try, celebrations or a remark made by a player. Since vines can be shared easily on Twitter, they can be effectively used to showcase the most memorable events from the tournament.
