In the age of social media marketing, the fusion of digital presence and sports has sparked dynamic opportunities for sports personalities and clubs.

Mtaa Wangu interacts with the Nakuru Rugby Football Club (Wanyore) Social media Manager to understand how leveraging social media can boost sports

Wanyore social media lead, Asienga Amunga, explains the importance of having social media presence;

Building Athlete brand.

Social media following can be a great tool to build the athlete’s brand. In turn, this can be utilized on social media marketing and advocating for behaviour change.

Market trends have indicated that companies are scaling up on their budget for social media influencers, which is an area where sports men and women can venture into and make money from their talent. Social media can create stars out of players.

Empower upcoming sports men and women

Talent visibility is important for sports personalities. As this is done, it inspires the new crop of sports men and women in society. The empowerment stretches beyond the players and wholesomely impacts and shapes new talent.

As a community club, our social media presence not only serves the club but the community. This is what inspires the young children in the community to join rugby to some extent.

Enhance fans engagement

Social media allows fans to engage in real time allowing them to tap into the culture of the club. As Wanyore we have a loyal fan base ‘mnyore’ who interacts with nearly all activities of the club.

Above and beyond, sports is meant to be enjoyed. By creating an online fandom, we create a community of people who appreciate the club and its activities.

Secondly, online presence allows for fans to interact with players and get to know them outside the field. Wanyore as a club is leveraging TikTok, Instagram and Facebook to showcase different aspects of player life outside the field, and Linked in for the professional outlook of players.

Driving ticket sales

Great social media presence can be leveraged to drive ticket sales during sports events. The online presence means more visibility which can translate to sales at times. Returns made from this sale can be used to support players and day to day activities of the club.

Affiliate marketing

Sports clubs utilize their social media spaces to market businesses that we get into partnership with. This can be done by having the sports men and women as the brand ambassadors of a product or service.

Owing to player influence, they stand a great chance of offering personalized product promotion and advertising.

The clubs can utilize their social media presence and that of its players to offer marketing services to companies.

How Wanyore use social media to promote club's visibility

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Purity Kinuthia