"No, YOU'RE Crying": How Two Schools Turned a Cinderella Experience into Social Media Gold

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No, YOURE CryingHow Two Schools Turned a Cinderella Experience into Social Media Gold#mcs7





Assistant Director, Enrollment CommunicationsStony Brook University Social Media Coordinator for @stonybrooku Enrollment Management/Marketing & Communications 17+ years in Student Affairs/ Enrollment Karaoke: Pour Some Sugar On Me@cdorsoChris DOrso Online Marketing Manager, Communications & MarketingUniversity of Arkansas at Little Rock Social media for @UALR Digital marketing, web content/training Alum turned employee, 7 years at UALR Karaoke: 90s hits, Hall & Oates, Love Shack@meaghanfikesMeaghan Milliorn Fikes@kuratowa@lacydev

Top 100 university/Top 50 public. Big academic/research presence, but very small athletic presence

Seawolves Basketball

1999: Joined NCAA Division I, America East 2006: Finished 4-24, hired Steve Pikiell 2010: 22-10 (1st), lost in semifinals by 7 (BU) 2011: 15-17 (5th), lost title game by 2 (BU) 2012: 22-10 (1st), lost title game at home by 8 (UVM) 2013: 25-8 (1st), lost in semifinals by 2 (Albany) 2014: 23-9 (2nd), lost title game at home by 9 (Albany) 2015: 23-12 (2nd), lost title game by 1 (Albany)

2016: 26-6 (1st)

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Mbb struggled mightily at the beginning, but became a league powerhouse who just... couldnt... get over the top.

Went from tiny gym during reconstruction to BEAUTIFUL brand new arena

#20 Jameel Warney, now a Dallas Maverick

#10 Carson Puriefoy, now playing in Latvia#mcs7

This years seniors last shot!

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Game time came, and things got rough early, down to a Vermont team that had beaten us repeatedly.

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But we werent the only Cinderella story that week

University of Arkansas at Little Rock - UALR#mcs7#LittleRocksTeam #GoTrojans #BracketBuster

The other Cinderella school is UALR the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

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UALR is located in Little Rock, in the heart of the state. We are NOT the University of Arkansas and we are not the Hogs. Our school does not have a football team, and because of this we often get overlooked when it comes to sports.

Trojan Basketball 2015: New Athletic Director hired youngest Division 1 AD in the country New coach hired Rebrand from UALR Trojans to Little Rock Trojans March 2016: Finish regular season with program-record 27 wins Has nation's best record at 27-4 Coach Beard named Sun Belt Coach of the Year Wins Sun Belt Conference tournament (70-50) Secures teams fifth NCAA Tournament bid in program history, and first since 2011.

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Sweet 16 Wasnt So Sweet

March 19: 12th seed Little Rock lost to 4th seed Iowa State, 78-61March 25: Coach named District 24 Coach of the YearMarch 28: Coach Beard resigns for UNLV

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So, what did we learn?

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What did we learn?Planning is key Content is, well, also key You dont have to be everywhere (or do you?) Winning isnt everything Take advantage of the unexpected moment

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PlanningCalendar! Know whats hitting, when its hitting, and where its hittingPlan everything you can, across all mediaBring in all key constituents

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Sbu met Tuesday before our final, Saturday afternoon right after the final, and then again on Monday before teams left on Tuesday. Then met again on site in Iowa on Thursday.

Bring in all key constituentsAsk for help ahead of time photographers, videographers, student workers, writers, etc. You cannot be everywhere at once.

Plan for backup make sure everyone knows the correct logins/passwords; re-train necessary people

Make sure youre all on the same page!#mcs7

ContentKnow what kinds of content resonates with your audienceEvergreen stories repurpose appropriatelySocial media is supposed to be fun!

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You dont have to be everywhere Make sure youre always with the team! Or, stay home! Spoiler: both options work

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Going? Or staying?

Inside look at the sceneCoverage that athletics wont getCosts involved budget!

Had time to prepare posts and be on top of thingsBut lacked ability to be right there in the action had to rely on boss to text me pics#mcs7

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Going? Or staying?

Inside look at the sceneCoverage that athletics wont getCosts involved budget!

Had time to prepare posts and be on top of thingsBut lacked ability to be right there in the action had to rely on boss to text me pics#mcs7

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Winning!Winning is awesome, but it isnt everythingThe NCAA Bump

Source: https://www.collegeraptor.com/blog/college-trends/september-madness-how-the-ncaa-basketball-tournament-predicts-drives-college-enrollment-trends/#mcs7

Little RocksBig Fan

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About two days later- Coach Chris Beard called and left message for Charlie.

Someone at UALR could have just hit like on one of the tweets and left it at that. The team has plenty else going on besides connecting with a fan who might never visit Arkansas.

But at every juncture, a group of people in Little Rock figured out - rightly - that there was a kid out there that was at that pivotal moment where he has a chance to connect with a sport. And they remembered that people - young ones, included - are what make sports fun. #mcs7

Storify:ualr.at/bigfan

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Take Advantage of the MomentThis is your time to shineThis is your moment in the sunDo not throw away your shot

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All eyes are on youHomepage banners/stories:Buy season tix!Enroll for summer! Buy a t-shirt!

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#mcs7stonybrook.edu traffic March 2016

Next time/ going forwardKnow you cant plan for everythingBe human have a sense of humorShare your successes!Gold mine of amazing human content

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Any questions ?

You can find us at@cdorso@meaghanfikesThanks!

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