Recently, I was going through YouTube and watching some old videos of the show, Inside the NBA. It’s your typical sports analyst show it revolves around discussing the NBA. If you are a fan of basketball, you probably know the show. It wins its fair share of Emmy’s in addition to just being a staple of basketball culture.
Anyway, when I was watching some videos of old episodes, I came across an oldie but goodie. Please watch the video, I guarantee it’s worth it.
All those memes and gifs they aired at the end of the video were user-generated content. It was fans sending in their creations from Twitter. This is a perfect example of how a business (or show) can interact with its community and utilize user-generated content. Now of course, Inside the NBA has a huge advantage with its star power of Shaquille O’Neil and Charles Barkley, however, it should still show you the harmonious relationship that can be created.
The quality of the show is improved with the help of the audience. And together not only does the show get more entertaining, the audience is a part of it now. The icing on the cake was Shaq even offered $500 for the best gif which he would choose. To my understanding, he picked this one,
How Can Your Business Capitalize
Of course, your business probably does not have the reach and following that Inside the NBA does, but what you do have is the community. The internet is for everyone. What your business can do is participate and offer value as well. Create memes, make gifs. Most importantly, don’t do it about yourself. You have to give value before you receive it.
What I mean is if you own a donut shop and you want to participate in the Shaq falling meme contest, don’t make it blatantly about your company. Yes, you can add a donut flair. but don’t force it. Just have fun with it. Over time people will notice that you are here to be an equal player, not to sell.
That’s where the key is. Every business wants the community to submit their content but has your business contributed any content to anyone else? When there was a hashtag discussion or a local business was having a discussion, were you contributing at all? If you weren’t, what are the chances someone will contribute content to you?
