Tweeting is no longer just for the birds, or just for the marketing department. Several general managers and industry leaders have come on board, using their status as public figures to reach out to fans.
Dean Dennis of Owensboro (Ky.) Convention Center (@wdeandennis) started his account at the behest of the marketing department after hearing about it at a Global Spectrum GM meeting.
“I made an account, but didn’t really do much with it until the Marketing department badgered me,” said Dennis, who added that he’s a pretty private guy and doesn’t make personal posts, instead talking about activities at the facility or local events.
GM Karen Totaro at Atlantic City (N.J.) Convention Center (@KarenChiTown) started tweeting a few months ago out of the desire to be part of social media. Also, as first vice chair of IAVM, she wanted a way to instantly connect with the membership.
When it comes to personal posts, she sticks with “generic personal.”
“I’m a huge Chicago Bears fan and a Bob Seger fan, so I’ll talk about things like that, but I don’t get too personal or describe where I am,” she said. “It can go out to such a big audience, so I’m cognizant of that.”
“It’s work, it’s IAVM, and it’s family, too — it has to cover all of those and be appropriate,” she added. Totaro said that now the biggest challenge is making sure she tweets on a more regular basis.
Jeff Nickler (@JEFFVMIAMI), GM for SMG at BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., has a strategy for making sure he posts enough. After concerts he’ll search the venue’s hashtag (#RocktheBOK) and retweet a few great posts from fans. Sometimes concerts don’t end until 3 a.m., leading to some late-night tweets.
President & CEO at IRG Sports + Entertainment Jason Rittenberry (@JMRittenberry) is no stranger to early-morning messaging.
“My twitter is probably one-third personal, one-third specific to my company, and one-third industry related,” he said. In a typical week he’ll retweet news from IAVM and industry publications including @Venues2Day, post things about @IRGSports, and throw in some personal musings.
“Those that are after 10 p.m. are typically the personal ones, because all the good stuff happens between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m.,” he added. Rittenberry oversees and has access to 13 different Twitter accounts including those for all of his properties and racing series.
In addition to getting too personal, there are certain things that GMs won’t tweet about — if they don’t like a particular artist or song, for instance.
“Opinion wise it can affect the reputation of your building, even if you say that your account doesn’t necessarily represent the views of the facility,” said Dennis.
Allen Johnson (@ajavcfe), director of Orlando Venues, said that he doesn’t think the name ‘social media’ fits anymore — “it’s interactive media.” Though he doesn’t keep a second screen with his Twitter feed up at all times, Johnson does use the platform so much that he’s including his Twitter handle on his new business cards.
For David Farrar (@drockske), Santander Arena and Santander Performing Arts Center GM for SMG in Reading, Pa., the most exciting and impactful posts are the ones that get picked up by artists. He’ll often tweet a quick post tagging the artist to thank them for coming, or in anticipation of hosting them.
“When the artist starts picking it up people start seeing the posts and paying attention,” said Farrar. “It feels somewhat personal that they are excited to come to the arena.”
President of Staples Center, Nokia Theatre and L.A. Live in Los Angeles Lee Zeidman (@LeeZeidman) uses Twitter to directly interact with fans and runs contests. He also posts behind-the-scenes snapshots and information.
“As I’ve gone through my career, people have always been fascinated with photos or observations of how arenas work, from conversions to the making of the ice,” he said. “I thought, maybe I’ll start tweeting and give people a backstage view of what it actually takes to run venues.”
Interviewed for this story: Dean Dennis, @wdeandennis; David Farrar, @drockske; Karen Totaro, @KarenChiTown; Allen Johnson, @ajaycfe; Jason Rittenberry, @JMRittenberry; Jeff Nickler, @JEFFVMIAMI; Lee Zeidman, @LeeZeidman